I made this
August 31, 2010 11:59 AM Subscribe
Can I make someone stop using an image I created when the image in question is a parody of another work?
I created a parody of a movie poster for our softball team in Adobe Illustrator (legal paid for copy). We hang the poster up at games and events. Now, another softball team in another league (in another state across the country) is using the jpeg of the image to represent themselves on Facebook.
Say we called ourselves “Fielders of Dreams” and say I recreated the poster seen here to a black and white silhouette type image like the minimalist movie posters by Olly Moss seen here.
Now, I really don’t care that the call themselves Fielders of Dreams, I’m sure there are plenty of other teams that use than moniker. I wouldn’t care if they had the same idea to parody the poster. I do care that they are using the exact image that I created.
I would appreciate that they recreate this on their own. Should I just ask them to do so? Do I have a case to submit a DMCA through Facebook? Is a parody enforceable? Should I just let it go and let them use my artwork?
I created a parody of a movie poster for our softball team in Adobe Illustrator (legal paid for copy). We hang the poster up at games and events. Now, another softball team in another league (in another state across the country) is using the jpeg of the image to represent themselves on Facebook.
Say we called ourselves “Fielders of Dreams” and say I recreated the poster seen here to a black and white silhouette type image like the minimalist movie posters by Olly Moss seen here.
Now, I really don’t care that the call themselves Fielders of Dreams, I’m sure there are plenty of other teams that use than moniker. I wouldn’t care if they had the same idea to parody the poster. I do care that they are using the exact image that I created.
I would appreciate that they recreate this on their own. Should I just ask them to do so? Do I have a case to submit a DMCA through Facebook? Is a parody enforceable? Should I just let it go and let them use my artwork?
Pretty sure that just because your work is a parody doesn't mean that others are allowed to copy it verbatim. You are entitled to ask them to take it down.
A DMCA claim seems to be taking it too far, IMHO, but you are probably legally allowed to try.
This sort of thing is probably not worth losing sleep over or paying a lawyer to deal with, though. Get Facebook involved in a legal process, and you might need a lawyer.
posted by jrockway at 12:02 PM on August 31, 2010
A DMCA claim seems to be taking it too far, IMHO, but you are probably legally allowed to try.
This sort of thing is probably not worth losing sleep over or paying a lawyer to deal with, though. Get Facebook involved in a legal process, and you might need a lawyer.
posted by jrockway at 12:02 PM on August 31, 2010
Write them a letter presenting yourself as the image creator asking what they're willing to pay you for use of the image, so that you can invoice them. Feel free to suggest an amount.
That should about do it.
posted by hermitosis at 12:19 PM on August 31, 2010 [2 favorites]
That should about do it.
posted by hermitosis at 12:19 PM on August 31, 2010 [2 favorites]
You do have copyright, and the protections it entitles from the moment of creation of any original work. A helpful FAQ about copyright. Registration of copyright is not needed, nor does it grant any extra rights. Your act of authorship gives you copyrights.
I would contact them in a well written letter, saying that this is your original work, they are not authorized to use it, and they need to stop using it.
If they continue to use it, send them an invoice. I like the sound of the line "Digital image for use on social media, licensed at a rate of $500 per week"
If they don't pay the invoice, you could file a small claims suit.
Welcome to graphic design!
posted by fontophilic at 1:13 PM on August 31, 2010
I would contact them in a well written letter, saying that this is your original work, they are not authorized to use it, and they need to stop using it.
If they continue to use it, send them an invoice. I like the sound of the line "Digital image for use on social media, licensed at a rate of $500 per week"
If they don't pay the invoice, you could file a small claims suit.
Welcome to graphic design!
posted by fontophilic at 1:13 PM on August 31, 2010
Keep in mind that the fair use exception for parodies only applies if the work is a substantially "transformative" parody of the original work. You could not use Field of Dreams to parody U.S. foreign policy, or to publicize your own baseball team, for example. The Olly Moss posters would probably not qualify as parodies. I doubt that Moss could successfully sue anybody for copying his work (unless he has licensed the IP from the studios).
I believe that there is some liability on your part if you send a DMCA take-down notice without owning the IP in question. If you don't have enough invested in this to justify asking an intellectual property attorney, it may be better to forget about the whole thing.
(Although IP law is one of my areas of interest, IANAL.)
posted by paulg at 1:41 PM on August 31, 2010
I believe that there is some liability on your part if you send a DMCA take-down notice without owning the IP in question. If you don't have enough invested in this to justify asking an intellectual property attorney, it may be better to forget about the whole thing.
(Although IP law is one of my areas of interest, IANAL.)
posted by paulg at 1:41 PM on August 31, 2010
I am not yet a lawyer, the following should not be relied on as legal advice, and I cannot be certain that I speak more authoritatively than paulg.
Keep in mind that the fair use exception for parodies only applies if the work is a substantially "transformative" parody of the original work. You could not use Field of Dreams to parody U.S. foreign policy, or to publicize your own baseball team, for example.
