A lawsuit alleging that one creator stole another’s “aesthetic” could mean big things for the creator economy.
Creators Sydney Nicole Gifford and Alyssa Sheil began their professional relationship after meeting in December 2022, but things soon went sour after the former accused the latter of stealing her content style and appearance.
What is Sydney Nicole Gifford’s court case about?
More specifically, Sydney Nicole Gifford accused Alyssa Sheil of violating the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Gifford alleges Sheil posted videos using similar fonts, color schemes, camera angles, and even Amazon Storefront recommendations to her own.
As part of the suit, Gifford has also registered copyright for each of the videos she believes are copied and is seeking $30,000-$150,000 for “mental anguish” and loss of income. She also requested a preliminary injunction to remove the videos of Sheil that she believes are replicated.
What are lawyers saying about the case?
Speaking to Business Insider, lawyer and creator Kameron Buckner said this lawsuit could set a new precedent for the creator economy and lead to a new creator-focused area of law.
“This could change the game, honestly,” Buckner said. “I’ve been waiting for something like this to happen because we need some type of law that’s just for creators.”
But not all lawyers were optimistic about Gifford’s chances of winning.
“They have to show that whenever a user views content with this kind of branding, they only think of one specific creator — Gifford — but I see this kind of minimal, neutral tone aesthetic all the time,” lawyer Taylor Tieman told Business Insider. “Even I use it.”
But even if this case isn’t successful, it could lead to a domino effect of other creators bringing similar lawsuits.
“I’m expecting more cases like this to come up now,” he said. “It’s going to finally show that there’s a difference between entertainment law and social media and why we need to have our own set of rules.”
