Copyright

[Fudge]

I read something the other night in some legislation (I think.....can't trace my google entries), and it was referring to copyright.

It was saying something along the lines that as there is no requirements for registrations of copyright, anything you spit out from the printer (or draw) i.e. houseplans, pictures, then they are copyrighted automatically once they are printed?

Does this make sense, and if it does, you would think that it would be very hard to prove this??...wouldn't it??

F

 

[InveSTAR]

Yes true there is no registration for copyright (only trademarking). All you need to do is put (C) copyright 2010 at the bottom of the text and its done.

 

[AlmostBob]

You dont even need a copyright symbol, its just there as a remidner.
all you need is to be able to prove the text is yours,

 

[Aaron Sice]

google copyright act 1986 and 2005.

in australia, your copyright is secured the minute you draw, write, type etc - not so in many other countries.

you can register an international copyright if you wish to profit globally from it, however, it is still VERY hard to enforce.

http://www.aaronsice.com.au/blog/copyright-infringement/

 

[csc2]

I deal with copyright issues weekly.........pretty much meaningless unless you have deep pockets to take anyone who is in breach of copyright through the wringer so it gets through to them that they are stealing...

my business has an international website...has been ranking highly in over 100 keywords and phrases for many years, many difficult phrases with 1-10 million competitors...

At least monthly we have people from around the world copying our website from front to back....

its an expensive exercise and difficult to control especially dealing with many countries laws (or lack of them)

we have been to court worldwide more than a dozen times...with one set to head that way again shortly in australia actually.

What type of copyright issue are you concerned about? website related issues, personal images online etc or just general design work you have done?

is it intellectual type property you have developed?

keen to know more before i could offer some basic advice on how you could tackle the issue economically.

 

[Aaron Sice]

I deal with copyright issues weekly.........pretty much meaningless unless you have deep pockets to take anyone who is in breach of copyright through the wringer so it gets through to them that they are stealing...

the fear of retribution is often enough..... not always, but often.

 

[csc2]

the fear of retribution is often enough..... not always, but often.

i wish that was true but not with china, bulgaria and many south american countries, rare for australia but we have had it twice, one withdrew before court, the current people are about to get a real shock when they see what we intend to take them along for.........peopleare absolutely intent on stealing anything of value to make a buck....

chinese manufacturers make billions from stealing patents and regularly breach copyright and intellectual property rights of businesses...its their favourite pastime...only the last two years is the govt there slowly cracking down just a little.

customs is the key with these countries, pay off customs officials and they will stop exports.....

i detest thieves with a passion.......thats exactly what they are...

 

[Aaron Sice]

i wish that was true but not with china, bulgaria and many south american countries, rare for australia but we have had it twice, one withdrew before court, the current people are about to get a real shock when they see what we intend to take them along for.........peopleare absolutely intent on stealing anything of value to make a buck....

chinese manufacturers make billions from stealing patents and regularly breach copyright and intellectual property rights of businesses...its their favourite pastime...only the last two years is the govt there slowly cracking down just a little.

customs is the key with these countries, pay off customs officials and they will stop exports.....

i detest thieves with a passion.......thats exactly what they are...

remember China is a country whereby everything is done for - and all thoughts are assimilated for - the greater good.

your idea is my idea.

 

[Piston Broke]

Writings, designs, pictures, trademarks are all different aspects of intellectual property, which is a very wide & complex matter.

And yes your intellectual property in Australia as covered from the time it is created, as long as it's original and different to anyone else's.
The onus is on the holder of that property to prove & show evidence that they are the original creator.

And to clarify AS's web page:
"potential profit" does not affect ownership of intellectual property. You own it wether or not you make profits from it.
And if you "started from scratch and ended up with something similar" does not necessarily mean your not infringing someone else's rights.

 

[Sunfish]

If you have an original painting on the wall, you own the painting but not the copyright. You can't sell prints but I think most understand this.

But if you wish to advertise the work for sale there are strict limits on the image you can display in the advertising copy.

 

[pennyk]

Even quotes for goods/ services can be considered copyright... we often have govt depts asking us to do a better price on a quote for the same product/service when one company has spent time preparing a quote. In our industry now, most people indicate on quotes that they are intellectual property.
Pen

 

[Fudge]

keen to know more before i could offer some basic advice on how you could tackle the issue economically.

Hi CSC2,

I am not currently doing anything with it, but was just interested in the notion, that no registration is required for copyright.

I find it a bit weird.....How can somone take you to court and prove that you have infringed copyright.

In Aaron's website, he mentions this..............

I’m not going to get into the appendices of the Copyright Acts – but the basics of it is this; if you’re taken to court over an infringement complaint, you must be able to PROVE that you started from scratch and ended up with something similar. Big ask – especially if all you have is a few newspaper clippings in your scrapbook and a cash transaction between yourself and your Architect and/or Draftsman.

With so many different house designs over the last few years, I would have thought it would be highly propbable that a cenceptual design you have come up with might possibly resemble one of many designer builders designs.

I assume that this sort of thing wouldn't be pursued in court, unless you were trying to profit from someone elses plans?

Cheers.

F

 

[redwing]

How do university students get around copyright with thier research and assignments?

Is it just by referencing data?

