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Artwork question...
Posted by Anonymous . updated on 2/26/2009
I have a friend who is an artist. He has a Cafe Press store where he sells his art on T-shirts, mugs, clocks, etc. He also sells designs on the web. Mostly he caters to motorcycle riders. Someone else has taken his designs and is now selling them for profit. My friend has asked him to stop, and all he gets is childish, rude replies such as "try and sue me, you'll lose" etc. Is there a provision anywhere in the law that prevents artwork from being blatantly stolen and sold online? This guy is challenging my friend to sue him, does he really have a case? Is this an intellectual property issue or does my buddy have no grounds to protect his work once it's posted online? Thanks!
Answers (1)
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Sanaa T...
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Hmmm, bit of a tight spot actually, your friend ought to have got himself a copyright when he started to sell his art, now I do not know if your friend has got one to protect his art, but if he does get one then he can sue this guy, online artwork can be protected by maybe disabling the javascript or else placing the © on a pixel, involves a bit of work but then worth the effort. You can also see: http://www.patentexpress.com/ip-overview-video/what-is-a-copyright_9_1.html or for more info see the copyright office:http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap5.html since Registration of copyrights is not mandatory in order to obtain copyright protection. As to works published or unpublished after January 1, 1978, a claimant can register a work at any time during the life of the copyright. As to works published or unpublished prior to January 1, 1978, a claimant can register a work during the initial term of copyright. (17 USC section 408) However, for works that originate in the United States and certain other works, a party must have registered the work before the party can commence an action for infringement. Do let me know!
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