7 Online Copyright Myths
By Judith Kallos
Possunt quia posse
videntur ~
(Latin: They can because they think they can.)
One of the
most misunderstood issues online has to do with
copyright. Both with
e-mail and Web site copyright issues. For
some reason, as with many
things online, there is this incorrect
perception that anything goes.
However, many are finding out the
hard way that when it comes to protecting
creative collateral,
copyright is law. And, copyright laws can and
are being
enforced online.
No, I am not an attorney. Nor do I play one
on T.V. But I can
help you avoid potential problems based on guiding
clients for
over a decade. Hopefully, this effort will help others
from
finding out the hard way that copyright is alive and well
online.
1)
"I can right click, save anything online and use it how I
wish."
This is a perfect example of just because you can doesn't mean
you
do! Those graphics or files were created by someone out
there. They
legally attained the copyright upon that file's
creation. Without their
specific permission to use that file or
graphic, you have no right
to just take it and use it as you
please. Always ask a site owner before
you illegally swipe
anything off their site.
2) "As long as I note the
author's name, I can use their site's
content on my site."
Although
you are being nice and giving credit where credit is
due, you still
need to ask the author's permission to post their
work on your site.
The author may not want their information
posted anywhere off their
own site or they many not approve of
your site as a venue for their
information - that is their choice
to make not yours. Always ask a
site owner if you can use their
content before you put it on your site.
within
another site because it gives the impression that the
other site created
the information. Many times folks innocently
do this so they don't
have to send site visitors off their site
for information they want
to provide. Others do so to precisely
give the impression it is content
they created. A better option
is to link to the information you like
and create a new window
to open when doing so to ensure your site
is still available to
your site visitors.
3)
"I can link to graphics on other sites so that they display on
my site."
O.K.,
maybe you didn't actually download the graphic and put it
on your server,
but if you are displaying someone else's work on
your site without
their permission the bottom line is still the
same. And, you are using
their server's resources to display
something on your site. Shame on
you!
4) "I can display pages from other's Web sites within frames
on
my site."
Many site owners prohibit their site pages from being framed
within
another site because it gives the impression that the
other site created
the information. Many times folks innocently
do this so they don't
have to send site visitors off their site
for information they want
to provide. Others do so to precisely
give the impression it is content
they created. A better option
is to link to the information you like
and create a new window
to open when doing so to ensure your site
is still available to
your site visitors.
5) "If I only quote a portion
of another site's content and link
to them I do not need their permission."
Again,
it would behoove you to have permission to do so. Using
only portions
allows you to possibly give the wrong impression
about the author's
overall content and this can be misleading at
best. If you want to
quote any written work in whole or part you
need to ask permission
to do so.
6)
"If I pay someone to create graphics for my Web site, I
own the copyright
to those graphics."
Not necessarily. Unless your agreement with the
graphic artist
explicitly states that upon your payment all of their
rights are
then transferred to you, you most likely only have exclusive
license
to use those graphics. And to purchase the full
copyright will cost
you a bunch more than simple exclusivity!
Understand that the moment
anything is created whether it be
written or drawn, the creator owns
the copyright, that's the
law. Over the years I've had clients
claim they own copyright
just because they paid me to create this
or that. It simply,
legally, is not the case (and my contract(s) clearly
state
this - including their option to purchase my copyright if they
so choose).
Copyright can only be transferred in a written legally
binding
agreement signed by the creator of the work stating they are
transferring
their rights to you. Saying you own it because you
paid for it doesn't
make it legal fact. If you do not have a
written agreement specifically
transferring the copyright to
you, you do not own the copyright to
those graphics.
7) "E-mail is not copyright protected once it is sent."
E-mail
is a written work that once created is copyright protected
by the author.
This means you cannot post publicly an e-mail
sent to you privately.
You cannot post private e-mails to your
site, to message boards or
to your blog without the author's
specific permission to do so.
Just
because an e-mail was sent to you as a private communication
does not
mean you then own it and can do with it what you like.
In addition,
e-mail that is posted to a group of people, on a
mailing list or Newsgroup
does not make the e-mail available for
reposting, copying, or any
other use - not without the express
and written consent of the writer.
What's the
bottom line with online copyright?
Courtesy! Don't assume that you
can use, repost or take anything
you find online simply because you
can. Be a courteous Netizen
and always ask first!
You might be interested
to find a DMCA (Digital Millennium
Copyright Act) page and policy statement
on your ISP and hosting
provider's Web sites to handle complaints and
reports of the
above types of copyright abuse. Take some time to read
that
information and make yourself aware of your rights and make sure
you
do not infringe on others. The main resource for all the
legal mumbo
jumbo on online copyright and the DMCA is on the
Government's site
at http://www.copyright.gov .
Again, I am not an attorney nor am I
providing legal advice. I
hope I've informed you of some of the issues
that need to be
seriously considered by all who are online whether
they are
creating their own or using others creative or written works.
Judith
Kallos is an authoritative and good-humored Technology
Muse. Check
out her new book: "Because Netiquette Matters! Your
Comprehensive Reference
Guide to E-mail Etiquette and Proper
Technology Use" at: http://www.BecauseNetiquetteMatters.com
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