The worst culprits I've found are Safety people who believe anything Safety related shouldn't be copyrighted

 

[D.T.]

From quoting / referencing it. A student can never claim another students / authors / professionals work as his own. It's grounds for instant dismissal.

 

[redwing]

From quoting / referencing it. A student can never claim another students / authors / professionals work as his own. It's grounds for instant dismissal.

I had heard talk of percentages so checked on the ECU website

What you may be able to do without permission

Some copying is allowed if it relates to your course of study. Under the Commonwealth Copyright Act's 'fair dealing' provisions, students may copy a 'reasonable portion' of a work for your own research and study.

A reasonable portion is generally 10% or one chapter of a book, or one article from any one issue of a journal. Pictures, animations, graphics and diagrams may be copied for research and study. These resources can be in print form, or from electronic sources such as the web.

Research and study includes assessment, so you may include portions of works in your assignments, projects and thesis, provided that you properly attribute the sources and the author.

and

The Copyright Act 1968 allows free use of copyright work under prescribed conditions.

This is called fair dealing and covers the following activities:

• Research and Study (s.40 and s.103C)
  
• Criticism and Review (s.41 and 103A)
  
• News Reporting (s.42 and 103B)
  
• Judicial Proceedings or Professional Advice (s.43 and 104)

 

[Aaron Sice]

And if you "started from scratch and ended up with something similar" does not necessarily mean your not infringing someone else's rights.

to further that - the issue is "intent".

if you did not intend to infringe, but ended up doing so, a cease and desist order is all that's necessary.

if you intended to infringe, and is successfuly proven so (or you haven't been able to prove contrary) then we're talking problems.

but yes, thanks for clarifying.

 

[Aaron Sice]

With so many different house designs over the last few years, I would have thought it would be highly propbable that a cenceptual design you have come up with might possibly resemble one of many designer builders designs.

I assume that this sort of thing wouldn't be pursued in court, unless you were trying to profit from someone elses plans?

pretty much.

if you've been in and out of the one builder getting plans perfected, and then 'disappear', the builder will be watching your block to see if you've gone owner builder with their design.

sales reps get caught out by their own team if they try and bring another builder's design in for a tweak. i know one gent who got taken to the cleaners by Commodore Homes - and rightly so.

 

[Sim]

I had heard talk of percentages so checked on the ECU website

Note that there is no mention of percentages anywhere in the legislation. The "10%" thing is a broad rule of thumb often used, but isn't actually correct.

What is fair and reasonable very much depends on the content and the context.

Generally you should work on the basis of you can copy "enough" to achieve your purpose (ie for quoting or reporting, etc), and only if you reference the source, author, copyright owner, etc

... which is why we edit posts which just copy-and-paste an entire article down to just an introductory paragraph and a link to the source.

Copyright on works of art (including music) / technical drawings / etc ... is a much more complex topic.

There's a lot of good information at http://www.copyright.org.au/

 

[csc2]

Hi CSC2,

I am not currently doing anything with it, but was just interested in the notion, that no registration is required for copyright.

I find it a bit weird.....How can somone take you to court and prove that you have infringed copyright.

In Aaron's website, he mentions this..............

Using or copying someones art, work etc for education purposes is no problem, usually.....





With so many different house designs over the last few years, I would have thought it would be highly propbable that a cenceptual design you have come up with might possibly resemble one of many designer builders designs.

I assume that this sort of thing wouldn't be pursued in court, unless you were trying to profit from someone elses plans?

Cheers.

F

Very easy in fact...here is a prime well know example:

Car Freshner Corporation in the US regularly take those that breach trade dress on its "little tree" shape.....there are many cases world wide....as google search will soon confirm...They own this shape yet continually others will "steal" this shape for use as almost anything. I have actually seen Telstra use this shape in an advertising campaign print without approval.

Of course Car Freshner Corp have this shape patented almost world wide but it still does not stop many including from within
China producing this item.......where they come undone is when the goods are imported to the US....then the ***** hits the fan and litigation always commences.

The issue with our business regarding copyright currently is with a company in Australia who have stolen specific text, word for word plus images direct from our website...This company is in the same field as us...they refuse to remove hence we are happy to commence litigation to protect our interests...It has taken many years to develop our site and obtain constant quality rankings...we will protect our interest at any cost.

same goes for house design...If you steal someones plans or even a partial plan without approval then both you and the builder maybe liable if the design owner finds out....It has happened many times..one just last year in my area..finally settled out of court for a tidy sum.....

 

[Aaron Sice]

Note that there is no mention of percentages anywhere in the legislation. The "10%" thing is a broad rule of thumb often used, but isn't actually correct.

What is fair and reasonable very much depends on the content and the context.

Generally you should work on the basis of you can copy "enough" to achieve your purpose (ie for quoting or reporting, etc), and only if you reference the source, author, copyright owner, etc

... which is why we edit posts which just copy-and-paste an entire article down to just an introductory paragraph and a link to the source.

Copyright on works of art (including music) / technical drawings / etc ... is a much more complex topic.

There's a lot of good information at http://www.copyright.org.au/

the "recognition" of the source is usually made in terms of remuneration as far as builders go. if your copyrighted good or service holds a value, you can litigate for that value.

INTENT to infringe on copyright is a big issue and is certainly the case for CSC2.