Does this pic have a copywrite?

[Lyte]

How might I find out if this picture/drawing has a copywrite on it??

I've found it on half a dozen sites and want to use it for my own... cashcow.cc but I don't want to end in the dog house! I've checked the usual .gov site but I don't see a copywrite for this particular picture/drawing/cartoon... whatever it is!

Thoughts??

Thanks!

Lyte

 

[inflames]

if i had to guess its probably a free image if you saw it on another sites , if the copyright office has no record of it than its probably not copyrighted

 

[Peter]

something does not have to be registered to be copyrighted, all they have to do in future is prove they created it before you had it in use.

Try emailing the webmaster of that site see where he got it from if he created it then ask him permission.

 

[sunken]

Images are copyrighted when they are created, regardless of whether they are filed or not to the registration office. It is a lot harder to win a lawsuit when they are not, but that does not mean the artist can't try, which can be expensive even if you win. What you really want to know is whether the image is licensed to be used on the web for commercial use. For that, you'd have to find out who the artist is and ask. It's possible that that image was part of a clip art set, but who knows. It's best to only use graphics that you know where they came from if you are concerned about it.

Not a lawyer, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express once.

 

[RJ]

That's right, any photo or piece of art is automatically copywrited by its creator. There's no way to know what licensing is offered unless you find out who owns it. I don't recognize the artist and a Google search didn't help me find out. Try a researcher at Google Answers, perhaps they could figure out the artist. http://answers.google.com/answers/

Not a lawyer, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express once.

:hehe:

 

[Lyte]

Thanks for all the great responses guys!

Guess, I'll not use this image at all. I intended only to use it for a time while thinking up a logo of my own. Maybe I'll offer up some NP$ and ask one of the more artsy of the NP clan draw me an original logo! :blink:

 

[AdoptableDomains]

This page on google images shows the exact same graphic on several sites.
http://images.google.com/images?q=cash+cow&svnum=20&hl=en&lr=&c2coff=1&safe=off&start=0&sa=N

This likely means it's not an original image and is in some collection available for licensing. Probably if you contacted the sites, one of them could tell you the source of the image.

 

[jberryhill]

This likely means it's not an original image

...or a whole bunch of people ripped it off...

 

[superprogrammer]

That's right, any photo or piece of art is automatically copywrited by its creator. There's no way to know what licensing is offered unless you find out who owns it. I don't recognize the artist and a Google search didn't help me find out. Try a researcher at Google Answers, perhaps they could figure out the artist. http://answers.google.com/answers/




:hehe:

Ok
But what if someone copies the image and then say he created it
How would you defend the argument in such cases?

 

[robertjr]

Images are copyrighted when they are created, regardless of whether they are filed or not to the registration office. It is a lot harder to win a lawsuit when they are not, but that does not mean the artist can't try, which can be expensive even if you win. What you really want to know is whether the image is licensed to be used on the web for commercial use. For that, you'd have to find out who the artist is and ask. It's possible that that image was part of a clip art set, but who knows. It's best to only use graphics that you know where they came from if you are concerned about it.

Not a lawyer, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express once.

:bingo:

Nicely said sunken! :great:

 

[jberryhill]

But what if someone copies the image and then say he created it
How would you defend the argument in such cases?

What if someone shoots his wife, and then says he was drinking in a bar across town at the time. This is what trials are for.

 

[armstrong]

Ok
But what if someone copies the image and then say he created it
How would you defend the argument in such cases?

If you can prove that you acquired the image in good faith, thinking that the seller actually created it, then in case of discovery what's likely to happen is that you'll be forced to remove the image. As for the one who sold the image to you, they could be liable for much more.

This is not to say that you'd be completely off the hook. If the copyright holder feels particularly aggrieved, they might seek other damages, even in a situation like this.

 

[Lyte]

All good points!

Ya know, just outta morbid curiosity I may just email these webmasters and see what they say! With my luck half of them will say they own it! LOL

 

[www.AmCy.org]

...or a whole bunch of people ripped it off...

Yeah, I think so.

I made a site for a client some time ago--www.jellybags.net--sells jelly handbags. At the time, these bags were hot, Hot, HOT so other webmasters in a hurry to build similar sites in order to capitalize on this trend visited jellybags.net and simply stole my images and used them on their sites. The thievery was rampant; I was truly shocked at how many webmasters just broke the rules and stole the images. I was under the impression that most webmasters were honest enough to at least ask to use the images or something. No way. Even after I sent out unnumbered cease and desist emails, only 1--ONE!--webmaster apologized and removed the images from their website.

It's just too easy to steal images from the 'Net so lots of people do it. The next time I do a site related to a hot trend, I'm going to use Digimarc.

AmCy

 

[sunken]

There are a lot of misconceptions that if it's on the Internet, it must be free. I've had my own artwork used on sites without asking. I don't mind that so much as long as they aren't stealing my bandwidth too and they leave the signature intact. It's really hard nowadays to know who has permission to use what. A lot of signature and tag makers grab art they find, clip it and then give it away or sell it without the artist's permission, claiming it is theirs because the signature made it theirs (like a collage). Most artists are willing to give someone the benefit of the doubt that it was an innocent mistake and usually these things end in a simple, "Please don't use my graphic on your site." especially if it's not being sold. The people who argue after being informed of such, anger the artists, which in turn gets the artist to go after the infringer's provider, causing them to maybe lose their site. If it's a pay site, or the person is selling the artwork, then it's a different matter, and some of those cases do wind up in legal entanglements. Fair use under the copyright law does cover some specific cases, but for the most part, it's not really a defense.

 

[Joseph]

if its on other sites i highly doubt it has copyright on it!

J

 

[sunken]

if its on other sites i highly doubt it has copyright on it!

J

Bad assumption. As was said above, every image has a copyright on it (at least those in the last 70 years). Now whether it's licensed for the web or not is a different matter. Even if it is clipart, was it part of a set that was purchased, etc? Just because it's on several sites doesn't mean it's not copyrighted or properly licensed...

 

[Complete Hostings]

im sure it is fine to use but thats just my opinion

 

[AdoptableDomains]

Ok
But what if someone copies the image and then say he created it
How would you defend the argument in such cases?

You mean like a bootleg copy of Windows XP, or fake Rolex? There really isn't much difference. Receiving stolen property is illegal just as much as stealing it yourself. The penalty just may be a little lighter and proof a little harded to come by. By not doing due diligence in finding out the source, you are guilty of copyright infringement.

 

[redhippo]

a very informative discussion! helps me see my way clearly about the rights of the originla creators!

 

[Chromis]

Yeah, I think so.

The thievery was rampant; I was truly shocked at how many webmasters just broke the rules and stole the images. I was under the impression that most webmasters were honest enough to at least ask to use the images or something. No way. Even after I sent out unnumbered cease and desist emails, only 1--ONE!--webmaster apologized and removed the images from their website.

AmCy

Well be glad they did not just grab your link to the photo and basicly steal your bandwidth redirecting your images onto their site.. so they would not have to store it, and per say they did not even have it in their posession.

Friend of mine, who is a dog breeder had that happen, they were redirecting pictures of her dogs onto their site SO they could show pics of nice dogs that were the sire and dam of their puppies.. when those dogs were in my friends house.. she immediately blocked the remote linking to images...

Chromis