Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2008/05/11
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]ORPHAN WORKS! One more time! Do you know what I find surprising on the LUG? Although I shouldn't be. :-( Here we have a topic that potentially WILL affect every member on the list and their photography and not more than 3 members have posted a word. I'd have thought, certainly the American members of the crew would've been up in arms screaming their bloody heads off that a number of dimwit government officials without a clue in how we value our photography are about to eliminate our rights as a photographer. Not only in the USA, but every photographer good, bad or ugly around the world! :-( And the babble goes on about some dinky toy camera piece or clouds. You folks better wake up before it's too late. And if you think it doesn't matter to you, have another thought the next time you post some indepth photography of a dying relative, a happy faced bride or one of your smiling children! Then find your pictures being used in some advertisement about "cheap funerals and hooker brides!" Or whatever! Don't come back here crying "why didn't somebody do something about this?" It's all here for you to read and fill out a form for USA members and international members also. Hey I've sent mine! Where's yours? ted ============================= Subject: [Leica] Orphan Works - . HERE YOU ARE! A MUST READ EVERYONE! :-( If you value your photography "YOU WILL READ THIS!" no matter where you live on this planet! This is for everybody to read regardless of what country you live in! your reputation and photography is at stake! Copied below are communications from fellow American & Canadian photographers in the past few days about this USA Orphan bill. 1/ Ted, Unfortunately, this opens the gate for any US person, museum, corporation,agency, newspaper, school etc. etc. to basically "play dumb" and use images, illustrations, music etc. without permission granted if the "content" is found without info as to the creator. So, if one puts their images on the internet etc. without embedded metadata or even with the data which can be stripped out - they don't face infringement penalties. The internet crosses all boundaries - political and otherwise. And yes, someone will no doubt make money in "registration" fees that will now be privatized if this bill should pass. It pretty much throws the Copyright Act of 1976 out the window. 2/ I just finished faxing letters to 5 different officials. I used the link below for international artists. http://www.illustratorspartnership.org/01_topics/article.php?searchterm=0026 7 Here is a page of links that make letter writing easy for the US shooters. http://capwiz.com/illustratorspartnership/home/ ========================= 3/ Ted As an add-on to ..comments,one will not only potentially be affected by omitting,or forgetting to include,copyright information. There is also the consideration that a number of free hosting sites on the web strip out metadata upon upload so you could have your ass hung out to dry, in some cases, by posting a public gallery of images on the web. There is also the very real possibility that image metadata will intentionally be stripped out by unscrupulous image users who will then play dumb and invoke the Orphan Works bill as a defense 4/ It has been said that the folks at Google are proponents of the bill.<<<<<<<<<<< 5/ PESO: For those who are concerned about the Orphan Works bill currently before Congress that will infringe your copyright to your own photos, there is a website by APA and several other organizations that gives you a choice of several editable or form letters to send to your Congress persons. When you fill in your address, it automatically sends the letters to the correct Congress members for your district. Please take action to prevent this reprehensible bill from passing. http://capwiz.com/illustratorspartnership/home/ You can download a PDF for more information: http://www.apanational.com/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=1 Please pass this on to anybody you think might be interested. 