Thankfully so. The people who uploaded the pdfs of the PHB for free weren't doing it commercially either... and they got hit by massive lawsuits.
Cheers!
WotC is *NOT* Evil: THE FINALE
- Thread starter Gloomshroud
- Start date
Thankfully so. The people who uploaded the pdfs of the PHB for free weren't doing it commercially either... and they got hit by massive lawsuits.
Cheers!
nnms
First Post
The difference from a legal perspective is that there are actual compensatory damages there. It's very easy to convince a judge about the lost sales resultant from each copy of a book downloaded. It's far, far less easy to convince a judge about the damages caused by reposting images on the internet. And in almost all jurisdictions you won't be awarded punitive damages when you don't have a case for compensatory damages.
So what does WotC do? Send a cease and decist letter. Then go after the ISP and get them to pull the site. They are not going to take anyone to court for using images in their home games and don't want to go to court over images on the web.
They just want the images pulled. There's simply no point in seeking damages on a non commercial use of an image. No judge will award them. They'll simply order their removal. It's far, far more cost effective to send a cease & decist letter to the violator and then their ISP as well.
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Wait.... what?
I'm not mad at WotC, and I'm certainly not mad about their rules for using their copyright images online. I don't even know what they are.
--Erik
mach1.9pants
Hero
^ Oh c'mon stop playing coy... you're not known as Angry Eric 'the Barbarian' Mona of Rageland for nuttin! 
DracoSuave
First Post
Wizards -does- provide good support for the product they sold you. If you have any questions, even trivial questions on minor rules interpretations, you can contact their representatives directly and receive answers in a prompt and caring manner. You receive -exactly- the support for that product that is considered reasonable, fair, and it even goes above the norm for the industry.
What that does NOT entitle you to is a free license to use the artistic and intellectual assets in whatever manner you deem fit. You can game with it, but copying assets to distribute online is not necessary for any reasonable use of the product you have purchased.
If you buy a car, you're entitled to drive the car, and the company has a reasonable expectation to service the car for that purpose. But, if you wish to drive your car in the sun, or ask them for advice on how to use it to get away from crime scenes and police chases, they're not obligated morally OR legally to give you squat.
The problem is, you had no right to be angry in this situation. In essence, you're expecting more than you paid for. You paid good money, but they paid good book. Don't act like your money was more valuable than the product you paid for... if that's the case, it's your fault for spending it poorly.
vagabundo
Adventurer
To be honest there is probably a certain amount of Fair Use available to you here.
But I am not a lawyer...
Your in big trouble if you can't even admit your feelings to YourSelf!!!
But I am not a lawyer...
Your in big trouble if you can't even admit your feelings to YourSelf!!!
DracoSuave
First Post
Me too!
Ryujin
Legend
As a part-time motorsports photographer, I have my IP ripped off all the time. I spent most of the winter chasing down people who had not only taken my work from my website and republished on their own, without paying for it or even so much as citing the source, but in 5 cases actually SELLING products that were created using my work. In some cases someone had handed the work on to a third party, who then used/published the work without checking that they had the right to do so.
Once work goes beyond original source, it is beyond your control. It can be passed through multiple hands, losing all connection with the original producer. In business, when your product is IP as much as a physical one, this cannot be permitted. This is especially true when other people have contributed to the creation of the IP, who in turn would need to be compensated for their efforts.
Those who say "better to beg forgiveness than to ask permission" have never lost thousands of dollars when they had to defend what they have done, in court, against a corporation that actively defends its copyright.
As you're in the US, there is one exception though; Fair Use Doctrine:
U.S. Copyright Office - Fair Use
Once work goes beyond original source, it is beyond your control. It can be passed through multiple hands, losing all connection with the original producer. In business, when your product is IP as much as a physical one, this cannot be permitted. This is especially true when other people have contributed to the creation of the IP, who in turn would need to be compensated for their efforts.
Those who say "better to beg forgiveness than to ask permission" have never lost thousands of dollars when they had to defend what they have done, in court, against a corporation that actively defends its copyright.
As you're in the US, there is one exception though; Fair Use Doctrine:
U.S. Copyright Office - Fair Use
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Amphimir Míriel
Explorer
Renau1g, thank you for that admission... it really does something for me.
I must confess that a big part of my job is to answer complaints posted to the BBB and the Attorney Generals regarding the company I work for.
It is amazing the level of entitlement some people get, but I always do my best to reach a mutually amicable solution with the customer.
Still, if you google my real name, along with the name of the company I represent, you'll find several blog and forum posts about how I am "evil", a "scammer" and "unreasonable", just for doing my job...
