Copyrighting

[Unabatable]

Sorry, Eeyore, in a reasonable post you have made a mistake in an assumption. I have bolded it.

Authors have granted Literotica non-exclusive permission to post here and nowhere else. We have given them that and nothing else.

Right.

And the very same "them" copyrights that "Free Speech" bullshit up there at the right hand corner of the page, and righteously proclaims the GB is objectively ruled, that every poster is allowed or not allowed to post on the GB perfectly equally, that every poster is treated exactly the same, that every poster is free to post whatever they like, as long as it doesn't violate Forum Guidelines.

http://www.ironmagazineforums.com/images/smilies/jerkit.gif

 

[sr71plt]

Nonsense.

Any original work is automatically copyrighted in the US as soon as it's created. Registration merely establishes a date of first publication in the event of a dispute, and provides certain statutory damages (as opposed to common law damages for unauthorized use of non-registered works)

Bullshit. In the United States, by U.S. copyright law you have to hold a formal copyright registration you obtained from the U.S. Copyright Office to take a suit to court. If you can't take a suit to court, you are powerless in the United States in enforcing the Berne Convention provisions. I guess the U.S. government fooled you about how it was going to negate the Berne Convention, didn't it?

You might look it up. The U.S. Copyright Office has a Web site.

Beyond that, if you held a formal copyright on a story you posted to Literotica and went to court on theft of that story, the judges would give you the horselaugh. You valued your story at $0 when you posted it for free use on Literotica. Once you've done that, your story has no legal value.

 

[oggbashan]

Right.

And the very same "them" copyrights that "Free Speech" bullshit up there at the right hand corner of the page, and righteously proclaims the GB is objectively ruled, that every poster is allowed or not allowed to post on the GB perfectly equally, that every poster is treated exactly the same, that every poster is free to post whatever they like, as long as it doesn't violate Forum Guidelines.

http://www.ironmagazineforums.com/images/smilies/jerkit.gif

Shame you spoilt the effect of your sensible post by going off on your one-trick pony ranting.

 

[Unabatable]

Shame you spoilt the effect of your sensible post by going off on your one-trick pony ranting.

Shove your shit back up your ass, cuck.

 

[Takolot]

... Despite Literotica's copyright symbol ...

Ahh! If I understand you correctly, then Literotica is sticking the copyright symbol on all the stories posted on this site. If that's the case, I now understand why very short often illiterate stories are "copyrighted".

 

[sr71plt]

Ahh! If I understand you correctly, then Literotica is sticking the copyright symbol on all the stories posted on this site. If that's the case, I now understand why very short often illiterate stories are "copyrighted".

Yes, it's Literotica that is doing that. By the Berne Convention, which nearly every country now has signed (the United States signed it 100 years after it was established), the work is owned by the creator the moment it is written. This means something in the UK and most other countries, which probably is why Lit. marks it. The United States, which doesn't want a mountain of copyright cases dropping on its courts, took the teeth out of the "copyrighted at the moment of creation" by requiring that you obtain (and pay for) a formal copyright in order to get a U.S. court date for a case. (And in the case of a story stolen from Lit., lots of luck in even finding who stole it to take to court--and then once you get it to court, you aren't talking about financial damages because you valued it at 0 by posting it to Lit.)

On another aspect of the discussion here, the Lit. use permission for stories submitted here is nonexclusive, which means they only have permission to post it themselves; the owner of the story retains full use rights as well to do whatever the author wants (or can) do with it.

 

[JohnnySavage]

Some of you guys need to get the money you paid for your law degrees back.

And go outside. Copyright laws weren't created for such nonsense as your little stories you post here.

The ONLY difference in the US between a registered copyright and a common law one is the amount of damages the court can award.

 

[sr71plt]

You didn't actually check your "you got played" claim out on the U.S. Copyright Web site did you? Rather than be misled by you, I suggest anyone wishing to enforce copyright in the United States go to the official Web site and read "Copyright Basics, Circular 1." They will find this paragraph: "Copyright exists automatically in an original work of authorship once it is fixed in a tangible medium, but a copyright owner can take steps to enhance the protections of copyright, the most important of which is registering the work. Although registering a work is not mandatory, for works of U.S. origin, registration (or refusal) is necessary to enforce the exclusive rights of copyright through litigation." (bolding added. This is the U.S. government. be sure to always read the fine print.)

This procedure was put into law by the United States when it signed the Berne Convention to fool folks like Mr. Savage into thinking he has protections he doesn't have. It's obviously worked a charm with Mr. Savage, who likely has no experience in this area whatsoever. You still have to hold a formally acquired copyright registration in the United States to take a copyright case to court. Ergo, Mr. Savage's view has no teeth. But I'm sure U.S. lawmakers are pleased as punch that they have fooled him on this.

I suggest others interested in protecting their written works not allow themselves to be fooled as Mr. Savage has. In fact, the easiest way to find you can't protect your ownership of a story in the United States is to post it for free on a free-use Web site like Literotica. You've valued it at 0 and you could spend countless hours trying to play whack-a-mole to get it pulled off of pirating Web sites.

 

[JohnnySavage]

Anytime you want to compare experience in litigating copyright claims, you just let me know

Something other then your little interweb stories, of course.

 

[sr71plt]

Anytime you want to compare experience in litigating copyright claims, you just let me know

Something other then your little interweb stories, of course.

Presumably folks will notice that you've shown that you only know enough about this to get yourself and others screwed. They've been warned and given the quote from the horse's mouth.

 

[about__aveage]

The simple answer is that IF you want to protect your copyright in the US you have to register the work AND PAY FOR THE REGISTRATION.

Not true.
My ex used to do intellectual property law and copyright was the easiest to own without having to register.
Merely publishing or selling (especially across state lines) and documenting the date is all you need.

 

[oggbashan]

Not true.
My ex used to do intellectual property law and copyright was the easiest to own without having to register.
Merely publishing or selling (especially across state lines) and documenting the date is all you need.

Your knowledge of US copyright law is probably much better than mine. Copyright, however it is made, is meaningless unless you can protect it. Whatever you have or have not done in the US to establish your copyright on a story posted on Literotica - it can be stolen with highlighting and a right click from anywhere in the world. To protect your copyright you must:

1. Prove who stole it
2. Identify them
3. Issue a DMCA
4. If the website doesn't comply try to sue
5. And what financial loss can you prove for a story posted free?

If the thief is outside the US? They can ignore you. If the website is hosted in SE Asia? They'll laugh at you.