The French UMP party are being sued by the duo MGMT over the use of their song Kids. UMP paid a standard €53 fee to France's music licensing body, but MGMT's lawyer Isabelle Wekstein says that this was not enough to cover subsequent uses of the song, particularly on the Web. UMP has admitted using it, but said it was a mistake and has offered a symbolic gesture of one euro (£0.89). The story is getting more coverage as the UMP has been pushing hard for a 'three strikes law' that would banish pirates from the Internet after two ignored warnings, which may be close to passage in the French National Assembly.
posted by filthy light thief on Mar 1, 2009 - 14 comments

The French do some things well and, well, some things not so well. (see)
posted by pwedza on Oct 20, 2006 - 23 comments

Salman Rushdie defends fellow writer Michel Houellebecq, the autonomy of the literary text and its right to be considered on its own terms with characters of every sort.
posted by semmi on Oct 4, 2002 - 18 comments

Avoiding Wrongful Birth Lawsuits , ob/gyn's in France have decided just to "not know" about problems before birth. So, no more ultrasounds. Original wrongful birth thread can be found here.
posted by dwivian on Jan 10, 2002 - 4 comments