Would You Tell a Friend That Her Etsy Shop Is Illegal?

I would tell her, but I would raise it in the form of a question -"Hey, I LOVE that Disney poster! How did you get all the copyright permissions from Disney and the Beatles (actually the Michael Jackson estate I believe since he bought the rights to the Beatles catalog before his death) and everyone? Oh, you didn't -well be careful, because I know Disney in particular will come after even a 'little guy' for using their stuff without permission."

.

I would casually slip in the "so what do you have to do to get permission to use copyrighted material?" into your convo sometime while chatting. Perhaps that will get her thinking that "OOPS, I can't do this!"

Disney and Sesame Street are two of the most voracious about protecting their image/images. They have no qualms about hitting on the little guys. They only want their images used in the manner they deem appropriate.

I think I would start the conversation like the other ladies suggested-"how hard is it to get Disney to give you licensing rights?" or something seemingly innocent like that. That way it opens the door for her to say that she hasn't and you can offer up the legalities that you learned at your job.

i'm surprised how many people assume she'll be offended. if she knows it's illegal and is proceeding anyway, then she's aware that there are repercussions and it's no big deal. if she's not, then it's a gesture of friendship to let her know. it doesn't have to be done in an accusatory or judgmental fashion.
if i had a dangly booger, tp attached to a shoe, spinach in my teeth, or was inadvertently doing something out of line, i would EXPECT a friend to help me out.
khairete
S.

I'd do it.

I know some people would think it too intrusive or accusational (is that a word?), but the results could be so serious that I would bring it up. "That's a terrific-looking poster. How did you get the rights to use Beatles lyrics? I've always heard they're really strict about giving permission."

She might shrug you off. She might say something about how friends should be supportive. She might get angry and say you're calling her a crook (not realizing that you're trying to keep her from being a crook). So be prepared; you'll need to choose in advance not to be hurt by such reactions.

But the idea is, without lecturing, to put the bug in her mind - to get her thinking. "Of all the nerve, for that woman to imply that I'm breaking the law!... What IS the law about that, anyhow?" Then it's up to her to take action.

It will have big repercussions for her business, but she won't have been the first person to assume (wrongly) that something so emphatically out in public is "public domain."

Yes, a true friend tells the truth even if it hurts or is uncomfortable. I would say it gently but say you value the friendship and wouldn't want her to get in trouble and she probably isn't aware of this so you want to bring it to her attention. Good luck!

M

Gently tell her RIGHT AWAY!! The companies that will come after you quickly for copyright infrindgment are Disney- Harley-Davidson- NFL-ASCAP-BMI. A person can not make craft items with NFL logos (fabric) and sell them you have to get permission from the NFL and pay for the rights plus royalties. You cannot just play a radio or TV CDs of DVDs in a business unless you pay royalties. It is considered re-broadcasting the signal and you are making money off the work of these artists. A bar or club owner can't hire a band or DJ unless they royalties to ASCAP and BMI. If they get caught they get one letter to pay up or they will be sued.
I roadie for a band on weekends and I have heard of more than one bar/club owner who got caught not paying royalties. All it takes is for one person to see what she is selling and report her and whoever she is infringing on will investagate then send a letter to stop or pay royalties if she doesn't they will take her to court. One woman I heard about was fined $100,000 + royalties for infringing on Harley-Davidson. Ask her if she is making enough to cover that + attorney fees.

yep, I'd butt out. etsy monitors these things.

If you were doing something illegal and didn't know it wouldn't you want your friend to tell you. Worst case scenario is that she already knows what she is doing is wrong.

Why not ask her out right if she got permission to use the copyright? Disney can be quite vicious about protecting its rights.
Or maybe even hey how did you go about getting the right to use such and such image. I always heard company blank was very resistant to letting anyone use their images.
That leaves a lot of room and then you can mention your knowledge from past job experience. Plus you are not accusing her of anything per se more asking how to go about getting permission to use it. It just feels a lot different worded when you assume she did the right thing. The door is then opened for you to explain.

I hope that helps

You hold no personal responsibility in this so no I don't feel you have any obligation to tell her how to run her business.

No, I don't think you should say anything. Like you said, she really isn't banking off of it and isn't using it as a nefarious plot to undermine music or Disney.

I'd let it go.

So long as she is giving credit to the original quoter for the quotes she isn't breaking any laws. Many of the items sold on Etsy are tribute items, for example, you'll find a lot of Edward and Bella themed items from the Twilight series and they are merely tribute memorabilia, which unless they are saying they are official merchandise it is perfectly legal. It sounds like she is using outlines that resemble Disney characters, but unless she is using an actual copyrighted image there isn't much that can be done.

I would say something in a gentle way. Maybe you could find an article about copyright infringments and send it to her.

Well, my bottom line feeling is, if she is trying to employ you or sell to you, then yes, ask if she has rights to reproduce.

Of course it is wrong and many do it anyway. I have seen many highly respected people hit print on a photo and tack a copy of a photo in their area. It would be the kiss of death for me to walk around the office and let everyone know this was illegal. In fact, I photographed my boss' son for his senior pictures and when I went to the grad party, she hid the crappy reprints she did. So she knew she was wrong, but what can I say? I guess if I wanted to make her uncomfortable, I could have picked them up and asked where she had the copies done, but not worth the aggravation.

And yes, I have been schooled on copyright laws too.

i wouldnt say anything. If it were me making the mistake, knowingly or otherwise, and you pointed it out, I'd wonder why you want to play cop/detective with me.... "are you the copyright police" I'd probably ask you.

That's really a hard one because I know you don't want to mess up your friendship. I would start with just asking her what research she's done on copywrite laws, what are her impressions of the idea, etc. I wouldn't even bring her Etsy shoppe or the idea that her products may be breaking the law at first. Sound her out. Maybe find out where she's getting her images. She may be using a duty/royalty free site, (there are a lot out there) but she may not realize that it might not be legit, since not all of them out there are. There's a lot of gray area when it comes to the internet for quotes & pictures since everyone assumes it's free for the taking which isn't always the case. There's also a lot of gray area when it comes to intellectual property and artistic license, how things are marketed, etc.

Do your homework really well, and after talking to her, if you're really sure that what she's doing isn't legit, you do need to tell her. You give me the impression that you feel as if you're good friends and this isn't something that a good friend would ignore, especially if it could get your friend in trouble. Good luck!

Report her shop to Etsy and they can decide if it's legal or not and let her know.

I would... or, since she isn't really a close friend, maybe you could talk about it with someone closer to her. I know I take more offense when I get distressing advice from casual acquaintances than from friends... so maybe someone closer to her can broach the subject instead of you. (I know this feels like passing the buck, but as long as she is told about it...)

I'd either not say anything or I might complain to Etsy. Let them be the bad guys.