Copyright Ownership vs. Owning the DVD
May 02, 2013
There seems to be some confusion in the arts and crafts community about ownership of information. Previous posts discussed sharing information as an ethical issue, but in fact, it is also a legal issue discussed and defined by the Supreme court on numerous occasions.
As a result of a recent Supreme Court decision, there are many articles on the web about copyright. The article "Copyright protection. First Sale Doctrine." by Attorney Francine Ward explains ownership of information clearly.
"A common misconception by many people who purchase content, e.g., music, videos, images, photographs, is that they own the rights to that work. They think since they paid money for it, that they can do anything they want with it. WRONG!"
"The copyright holder is the one who creates the content, unless it is a work for hire. The purchaser is just one of many, who bought the book, rented the movie, or licensed the images from the copyright holder or the 3rd party licensee. Because you bought a book, does not mean you can make copies of that book."
"To be clear the copyright holder and the purchaser of products are not one in the same."*
I hope that this information has made the legal issue very clear.
If a person purchases a DVD of instructional materials, they have purchased access to the information for their personal use. This information may not be copied or duplicated. You own the DVD not the information.
If you have a subscription to a magazine, you have purchased the privilege of owning the magazine. You do not own the information. You may not copy the information. You only own the digital or print copy of the magazine.
These principles also apply to books. The information is for your personal use. Duplicating the lessons, tutorials or images for selling as an object or workshop is beyond the boundaries of "personal use."
These issues surrounding copyright are clear. Sharing content outside of a properly attributed citation is not legal or ethical without permission from the copyright holder.
*This quote was provided with permission from Francine D. Ward, Business & Intellectual Property Lawyer in her post "First Sale Doctrine. Copyright Infringement."
Read the entire article here: http://francineward.com/first-sale-doctrine-copyright-infringement/
Related posts:
The Color Blind Paint Salesperson and the Workshop Imposter
The Guild of Unauthorized Sharing
"I love your work and want to make one for myself"
"Abilities versus Choices" & Choice Quotes
The Gray Zone Framed By Black & White
ASK Ourselves, ASK Everyone
Ethical SHARING Honors Original Content
The GOOD, the BAD, and the UGLY in the Age of the Internet