Copyright Developments

Oh, the Mashups You’ll Stop!

In Dr. Seuss Enterprises, LP v. ComicMix LLC, Case No. 19-55348 (9^th Cir. December 18, 2020), the Ninth Circuit held that Oh, the Places You’ll Boldly Go! (“Boldly”)—ComicMix’s Star Trek-themed sendup of Dr. Seuss’s iconic Oh, the Places You’ll Go! (“Go!”)—was an infringement rather than a parody. In finding that all four fair use factors weighed in Dr. Seuss’s favor, the Ninth Circuit decisively reversed the lower court’s decision, which had held that Boldly was a fair use, that is, a permissible albeit unauthorized use of Go!