Copyright is broken October 1, 2006
This weekend we did a promotional Music City Tour as part of the “Day Against DRM” campaign by DefectiveByDesign.org which is happening this Tuesday, Oct 3rd (more on that in a future post). So, I picked up some stencils from the local hobby store to make signs and paint messages on the car windows. It was only after the event that I discovered I had just committed a serious violation of copyright law in front of hundreds and hundreds of on-lookers. Down at the very bottom of the stencils packaging in letters so small you almost need a magnifying glass to read it says “These designs may not be reproduced in any form“. Click image for larger view.
I’m guessing they mean any form except for fair use’s such as commentary and criticism, like this post, as well as it’s intended use as a stencil, but you can’t be too careful. People are threatened with legal action over activities as seemingly harmless as embroidery or learning to play the guitar all the time. .
- Posted in : Fair Use Rights, Events, Defective by Design, Action, copyright, Stencils
- Author : fairuseday
Comments»
Stencils-kit “may not be reproduced in any form”…
The Fair Use Day folks picked up some letter-stencils to make signs with, and found the fine-print on the stencils read, “These designs may not be reproduced in any form.” Reminds me of the Dover “copyright free images” books that contain a notice…
I hope you are being overly sarcastic. I’m guessing they mean that you cannot duplicate their stencil as a stencil to sell as a stencil, not using the stencil as advertised.
It’s never wise to “guess” at what a copyright notice means. That one is pretty clear though. It says you can’t reproduce the “design” in “any form”.
“I’m guessing they mean that you cannot duplicate their stencil as a stencil to sell as a stencil, not using the stencil as advertised.”
And yet you’d be guessing, and guessing the opposite of the clear language of the warning which states the designs may not be reproduced in “any form”–which obviously includes reproduction by applying paint over the stencil. If you don’t mean “any form” you mustn’t say “any form.”
Just plain silly…and a little scary.
The dover books let you reproduce their designs under some restrictions. Although the “copy-right free” is misleading, it does give the owner of the book some rights to copy their stuff.
I agree with John on this one. As much as companies have become paranoid with their copyrights, I have to say this is probably a case of poor word choice. The only use for a stencil is to reproduce it. No one is going to buy a package and admire the lettering. Of couse you are going to reproduce it, otherwise there would be no need for a stencil. The sensible intention was that no one is allowed to reproduce the font/design of the stencil itself to create other products from it such as other stencils, rubber stamps, stickers, etc.
Although it may say in “clear language” that the designs may not be reproduced in any form, there is some need for descrition. At the beginning of every Major Leage Baseball game hear the following message “The accounts and descriptions of this game may not be disseminated or reproduced without the express written consent of Major League Baseball”. I’ve never heard of the MLB suing anyone for talking about the Yankees game simply because that is not the intention of the copyright although it appears to be written in “clear language”
Would there be a grounds for legal action, even if it ‘were’ reproduced in ‘a’ form?
Given the roman alphabet is public domain, the font used is public too as far as I am aware, I also doubt the layout varies ‘that’ much from one manufacturer to another.
I don’t see any manufacturers battling it out, because they all use what could be called ‘a’ form derived from ‘any form’ (presuming anything from layout to font to material used).
On the otherhand, if we were to be serious, perhaps they mean the ‘packaging design’?