A TV network creates a show called "Mary Hopper", about the adventures of an English orphan girl who receives a letter (delivered via pigeon) inviting her to an exclusive school for witches, where she learns magic and plays a game called Quoppitch. Is this copyright infringement? If so, why? Don't many works of art take inspiration from or build on the influence of prior works? When does this process of inspiration and influence cross the line into copyright infringement (if it does)?
A student in a college class makes a digital copy of a returned examination and posts it to a file sharing site. Is that a violation of copyright? Or of anything else?
A college professor holds a special evening screening of a contemporary documentary for 20 students in a seminar she's teaching. Is this a copyright violation? What if she holds the screening for a class of 400?
As part of a team working on a very large piece of software for Software Company A, you happened to create a set of functions (chunks of reusable code, each designed to do a specific task) that solve a particularly difficult and well-known problem. Later, you leave Company A and are hired by Company B, where you run into the same problem. Should you use the functions you wrote for Company A to solve Company B's problem? Is this a violation of copyright or professional ethics? Why or why not? What should you do to best serve Company B's interests while remaining ethical and legal?
How can we ensure that software, music, film, TV, and other media producers are fairly compensated for their work in the age of torrents and ubiquitous copying and file sharing? What should we do, if anything?