“Let’s Go Thunder” Not Protected by Copyright

10th Circuit Court of Appeals holds that short phrases don’t have minimal creativity required for copyright protection.

We need not decide whether the general rule against copyrighting short phrases admits of exceptions based on the level of creativity because we easily conclude that the phrases “Go Thunder” and “Let’s Go Thunder” do not reflect the minimal creativity required for copyright protection. 4 The phrases are merely predictable variations on a cheer widely used in sports, that is, “Go” or “Let’s Go” combined with the name of the team for which the cheer is uttered.

Via Justia.com