My poster just got ripped by a French promo crew >:(

[alaskab]

So some promotional group in France is promoting a show on th 26th of February, ironically including a band from Montreal that I know personally, and ripped my image off of gigposters (GigPosters.com - Black Feelings - Grand Trine - Milano Kovacs), erased my text and my signature, wrote some bullshit on it and posted it on myspace.

I've already sent them a message telling them I will pursue legal action (which they so far appear to be ignoring) and asked myspace to at th least take it down (it's so lo quality a rip that they can't print it out or anything), but they are waffling on the digital millenium copyright act crap.

My lawyer has advised me that if I made a complaint in Canada, under the Berne Convention they'd still be held responsible in France. He has also sent them a cease & desist message.

I guess I'm just posting it because I want to make it known that this group (WE WANT YOUR MIND !!! on MySpace Music - Free Streaming MP3s, Pictures & Music Downloads) are a bunch of rip-off turds, that you shouldn't do posters for them and I'm wondering if anybody has any experience with this happening and has some advice as to how to proceed?

I wish i had dealt with this sooner but i was in th hospital for th past week or so just to add insult to injury. I mean, if yr gonna rip an artist off to make a gig poster DON'T rip it off from a gig poster

-alaska B


My Poster:



Their pathetic rip off:

[MaximumFluoride]

It's probably the end of the world.

[alaskab]

yeah i realize it's not a huge deal, i'm not looking for $$$, just a bit of shaming. i just think it's so pathetic.

[dspring]

happens daily... you can get bent out of shape, take it as a compliment or just shrug it off... someone ripped one of mine off and submitted it on here... what am I going to do, sue a small band that doesn't even have enough money to have someone make a poster for them? whatevs

I mean really... did you pay your lawyer to send the letter... because you are probably shit out of luck getting any money back... they may take it down and I guess you win

[VonDada]

Shoot zem. Shoot zem, both.

[MrBlonde7]

I always get pissed when it happens to people on here. What sorta upsets me more is how little y'all say you can really do about it.
I don't doubt you're right, but it just sucks that so many get away with it.

[MaximumFluoride]

In the big picture it just isnt a really big deal. If I had the time and energy to involve lawyers in some random band/promoter reusing one of my posters I think I'd be happy I had that much time and energy.

[MrBlonde7]

alaska, check your pms

[alaskab]

oh i didn't spend any money on th letters, like i said, i'm not in it for $$$ just to make a point. I find it annoying, hopefully th kids from th band that i happen to know will pass on my distaste when they arrive there. i'm just disturbing some shit and i want it down and an acknowledgment of sorts that they are too cheap to just ask me how much $ it would cost to get me to do them something. my attitude is that if you don't stand up and say shit then people walk all over you over and over.

also th fact that it's being spread all over myspace doesn't make me happy either. i worked my butt off on that design and i'm proud of it. i may be smalltime in th gig poster world, but that's cuz it just doesn't pay enough, so i resent getting ripped off when i only made chump change for it in th first place

[Platinum Rich]

why not be in it for the money? ask for royalties and offer to do work for them in the future seeing as though they liked your art enough to use it.