You may have noticed that Ponyleaks is run by Your Siblings, a charitable nonprofit. I ask your leniency for me for this off-topic post, but Your Siblings is bucking important.
This year (just as last year), Your Siblings is organizing a Christmas campaign, asking you to contribute your marvelous artwork:
Our name, Your Siblings, is to remind everypony to care for those in need, though often far away, like they were siblings. In our Christmas campaign, we want to encourage you to create a picture or video that conveys this message artistically.
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| Supported by Bronies for Good |
The campaign will run from December 1 to December 25. All images and videos you submit during this time are presented in a gallery on the Your Siblings blog.
Naturally, we are doing all this to drum up support for our projects. If you can’t make an artistic contribution, please consider making a monetary one. We will forward every last cent of your donation.
So be inspired and send us your artwork or links to it. We will of course give full attribution.
(For the opening image I drew on works by Arvyr and Theresa Knott. Thanks!)
Submission address:
xmas2011 at yoursiblings dot org
xmas2011 at yoursiblings dot org
Are you sure you can use copyrighted characters to advertise your nonprofit? As you know, I am an IP attorney, but I work with patents, not copyrights or trademarks, so this isn't my area of expertise.
ReplyDeleteAlmost all fan art stands on shaky ground as copyrights are concerned. I certainly hope that my use of the image would fall under fair use. In my layman’s understanding of 17 U.S.C. § 107, its not-for-profit nature, the small amount (part of one frame of a whole TV show), and its even promotional effect for Hasbro seem to support this assessment.
ReplyDeleteAs you can imagine, I’m not a fan of US or German copyright legislation, but Hasbro appears to tolerate this sort of thing, and the idea that they’d make an exception for a charitable nonprofit trying to save a few lives abroad seems unlikely to say the least. More importantly, I don’t think I’m doing anything morally wrong. Also, I have the permission from Arvyr, but I don’t think you were referring to that copyright.
I think the "not for profit, educational" nature prong of the 107 test refers to things like playing a movie for students in a class, not necessarily to advertising your non-profit. I do agree that Hasbro seems particularly laissez-faire about enforcing its copyrights, so you're probably not going to get in any trouble. I do think there's a difference between artists and EQD posting fanart for "public display" and a nonprofit posting fanart for essentially advertising reasons. It's easier to see why Hasbro wouldn't bring the hammer down on EQD, which is essentially an unpaid advertiser for their show and products, and might on unrelated entities (especially incorporated entities) "subverting" their IP. Morality aside, as an attorney it's certainly legally iffy. That said, disclaimer: I am not your attorney and this does not constitute legal advice. This is a public comment unrelated to any attorney client relationship. P.S. I fully support the work your charity is engaged in. Carry on!
ReplyDeleteHehe, thanks for the advi…, I mean, comment. An opening image with two OCs would be neat too, for example, Ipsywitch lending Nyx a robe and safely guiding her through an especially hostile and sinister realm of the Dreamlands. But that’s far beyond my artistic capabilities.
ReplyDelete