Taylor Swift's voice trademarks and what they mean for AI law

About this episode

The episode discusses Taylor Swift's trademark applications and their implications for AI law and celebrity IP protection.

Taylor Swift recently filed three trademark applications with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, including two sound marks for her speaking voice and one visual mark from her Eras Tour. The filings have drawn widespread attention for what they signal about celebrity IP protection in the age of artificial intelligence.Caitlin Byczko, an intellectual property attorney at Barnes & Thornburg's Indianapolis office, breaks down what Swift's applications are actually requesting, what legal hurdles they face, and why the outcome could set a roadmap for how celebrities, brands, and even everyday people protect themselves from AI-generated deep fakes and unauthorized voice cloning.Biscoe explains the difference between copyright, right of publicity and trademark protection, why sound marks remain rare and legally untested, and how the likelihood-of-confusion standard will determine whether Swift's registrations can hold up against AI platforms. She also addresses the international limitations of U.S. trademark law, the role of platform-level enforcement, and what Tennessee's 2024 right-of-publicity update signals about where state and federal regulation may be headed.For more legal news…

People in this episode

Host: Maura Johnson

Guest: Caitlin Byczko

Topics covered

• trademark law
• artificial intelligence
• celebrity IP protection
• voice trademarks
• legal hurdles
• deep fakes
• right of publicity

Keywords

• Taylor Swift
• trademark applications
• sound marks
• AI law
• intellectual property
• voice cloning
• copyright
• right of publicity
• legal challenges
• deep fakes

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Barnes & Thornburg

Places: Indianapolis, Tennessee

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