Derivitive Work

[uncle charlie]

this was explained to me as borrowed work used in a compilation to create one peice. Like using an image from a movie in your rock poster. Apparently you can be sued for doing this. Anybody know the legal mumbo jumbo on this?

[standard]

"Derivative Work definition: The Copyright Act defines a derivative work as based upon one or more preexisting works, such as a translation, musical arrangement, dramatization, fictionalization, motion picture version, sound recording, art reproduction, abridgment, condensation, or any other form in which a work may be recast, transformed, or adapted. An author's right to protection of the derivative work only extends to the elements that he has added to the work; he cannot receive protection for the underlying work. However, if the underlying derivative work is itself protected by copyright, then he will receive no protection at all; on the contrary, he is a copyright infringer, because in order to create his work he has copied the underlying work."

So basically, I guess copyright is copyright.

[philaarts.com]

are there any fonts/type that are copyrighted? like ones that you see alot in past/present posters?

[rotodesign]

Remember that Verve song, "Bittersweet Symphony?" The string backing was lifted from a record featuring orchestral versions of Rolling Stones songs -- they used the sample as the backing for their original composition, creating a derivative work. They wrote the song, but because of the uncompensated and un-approved sample, they got sued and had to cede all future royalties from the tune to the Rolling Stones. Elastica likewise got sued (and had to pay royalties) because they lifted riffs from Wire and the Stranglers, and created new songs around them. So, yes, you can potentially be sued for swiping a Planet of the Apes photo and creating a poster from it. The possibility of being sued increases exponentially when the art created from the "sample" is for sale.

[rotodesign]

Font copyright is weird. Digital font data, technical drawings and font names are copyrighted, letter styles are not -- I can create a font that looks just like Helvetica from scratch and sell it, so long as I don't use the original digital data or call it Helvetica.

Fonts are copyrighted in the sense that you don't own them, you license them -- so long as you follow the license (don't give it away to your friends, don't copy it to more than the alloted number of machines) you won't get in trouble.

[CramIt]

canada is currently the only country where you can actually copyright your letter forms.

[philaarts.com]

but, how could you really be nailed if you dont live in canada anyway (legally, not morally)..

wouldnt it only apply (for actual legal recourse) if both the copyright person and the person breaking the copyright are both in canada?

[philaarts.com]

XXOO TRIPLE POST YO

[philaarts.com]

XXOO TRIPLE POST YO

[DenisMutter]

Protected: Parody.

So if the poster in question is presented (or intended) as a parody of the original work, then it recieves protection, not procecution.


See also wired 11/2003, page 48 "A Fair User's Manual".