While some magicians have embraced the idea of “free” (see: “Ad supported”) content and are making bank on sites like YouTube and Vimeo, those who are actually selling traditional wares in a digital format are running into a problem that has plagued the internet since its infancy: piracy.

While it’s true that not everyone who pirates a piece of media was or is a potential customer, the ease with which even the most casual internet users can access repositories of pirated content is wreaking havoc on the bottom line of magicians who rely on tutorials, digital books or recorded performances to make their cash.

Enter Doug Isenberg, attorney at law. Isenberg spoke at MagiFest, Columbus, back in January about what magicians with an online presence can do to protect their intellectual property. More recently, he spoke to Scott Wells of magic podcast, The Magic Word, about the same topic. During a forty minute-or-so conversation, Isenberg gave out some solid advice on intellectual property laws, copyright, and what elements of a trick it can protect. The conversation starts about seven minutes in. 

It’s not the sexiest of topics, to be sure, but a magician’s gotta’ eat. You can listen to the interview on The Magic Word’s website, iTunes, Stitcher, or subscribe to the RSS feed.