It is said that imitation is the
sincerest form of flattery. It's also a real good way to make people angry, and
the Internet makes plagiarism oh so easy.
A house of straw
Three little pigs went to build their
web sites. The first little pig built his web site using graphics that he had
gleaned from other sites on the Internet. His content was cut and paste, word
for word from other sites and it only took him a couple of hours. The second
little pig was crafter. He carefully reworded much of the copy. He redid some of
the graphics and added his own. It took him a couple of days. The third little
pig worked long and hard to make his own graphics. He spent days writing and
rewriting his content. His web site took weeks.
Which one has the strongest foundation
when the big bad wolf comes calling? Don't build your web site on a house of
straw.
Copyright
Remember the first two little pigs?
Someday the big bad wolf's gonna send them a letter that might read something
like this:
We, {insert name}, do hereby give
notice to {insert name} of a violation of U.S.C. Section 501(a) as defined as:
"Anyone who violates any of the exclusive rights of the copyright owner as
provided by Sections 106 through 118... is an infringer of the copyright."
for {insert copyrighted material, URLs, descriptions, etc.}
Under the Copyright Act, we may be
entitled the following recourses:
1. Injunction, both preliminary and final, with
nationwide service and enforceability (Section 502);
2. Impounding and, in appropriate cases,
destruction of infringing articles (Section 503);
3. Actual damages (Section 504(b));
4. Profit of the infringer "attributable
to the infringement and ... not taken into account in computing the actual
damages," with burden on the infringer to prove deductible expenses and
elements of profit attributable to factors other than the copyrighted work
(Section 504(b));
5. Statutory damages subject to various
limitations. At any time before final judgment is rendered, the copyright
owner may elect to waive actual damages and profits and to request statutory
damages as determined by the court (Section 504(c));
6. Costs and attorney's fees, discretionary
with the court (Section 505);
7. Additional remedies, including criminal
sanctions under Section 506.
8. Failure to cease usage of said copyrighted
materials will result in legal action under The Copyright Act.
Summing it up
The reason we don't build our web
site's out of straw is because they need a solid foundation if we expect them to
grow. A solid foundation starts with original copy and graphics. Don't be a
pig.... be original.
For more information on United States
(and Canadian) Copyright Law:
Copyright law at freeadvice.com
http://FreeAdvice.com/
Copyright law in Canada
http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/
