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Washington Law Review Online

First Page

38

Abstract

American copyright law is fluid. Its changes have mirrored evolutions in society, be they technological, cultural, or economic. At its core, copyright law exists to promote the progress of the arts and sciences; yet, the law’s outdated nature leaves many creations on the outside looking in. The last substantial copyright legislation to pass through Congress was the Copyright Act of 1976, which was nearly fifty years ago. Much has changed since, including vast technological improvements, new and emerging interests in American society, and now global economic drivers. One industry that meets these characteristics and is not currently afforded protection is sport.

Sport, at its core, is born out of creativity. Games that span the globe would not have evolved into a staple of daily life without the evolution of design, skill, and originality. Particularly in the National Football League, creativity plays a huge role in the game’s success. Coaches are tasked with drawing up complex play designs for their players, who then perform them on a high level. Sport, in many ways, is similar to choreographic works, a category of copyrightable subject matter under the 1976 Copyright Act. The two share many characteristics, including physical movement and compositional arrangement. Congress’s lack of definitiveness about the definition of choreographic works leaves room for interpretation of what really constitutes a choreographic work.

The sport industry, while already holding copyrightable attributes, has now evolved into a new form of expression. The National Football League’s launch into virtual reality in 2022 resulted in creative play designs crossing into the digital medium. Now, users at home can perform like real-life athletes with plays drawn up by real-life coaches. At its peak, the sport industry reaches into all sectors of American society. Virtual reality is the next frontier within intellectual property discussions and presents new opportunities to extend copyright protection to an industry that is long overdue for attention. This Comment aims at furthering copyright law’s goal of progressing the arts by extending protection to creative sport play design. By looking at the law’s history and its evolution through time, this Comment seeks to redefine the statute’s text, either by expanding already established forms of protectable material like choreographic works, or by expanding the law as we know it.

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