View Full Version : Does Blackbeard Signal the End of State Immunity for Copyright Infringement


Rick L. Allen
October 27th, 2017, 06:29 AM
State Piracy!
In Allen v. Cooper, Judge Boyle of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina found that photographer and videographer Rick Allen was entitled to sue the State of North Carolina for allegedly infringing his copyrights. Allen, and his production company Nautilus Productions LLC, have been the exclusive photographers of the shipwreck of Queen Anne’s Revenge – once captained by the infamous pirate Blackbeard – since 1998, shortly after the wreck’s discovery. Land Ahoy! Does Blackbeard Signal the End of State Immunity for Copyright Infringement? - copyrightalliance (http://copyrightalliance.org/ca_post/land-ahoy-blackbeard-signal-end-state-immunity-copyright-infringement/)

Cary Knoop
October 27th, 2017, 08:51 AM
I read the amended complaint at http://nautilusproductions.com/nautilus/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/20160307-D12-Amended-Complaint-Nautilus-Productions-LLC-Frederick-L-Allen-2.pdf

I am shocked they tried to get away with the violation by amending the North Carolina statue. And I wonder why did nobody at the administration figured out what was going on.

Were the YouTube uploads done through an account identified by a government agency or personal accounts?

Rick L. Allen
November 11th, 2017, 10:06 AM
The contested uploads were posted to the NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (NCDNCR) YouTube channel. NCDNCR wrote and requested the legislature pass the law.