MUSIC & DIGITAL MEDIA (Spring 2026)

  • Chris Bavitz (Harvard Law School)

Christopher T. Bavitz | Spring 2026 | Monday 3:45p - 5:45p | 2 Credits

This course explores a variety of legal issues relating to the creation, exploitation, and protection of music and other content. The course focuses on traditional legal regimes and business models and the ways in which new technologies (particularly the evolution of digital media and the Internet) have affected legal and business strategies involved in the making and distribution of content. The course’s primary emphases are music and the ways in which legal principles manifest themselves in practice in the music industry. The course builds off a discussion of music rights to address issues surrounding content rights in other contexts, and it reviews the ways in which traditional concepts and practices in this area are challenged by and evolving in the digital world. The course balances discussions of big-picture doctrinal, policy, and theoretical considerations with a focus on day-to-day legal and business practices and specific skills (transactional, client counseling, and litigation) that are relevant to practitioners in this area.

11 CHALLENGES TO THE PARADIGM: Law, Policy, and Business Transformations in the Digital Age (Spring 2026) 11 CHALLENGES TO THE PARADIGM: Law, Policy, and Business Transformations in the Digital Age (Spring 2026)

TOPICS Alternative approaches to artists’ financing / releasing music. Artist and songwriter royalties and digital services. Artist revenue streams. Proposed changes to the legal regime. Alternative compensation systems.

11.1 REQUIRED READINGS: Financing, Fan Engagement, and Crowdfunding 11.1 REQUIRED READINGS: Financing, Fan Engagement, and Crowdfunding

11.1.1. Cherie Hu, "How Technology Has Transformed, And Complicated, Music Fandom: Interview With Nancy Baym," Forbes (July 26, 2018)

Cherie Hu, "How Technology Has Transformed, And Complicated, Music Fandom: Interview With Nancy Baym," Forbes (July 26, 2018)

11.1.2. Amanda Palmer, "The Dirty Inbox of a Touring Musician, Revealed," blog.amandapalmer.net (May 15, 2010), read all

Amanda Palmer, "The Dirty Inbox of a Touring Musician, Revealed," blog.amandapalmer.net (May 15, 2010), read all

11.1.3. Amanda Palmer, "The Art of Asking," TED2013 (February 2013), watch

Amanda Palmer, "The Art of Asking," TED2013 (February 2013), watch

11.1.4. Jenna Wortham, "A Few Dollars at a Time, Patrons Support Artists on the Web," The New York Times (August 9, 2009)

Jenna Wortham, "A Few Dollars at a Time, Patrons Support Artists on the Web," The New York Times (August 9, 2009)

11.2 REQUIRED READINGS: Non-Fungible Tokens and the Blockchain 11.2 REQUIRED READINGS: Non-Fungible Tokens and the Blockchain

11.2.1. Kal Raustiala and Christopher Jon Springman, "The One Redeeming Quality of NFTs Might Not Even Exist," Slate (April 14, 2021)

Kal Raustiala and Christopher Jon Springman, "The One Redeeming Quality of NFTs Might Not Even Exist," Slate (April 14, 2021)

11.2.2. Frye, Brian L., After Copyright: Pwning NFTs in a Clout Economy (November 25, 2021). Columbia Journal of Law & the Arts, Forthcoming.

Frye, Brian L., After Copyright: Pwning NFTs in a Clout Economy (November 25, 2021). Columbia Journal of Law & the Arts, Forthcoming.

11.2.3. Frye, Brian L., Are CryptoPunks Copyrightable? (February 8, 2022). Pepperdine Law Review, Forthcoming.

Frye, Brian L., Are CryptoPunks Copyrightable? (February 8, 2022). Pepperdine Law Review, Forthcoming.

11.3 REQUIRED READINGS: Alternative Compensation Systems 11.3 REQUIRED READINGS: Alternative Compensation Systems

11.3.1. William Fisher, Promises to Keep, Stanford University Press (2004), Chapter 6: "An Alternative Compensation System," (CC BY 3.0), read pp. 1 - 22

William Fisher, Promises to Keep, Stanford University Press (2004), Chapter 6: "An Alternative Compensation System," (CC BY 3.0), read pp. 1 - 22

11.4 OPTIONAL READINGS (Spring 2026) 11.4 OPTIONAL READINGS (Spring 2026)

11.4.1. Lawrence Lessig, Free Culture, The Penguin Press (2004) (CC BY-NC 2.0), "Rebuilding Free Culture: One Idea," read pp. 282-286

Lawrence Lessig, Free Culture, The Penguin Press (2004) (CC BY-NC 2.0), "Rebuilding Free Culture: One Idea," read pp. 282-286

11.4.2. Amanda Palmer, "The new RECORD, ART BOOK, and TOUR," Kickstarter (Funding Ended May 31, 2012)

Amanda Palmer, "The new RECORD, ART BOOK, and TOUR," Kickstarter (Funding Ended May 31, 2012)

11.4.3. Creative Commons, "Defining 'Noncommercial': A Study of How the Online Population Understands “Noncommercial Use," "Executive Summary," pp. 10 - 13

Creative Commons, "Defining 'Noncommercial': A Study of How the Online Population Understands “Noncommercial Use," "Executive Summary," pp. 10 - 13