Court Rules NFL, Ravens Can Use Old "Flying B" Logo In Historical Videos, Exhibits

A federal appeals court yesterday upheld a decision that the NFL and Ravens could "use their former 'Flying B' logo to depict the team's history, lyrically defending the concept of fair use in copyright law in the process," according to Ian Duncan of the Baltimore SUN. The logo has been the subject of "numerous lawsuits filed by Frederick E. Bouchat, who has been credited in court as its original designer." But Bouchat has had "less luck turning his legal victories into payouts and has continued to sue." In the latest case, he "argued that the NFL and Ravens infringed his copyright in historical videos and an exhibit" at M&T Bank Stadium. A federal judge in Baltimore had "earlier thrown out the case, and on Tuesday a panel of appeals court judges agreed." The opinion "seized on the unlikely subject matter of videos about the Ravens' best and worst draft picks and the career of Ray Lewis as a vehicle to defend fair use, which offers a way for people to build or comment on copyrighted works" (Baltimore SUN, 12/18). The HOLLYWOOD REPORTER's Eriq Gardner noted Bouchat has "pressed on and on and on, and in the present dispute, he objected to use of the infringing logo in NFL Network documentaries, on NFL.com and in pictures in historical exhibits at the team's stadium." Gardner noted an example of a use included an episode of NFL Network's "Sound FX" show that focused on Lewis (HOLLYWOODREPORTER.com, 12/17).