Copyright misuse

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Competition law
Basic concepts
History of competition law Monopoly and oligopoly Coercive monopoly Natural monopoly Barriers to entry Herfindahl–Hirschman index Market concentration Market power SSNIP test Relevant market Merger control
Anti-competitive practices
Monopolization Collusion Formation of cartels Price fixing (cases) Bid rigging Tacit collusion Product bundling and tying Refusal to deal Group boycott Essential facilities Exclusive dealing Dividing territories Predatory pricing Misuse of patents and copyrights
Enforcement authorities and organizations
International Competition Network List of competition regulators
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Copyright misuse is an equitable defence to copyright infringement in the United States based upon the doctrine of unclean hands.^[1] The misuse doctrine provides that the copyright holder engaged in abusive or improper conduct in exploiting or enforcing the copyright will be precluded from enforcing his rights against the infringer. Copyright misuse is often comparable to and draws from the older and more established doctrine of patent misuse, which bars a patentee from obtaining relief for infringement when he extends his patent rights beyond the limited monopoly conferred by the law.^[2]

The doctrine forbids the copyright holder from attempting to extend the effect or operation of copyright beyond the scope of the statutory right, for example, by engaging in restrictive licensing practices that are contrary to the public policy underlying copyright law.^[3] In fact, the misuse doctrine is said to have evolved to tackle such aggressive licensing practices.^[4]