Although it's true that a "parody" of X must somehow criticize X -- ie, you can't hide behind the label "parody" if you're just sort of arbitrarily dragging in Field of Dreams to make some completely unrelated point -- parody is not the only form of fair use.
Fair use is a notoriously complicated calculation whose four factors would likely be forgiving toward most derivative works that had repurposed Field of Dreams to make a humorous political point or to publicize a local not-for-profit baseball team (I would worry more about trademark dilution, and I would not worry much about that).
The Olly Moss posters would probably not qualify as parodies. I doubt that Moss could successfully sue anybody for copying his work (unless he has licensed the IP from the studios).
Property rights are relative, meaning that even if you've taken property from somebody else such that they could sue you over the appropriation, you still have the right not to have that property re-stolen from you.
posted by foursentences at 3:00 PM on August 31, 2010
Keep in mind that the fair use exception for parodies only applies if the work is a substantially "transformative" parody of the original work. You could not use Field of Dreams to parody U.S. foreign policy, or to publicize your own baseball team, for example.
Although it's true that a "parody" of X must somehow criticize X -- ie, you can't hide behind the label "parody" if you're just sort of arbitrarily dragging in Field of Dreams to make some completely unrelated point -- parody is not the only form of fair use.
Fair use is a notoriously complicated calculation whose four factors would likely be forgiving toward most derivative works that had repurposed Field of Dreams to make a humorous political point or to publicize a local not-for-profit baseball team (I would worry more about trademark dilution, and I would not worry much about that).
The Olly Moss posters would probably not qualify as parodies. I doubt that Moss could successfully sue anybody for copying his work (unless he has licensed the IP from the studios).
Property rights are relative, meaning that even if you've taken property from somebody else such that they could sue you over the appropriation, you still have the right not to have that property re-stolen from you.
posted by foursentences at 3:00 PM on August 31, 2010
Welcome to graphic design!
As a part-time GD guy, I find that a very apt statement, fontophilic.
IANAL (although I know an IP Lawyer very well). Irrespective of whether *your* work is fair use, you own the copyright in your own work.
The problem (as PaulG alludes to) comes as to whether your work is actually your own or not. - From your description I would suggest that your poster is in fact a derivative work. Copyright protects the copyright holder and section 106 gives the copyright holder the exclusive right to create derivative works.
The IP Lawyer that I know tends to say this a lot : "What's the loss?".
i.e. in this case, are the infringers making some gain at your expense from this work?
The same lawyer also says "What's your exposure?"
i.e. in this case, if you bring this to a 3rd party's attention, what do you risk? Are you the owner of the copyright?
If things are as you have described, your best bet is to send them a note saying "Hey! I did that - can you at least credit me?" and chalk it up to experience.
posted by Metheglen at 3:39 PM on August 31, 2010 [1 favorite]
As a part-time GD guy, I find that a very apt statement, fontophilic.
IANAL (although I know an IP Lawyer very well). Irrespective of whether *your* work is fair use, you own the copyright in your own work.
The problem (as PaulG alludes to) comes as to whether your work is actually your own or not. - From your description I would suggest that your poster is in fact a derivative work. Copyright protects the copyright holder and section 106 gives the copyright holder the exclusive right to create derivative works.
The IP Lawyer that I know tends to say this a lot : "What's the loss?".
i.e. in this case, are the infringers making some gain at your expense from this work?
The same lawyer also says "What's your exposure?"
i.e. in this case, if you bring this to a 3rd party's attention, what do you risk? Are you the owner of the copyright?
If things are as you have described, your best bet is to send them a note saying "Hey! I did that - can you at least credit me?" and chalk it up to experience.
posted by Metheglen at 3:39 PM on August 31, 2010 [1 favorite]
Should I just let it go and let them use my artwork?
Yes. I can't even figure out from your question why you don't want them to use it. You might also consider asking them to credit you as the artist if they continue to use it.
posted by andoatnp at 8:18 PM on August 31, 2010
Yes. I can't even figure out from your question why you don't want them to use it. You might also consider asking them to credit you as the artist if they continue to use it.
posted by andoatnp at 8:18 PM on August 31, 2010
Please ignore part of the advice I gave above. This assertion --
Property rights are relative, meaning that even if you've taken property from somebody else such that they could sue you over the appropriation, you still have the right not to have that property re-stolen from you.
-- is correct in most contexts, but incorrect in the context of copyright law. Metheglen's account is correct.
posted by foursentences at 9:39 AM on October 6, 2010
Property rights are relative, meaning that even if you've taken property from somebody else such that they could sue you over the appropriation, you still have the right not to have that property re-stolen from you.
-- is correct in most contexts, but incorrect in the context of copyright law. Metheglen's account is correct.
posted by foursentences at 9:39 AM on October 6, 2010
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posted by theichibun at 12:01 PM on August 31, 2010