On January 28, 2020, Paul Bernstein and Carly Trainor published “Inspiration to Infringement: Copyright Issues in Scripted Entertainment Inspired by Song Lyrics” in Music Connection Magazine. The following is an excerpt:
MGM Television is developing Scenes from an Italian Restaurant, a television series based on the lyrics of Billy Joel’s hits. This is the latest endeavor by a studio in lyric-inspired scripted entertainment, following Heartstrings, a series inspired by Dolly Parton’s hits, Heart of Life, a pilot inspired by John Mayer’s song of the same name, and talk of a forthcoming series inspired by Plain White T’s “Hey There Delilah.”
But this begs the question: at what point does one need permission to create scripted entertainment inspired by song lyrics?
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