Cosby v. Baio [1]

Andrew Baio, a blogger, posted a Bill Cosby comedy album in full as a tribute to Cosby. He also mirrored a video series, "House of Cosbys," which had appeared on online TV site Channel101 [2], but was taken offline after Cosby's lawyers threatened [3] Channel101 with litigation. (For more information, please see the CMLP Database entry [4] for the Cosby v. Channel101 Letter.) The video series tells the story of a Cosby fan who clones multiple Cosbys, each of whom has a special power.

In March 2006, an attorney for Cosby sent a cease-and-desist letter to Baio, indicating that the album was copyrighted and that the video series infringed Cosby's right of publicity in his voice, name, and likeness.

In a blog post about the cease-and-desist letter, Baio agreed that asking for removal of the comedy album was "within [Cosby's] rights," and he did so. He refused to remove the video series, however, asserting that it was "satire and parody" protected by the First Amendment. He also argued that there was no misappropriation of Cosby's name or likeness because that tort "only applies to unauthorized commercial use, and not a work of art or entertainment." Baio continues to host "House of Cosbys" and to link to several other locations on the Internet where it is available.