I’ve seen Read Window about a million times. It’s my second favorite Hitchcock after ‘North By Northwest.” When I saw the trailer for Disturbia, I thought “oh, updated Rear Window.’ But that’s not the test for copyright infringement.
In Rear WIndow, photographer Jimmy Stewart is housebound due to a broken leg. He’s bored so he looks out his rear window at the windows of the apartment house across the yard. He witnesses a murder in one apartment, and, with the help of his girlfriend and (female) physical therapist, he attempts to ‘solve’ the case. In Disturbia, a teenager livng in suburbia, is housebound because he’s under house arrest (wearing a leg bracelet). The first twenty minutes seem to have been written and directed by a copyright lawyer, setting up why the kid is under house arrest. He sees what may be a murder across the street, and attempts to ‘solve’ the case with the help of his mother, his female next door neighbor (who is not his girlfriend) and male best friend.
There’s no question in my mind that the screenwriter of Disturbia saw Rear Window, and there’s no question in my mind that copyright lawyers reviewed the script.
The copyright owner of Rear Window has now sued the producers of Disturbia. The complaint does not seem to be on Justia at this time.

ArsTechnica: “100 Groups Demand To See Secret Anticounterfeiting Treaty“:

The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) is on a fast-track process as rich nations hope to wrap it up by the end of the year. Unfortunately for everyone who cares about the outcome, it’s midway through September, and no draft text has yet emerged. The secrecy and the delay have inspired many conspiracy theories, none helped by leaked sets of corporate “wish lists” and public comments making outrageous demands. A worldwide group of public interest organizations has now banded together to call on ACTA negotiators to open the process up to scrutiny and public comment.

WSJ.com: “Tech Guru Riles The Industry By Seeking Huge Patent Fees“:

Millionaire Nathan Myhrvold, renowned in the computer industry as a Renaissance man, has a less lofty message for tech companies these days: Pay up.
Over the past few years, the former Microsoft Corp. executive has quietly amassed a trove of 20,000-plus patents and patent applications related to everything from lasers to computer chips. He now ranks among the world’s largest patent-holders — and is using that clout to press tech giants to sign some of the costliest patent-licensing deals ever negotiated.

Not IP but interesting. A Michigan Republican allegedly says to a newspaper that Republicans will challenge voters based on foreclosure lists. The paper prints it, the Republican demands a retraction, the paper refuses, the Obama campaign brings a suit requesting an injunction against a ‘lose your house, lose your vote campaign.’ Ripeness issues?

Read this document on Scribd: Complaint Lose Your House