Netflix is now involved in an international lawsuit concerning the classic Italian film Bicycle Thief. Director Vittorio De Sica’s work is considered by many film critics to be one of the greatest films of all time. The movie has been in the public domain for over three decades because two parties that were involved in a dispute failed to renew the film’s copyright. The lawsuit that Corinth Films has filed acknowledges the 1985 ruling, but it points out that the judge in that time left open the possibility that a dubbed or subtitled version of the film might still be under copyright. The plaintiffs are seeking both an injunction and monetary damages from the defendants.
See Eriq Gardner, Netflix Hit With Copyright Lawsuit Over Classic Italian Film ‘Bicycle Thief,’ The Hollywood Reporter, October 22, 2015.
Special thanks to Brian Cohan (Attorney at Law, Law Offices of Brian J. Cohan, P.C.) for bringing this article to my attention.
