I have been encouraged to focus on and relevant issues to my business plan and should reach out to industry experts in Advanced Entertainment Law. Considering all liability issues in entertainment law today that may impact my chosen field of career, I have conducted a phone interview with Mr. Allen L. Jacobi, a successful entertainment industry attorney and President of Pyramid Records. Mr. Jacobi and I were introduced two years ago through James Jackson, CEO and Founder of Slick Salt Entertainment in Miami, Florida during an interview as an intern.
During the phone interview, I posed several questions to him regarding his company and expertise in the entertainment industry. I used question/ answer format to conduct the interview with Mr. Jacobi.
How did you get started as a lawyer in the entertainment industry?
I got started early in my career when I opened my own practice “The Law Office of Allen Jacobi. My practice offer services that include film work representing independent producers and licensing of music for use in film. I represented the elements of what was known back then as the sound of Miami. I have been awarded gold and platinum records from such artists like 2 Live Crew, Inner Circle, Gloria Estefan, Marilyn Manson, The Miami Sound Machine and The Eric Clapton. I’m best remembered for my defense for the obscenity charges against 2 Live Crew in the late 80s. The case went worldwide and Miami’s cultural diversity also gave me the opportunity to work with such Jamaican artists, like the Bob Marley Foundation, Jimmy Cliff, Third World, Dennis Brown, Zap Pow and Yellowman.
What role do you play in the entertainment industry today?
Well, I’m the President of Pyramid Records and I’m a film and television industry attorney. I work with major studios and independent filmmakers. I represent newscasters, television programs and superstar actors in the entertainment industry today. I have spoken at different events as an expert in the entertainment industry: such as The Winter Music Conference, The Washington DC Music Forum, East Coast Music Forum, ASCAP Seminars, and other symposiums and music conferences. Also, I had several television appearances on The Geraldo Rivera Show, The Phil Donahue Show, VH-1, MTV, CNN, Good Morning America and been on national media from various news items. Throughout my careers, I have been quoted in newspapers and publications, such as The Miami Herald, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The London Times, Billboard Magazine and Rolling Stone Magazine. Therefore, my role in the entertainment industry varies.
What legal issues should I be aware of?
You should be aware of trademark and copyright ownership. The business comes down to one task. Basically, it comes down to management of assets. Sound recording masters are key and the ownership of those assets will be challenged in the near future.
“Beginning in 2013, the Copyright Act will allow authors to regain ownership of copyrights transferred to others 35 years after those transfers took place. This means that regardless of what agreement a recording artist originally struck with his record label, after 35 years he could potentially regain ownership of his sound recordings – creating a windfall for artists and depriving record labels of the important revenue that catalogue recordings generate,” said Allen Jacobi.
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