Copyright notices

[Warbaby1]

Is there any real reason to put a copyright notice on every piece of work you do?

Just wondering what that's about. I know that you automatically own the copyright to any piece of work that you make; and anyone with any sense knows that you can't just claim someone else's work as your own. So what benefit is there to putting "copyright Whoever" at the bottom of a page?

Is it just a reminder to people who might otherwise "forget" that it's not theirs, or what? Or if you don't clearly indicate that your work is owned by you, does someone who steals it gain an advantage or defence?

I'm not a lawyer, see. Although I did once get fucked by one.

[Komiyan]

A lot of people don't bother, generally. A notice at the bottom of the site generally covers it.

[Rkolter]

People who do put them on every piece of work generally do so because for someone else to STEAL their work, they must deliberately REMOVE the copyright notice.

So they couldn't claim, "It was on the internet, I thought it was free to use!"

Also, people who steal the work and don't edit it to remove the copyright are still doing bad, but at least with the copyright they cannot claim they did it.

[Tim]

Personally, I put a copyright notice on (1) so my name is on the image, and (2) in case anyone copies the image, or uses one of those hotlinking-spider something-or-other sites, the copyright notice is there to prove it's not being viewed correctly.

I suppose it's not absolutely necessary, but it was something I set up from the beginning, so at this point it's more of a force of habit more than anything.

[Kris X]

I normally try to always sign my work. It helps sometimes to have that tag on there.

[TRI]

What they all said. Basically having your name on it just makes sure no one can claim they didn't ask permission because they didn't know who made it.

And I suppose it makes it harder for them to claim they made it, as I have seen happen before: one comic I read was copied wholesale by some pre-teen girl who claimed she drew the whole thing.

Your actual rights, copy rights I think they're called, aren't really strengthened (under US law) by slapping a copyright notice on it. Those you get automatically as soon as you make something, and unless you sign them away to someone else or purposefully waive them you keep them until 75 years after your dead. (If my understanding is correct, of course.)

But if, for some reason, you ever did get into a real legal dispute over your stuff it would unsure that they other guy's lawyer doesn't challenge you to prove you made it. Kinda the writing-your-name-on-your-lunch theory.

[Jackhass]

People who do put them on every piece of work generally do so because for someone else to STEAL their work, they must deliberately REMOVE the copyright notice.

So they couldn't claim, "It was on the internet, I thought it was free to use!"

Also, people who steal the work and don't edit it to remove the copyright are still doing bad, but at least with the copyright they cannot claim they did it.

Yeah, that pretty much sums it up...plus I just like to have my name on the actual piece of art somewhere.

[Princess]

I started putting them on again after some french publisher used one of my comics for promotional t-shirts. I thought It would never happen to me...but it did! So mark your work.

[Mo]

Putting my name on every piece of art work? Pah, that's too much work. I'd feel honoured if someone tried to steal it really! I mean, that's when you know you've made it, right?

[Princess]

Putting my name on every piece of art work? Pah, that's too much work. I'd feel honoured if someone tried to steal it really! I mean, that's when you know you've made it, right?

I know I felt both flattered and exploited.

[Phact0rri]

I only do copywrites and things when its a guest strip.

[Glarryg]

I make sure that at some point in every single one of my comics, someone mentions my name, in whole or in parts, and the date, which is really hard to do since the comic's a serial and in the last year and a half only about a month has past in the story.

Glarryg

[Warbaby1]

But if, for some reason, you ever did get into a real legal dispute over your stuff it would unsure that they other guy's lawyer doesn't challenge you to prove you made it. Kinda the writing-your-name-on-your-lunch theory.

I sort of know what you mean. But if somebody is truly intent on stealing your work, there's nothing to prevent them taking your name off and putting theirs on.

And the only way I can imagine you could prove ownership in court is if you can provide hand-drawn originals, on paper or whatever. Not much consolation for those who create everything in the puter.

I started putting them on again after some french publisher used one of my comics for promotional t-shirts. I thought It would never happen to me...but it did! So mark your work.

This sounds interesting. Did that all get resolved, or is it an ongoing thing?

[Berg]

And the only way I can imagine you could prove ownership in court is if you can provide hand-drawn originals, on paper or whatever. Not much consolation for those who create everything in the puter.

