Messages

106

Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: Copyright Defense League aka SendDMCA.com

« on: January 13, 2013, 02:17:11 PM »

I'm glad that Taylor is so giving as to share his extensive knowledge with the world.
That font screams "hipster" chic too.



S.G.

107

Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: New for 2013 ~ The Copyright Troll Asshat of the Month Award...

« on: January 11, 2013, 06:47:33 PM »

Just wait for my new "Law Degree of the Month"...
You know, the "Law School of P.O. Box 2000"...

Now, where's my diploma template..?

S.G.

108

Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: New for 2013 ~ The Copyright Troll Asshat of the Month Award...

« on: January 11, 2013, 04:51:33 PM »

This is hilarious..!
Thanks for buoying the morale, as usual!!

The ass pain of these "lawyers" is delicious.

S.G.

109

Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: We are the latest victim of the Getty Image extortion scam

« on: January 10, 2013, 11:29:23 AM »

Good discussion.

We've discussed the Picscout at length issue many, many times in the past.
Search for "trespass to chattels" on the forum to find out more.

This concept may have some merit in a big contentious fight.
But, it's rather moot... Getty's not going to sue you for infringing on one image that they probably don't even own.

I just don't want people to waste their time worrying about Getty/McCormack. lol

S.G.

110

Hawaiian Letters & Lawsuits Forum / Re: PDN Article Featuring "Kindly Uncle" Glen Carner

« on: January 09, 2013, 11:40:34 AM »

Man, Oscar really posted a couple of gems there... he totally nailed it.

It's a fact that de-minimis infringements are now the norm, and are pretty much accepted by the public at large.
Successful businesses have even been created based on this (Pinterest, I'm looking in your direction).
While this may appear to create a huge revenue stream for the trolls, that revenue stream exists only if the trolls can force people to pay monies on a regular basis.

Now, I'm not in favor of infringements, but the copyright trolls will lose in the long run.
Those businesses will fail, and people will buy from companies that offer good selection at the prices that people can afford.

S.G.

111

Legal Controversies Forum / Re: This Is an Outrage and Makes Me Sick

« on: January 08, 2013, 04:14:09 PM »

Thanks for posting this.  This is nuts.
Too bad for that company and workers.

Time to sue the makers of the wood chipper in "Fargo"..?

S.G.

112

Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: Help with Masterfile Letter

« on: January 07, 2013, 11:28:42 AM »

Masterfile really harasses people and tries to wear them down.
Oscar's letter will be money well spent.

S.G.

113

Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: Perhaps the BEST quote regarding Getty Images I have ever seen

« on: January 06, 2013, 01:19:06 AM »

That even beats out my, "Getty loves my Schweddy balls.  They're from an old Schweddy family recipe." comment.

http://www.extortionletterinfo.com/forum/getty-images-letter-forum/think-this-letter-will-stop-their-harassment/15/

S.G.

114

Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: just received an email

« on: January 04, 2013, 12:40:22 PM »

This is one of those really obtuse "infringement cases" that will never get anywhere.
A "lawsuit" filed from overseas, over a third-party posting on a blog is laughable.
Even if Wordpress makes a thumbnail of the image and stores it locally, that's a "fourth-party" action.

Couch_Potato makes an interesting query about out-of-country litigants having to post a bond before a court foray.
Personally, I'm not sure about it.  But, it's too bad that the likes of Righthaven wasn't made to do this.
I'm not a lawyer, but people interested in this sort of thing should look into filing a "declaratory judgement".
In some situations, it can be a savvy move; consult your lawyer for more info.

S.G.

115

Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: just received an email

« on: January 03, 2013, 05:59:57 PM »

If they are a UK organization, I doubt that they've made any US copyright registrations.
Also, the louder and more obnoxious they are, the less likely that have anything concrete to fall back on.

S.G.

116

Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: just received an email

« on: January 03, 2013, 03:26:39 PM »

I'm a bit foggy on UK law.
But, it's probably of interest that the image was only "linked" to, if I understand correctly.
If the blog automatically made a thumbnail that was stored locally, I wonder if that would be a very minor infringement (if any).
A weak infringement case..?

S.G.

117

Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: just received an email

« on: January 03, 2013, 02:26:30 PM »

AMA sounds really butthurt over this.
I hope that the "mocking image" was some version of the "trollface" or an arse.

Are they actually affiliated with Getty?  If so, why wouldn't Getty handle it?
In any case, Getty's one of the most prolific, but most fail-worthy trolls.
If they're paying 35 million to lawyers, they're getting ripped off.

S.G.

118

Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: PDN Article on ELI, Copyright Extortionists, and my position on the matter

« on: December 31, 2012, 12:34:07 AM »

It's a good article, and I enjoyed reading it.

I think that most of the responses that might be construed as negative relate more to what the people in the stock image industry said.
But, I know that for many of those people, these programs and the defense of such practices is their full-time job.

S.G.

119

Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: PDN Article on ELI, Copyright Extortionists, and my position on the matter

« on: December 30, 2012, 11:33:47 PM »

Interesting article and discussion.

The consensus on ELI has been that people shouldn't ignore accusations of infringement, and to make a reasonable settlement offer as good faith.
Additionally, willful, and repeat infringement is really frowned upon by most participants here.
I don't feel that ELI is as "rogue" as some would like to make it appear.
However, I think that I speak for most of the regulars when I say that nobody wants to sell a kidney in order to pay off Masterfile so that Steve Pigeon can retire in the Bahamas.

Something in the article caught my attention as follows:
"The U.S. Copyright Office is studying the possibility of establishing a small claims court for copyright infringement, to keep the growing number of claims from clogging federal courts."

I really can't imagine the Copyright Office having any interest in getting into the middle of this melee.
It just sounds so absurd to me.  Does anyone else know anything about this?

Not very many of these cases have ever made it to "court", and they've failed for the most part.
... are the trolls looking for a more sympathetic venue?

S.G.

120

Getty Images Letter Forum / Canadian victims... here's an article of interest by the CIPPIC

« on: December 30, 2012, 03:26:29 PM »

Canadian victims... here's an article of interest by the CIPPIC

http://www.cippic.ca/en/Trolls

A Happy New Year to all, and many thanks for the stellar work done by so many contributors to ELI.
The efforts made here are often nothing less than heroic.

S.G.