6/ FROM THE ILLUSTRATORS' PARTNERSHIP Take Action: Don't Let Congress Orphan Your Work THE ORPHAN WORKS BILL IS BACK. And this time the wheels have been greased for quick passage. Yesterday a revived Orphan Works Bill sailed through a House panel. Today the Senate bill will be marked up. These bills will expose any work of art to commercial infringement. This will include everything from professional paintings to personal photos placed on the net. The bills will coerce you to register your work with for-profit registries as a condition of protecting your copyrights. Any unregistered pictures will be subject to Orphan Works infringement. This is a radical departure from international copyright law and normal business practice. If you wish to oppose this legislation, you must act now. We've set up an online site for anyone to e-mail their Senators and Representatives with one click. This site is open to professional artists, photographers and any member of the image-making public. We've provided sample letters from individuals representing different sectors of the visual arts. Illustrators, photographers, fine artists, reps,licensing firms,designers: If you're opposed to the Orphan Works act, this site is yours to use. For international artists and our colleagues overseas, we've provided a special link, with a sample letter and instructions as to whom to write. 2 minutes is all it takes to write Congress and fight for your copyrights. Go here: http://capwiz.com/illustratorspartnership/home/ <http://www.workbookinfo.com/util/link.jsp?e=2O_odGyvi8UHXsR_lt2roFsdB6xZXlt bdxFmlgit1zU0.A&s=3TVYIl7Y.A&v=4utMlfilzq7aP> Pick a sample letter or write your own. Type in your zip code. Your letter will be automatically addressed to your congressman and senators. Click and send. For more information about the Orphan Works Act of 2008: IPA Statement to House Subcommittee March 20, 2008: http://www.illustratorspartnership.org/01_topics/article.php?searchterm=0026 1 <http://www.workbookinfo.com/util/link.jsp?e=3HAdVkraJdwEJ1VfAFh0qQB5Jm28mhS g8vMmAQDKkmsE.A&s=3TVYIl7Y.A&v=4utMlfilzq7aP> IPA Senate Mark-up Comments April 30, 2008: http://www.illustratorspartnership.org/ow_docs Geneva/ May 7, 2008 Orphan Works Bill Catches Global Attention/ Intellectual Property Watch: http://www.ip-watch.org/weblog/index.php?p=1028 <http://www.workbookinfo.com/util/link.jsp?e=5uzLbHwXnNuOq9etWr5pFBScZ6JCaDC mVZvJ_oug91kAD-yjd_H1Dv2Sanlg-5UAN&s=3TVYIl7Y.A&v=4utMlfilzq7aP> MP3 Interview: http://www.sellyourtvconceptnow.com/orphan.html <http://www.workbookinfo.com/util/link.jsp?e=64PP59SAm7cQpRj4XiyzS9eD5BSPaUI JHs-n5teWI4NrrAmcByWTJ7UAY8caNfnpq&s=3TVYIl7Y.A&v=4utMlfilzq7aP> YouTube: http://youtube.com/watch?v=CqBZd0cP5Yc <http://www.workbookinfo.com/util/link.jsp?e=70MTu1udFRHALf64MuzT_mECenLX5b7 osl9KxhDYr_DDds3Sl9lqb9zmdn3lJCa-f&s=3TVYIl7Y.A&v=4utMlfilzq7aP> 6/ Here is a podcast on youtube discussing the "orphan works bill" that is being discussed this week in the US Congress. Kind of frightening. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqBZd0cP5Yc> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqBZd0cP5Yc ========================== -----Original Message---- From: slobodan dimitrov wrote: >Apart from from Ted has said, the following closet national- >socialists want to destruct intellectual property protections: >Getty and Corbis support the US senate version S.2913 Shawn Bentley >Orphan Works Act of 2008. >Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) is the bill's sponsor. Other members of >the Judiciary Committees are Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), and in the House - Rep. Howard Berman (D-Calif.), Rep. Lamar SMith (R-Texas). >The bill is also co-sponsored in the House by Committee Chairman >John Conyers (D-Mich) and Rep. Howard Coble (R-NC), and supported by Dianne Feinstein (D-CA). Intellectual Property Protections do not work, or else a number of us Hove authors would be able to stop the renovated Hove from selling our works without permission or the payment of royalties. We are powerless and the vaunted EU "proteciton of the rights of the author" are essentially meaningless. ==================== Marc James Small offered: I came into this discussion late, and have no idea what this "Orphan Works" bill is about but I would automatically find myself opposing anytihng that drooling idiot from Vermont (well, Vermont seems to be a State laden with drooling idiots!), Leahy, would sponsor. What an embarrassment that man is to the United States and to the Senate! Marc