But what if you can provide the original files, with much higher resolution than the images seen on the net, and nobody else but the creator would have had access to? (Provided, of course, that you work with a bitmap format, and that you do indeed draw in a bigger format than what you put on your website.) I'd think you'd have a case then, no?

[Thereforeiam]

I have had enough of my work stolen and then people asked for permission after-the-fact, that I just use watermarks on everything that is not the comic, and the comic has the writer's and mine names on the bottom.

[Laemkral]

And the only way I can imagine you could prove ownership in court is if you can provide hand-drawn originals, on paper or whatever. Not much consolation for those who create everything in the puter.

But what if you can provide the original files, with much higher resolution than the images seen on the net, and nobody else but the creator would have had access to? (Provided, of course, that you work with a bitmap format, and that you do indeed draw in a bigger format than what you put on your website.) I'd think you'd have a case then, no?

That would definitely help. Civil court is not a case of "absolute proof", just "prove more than them". If you can bring forth high resolution originals, sketches, and other things that they don't have and can't reproduce, that can definitely prove ownership and thus copyright infringement.

I'm lucky I do a photo comic. You can't steal my art because it's me. The judge would take one look at me, one look at the idiot who stole it, and it's quite clear who made it. Unless I have dopplegangers, but I totally put up legal text on that.

[TRI]

And the only way I can imagine you could prove ownership in court is if you can provide hand-drawn originals, on paper or whatever. Not much consolation for those who create everything in the puter.

But what if you can provide the original files, with much higher resolution than the images seen on the net, and nobody else but the creator would have had access to? (Provided, of course, that you work with a bitmap format, and that you do indeed draw in a bigger format than what you put on your website.) I'd think you'd have a case then, no?

That would definitely help. Civil court is not a case of "absolute proof", just "prove more than them". If you can bring forth high resolution originals, sketches, and other things that they don't have and can't reproduce, that can definitely prove ownership and thus copyright infringement.

Plus there's file creaton times; google cache files; archive.org; emails, message board posting and IM logs from before it was stolen where you take credit for making it; pics on your computer made by you of your characters in your style; pics made by you on paper of your characters in your style; accounts of witnesses (i.e. your friends) who've seen you drawing your characters and heard you talk ad nauseum about drawing your comic; backup copies of your comic burned to CD before it was stolen; and probably more things I haven't thought of.

None of that would count for crap in a criminal court. Probably wouldn't even meet the standard required to submit it as evidence. But in a civil court you can bring pretty much whatever you want and it's up to the judge whether he thinks it's significant. (If my understanding is correct.)

You could probably even just challenge the other guy to draw one of your characters and compare his art and yours and see which more closely matches the comic.

So there you are with your ungodly-huge pile of--admittedly flimsy--evidence on one side, and the guy who stole in on the other with . . . the files he stole and some story he made up.

Yes, it all seems like a huge pain in the butt, but if you actually get to the point of going to court over copyright infringement you're probably going to experience more butt pain than most people* do in ten years anyway, so you might as well get the satisfaction of seeing the other guy sweat when you bring in a literal weelbarrow full of evidence.

More often 'though the other guy'd probably just comply with whatever you asked, since it'd be a pain in his butt too and probably cost him more money than you.

*There are notable exceptions.

[McDuffies]

I don't need that, I put subliminal messages in my comics.

I'm not a lawyer, see. Although I did once get fucked by one.

Was she HAWT?

[Kisai]

Go look at hardartist on livejournal (sexylosers), and read how some of his comics were stolen and published in a magazine, and you quickly see how someone can make a buck off your stuff. Hard also lists various other ways he's been screwed by the internet and stuff.

PUT YOUR NAME/PEN-NAME ON EVERYTHING, also put your site name so people know where to find the original. People may be lazy, but most lazy people try to hotlink, or try to save-as and email to their buddies. Website rippers on the other hand wholesale rip off our server and make money by posting their ads on YOUR comics on servers you don't control.

Which reminds me, one of these days I need to do a bulk scan of all the stats to see which rippers are still doing it.

[TRI]

Actually putting your website URL on your comics is also probably a good idea from the standpoint of someone ripping you off online. Then when they do at least people can easily find their way back to your site and either become readers or tell you about the theft. Otherwise they might just assume you made it for istealcomics.com.

Not that I do that....