Date: Mon, 13 Apr 1998 00:27:40 EDT
Reply-To: Veeduber <Veeduber@AOL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <Vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: Veeduber <Veeduber@AOL.COM>
Subject: Re: Copyrights
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
In a message dated 98-04-12 12:01:03 EDT, you write:
<<
I believe that Ron will honor your request to remove your posting from the
archives, even though I believe that he does not have to.>>
You are correct. But he made the offer to remove them. After an exchange of
messages with him it became clear the wiser course would be to accept, hence
my request.
The real issue here has to do with someone coming along after a public archive
has been created, taking charge of that archive then declaring by fiat that
the contents of the archive belongs to them. In my opinion, is a gross
violation of honor, logic and law.
<<Were you not fully aware that your postings would be archived and available
to the public? >>
Of course. That was the whole reason for posting the material. It was meant
to benefit YOU. But I am also aware of the protections afforded me under the
copyright laws, of which you apparently are not, as shown by the following:
<< You still own the copyright to them as you previously posted, but a court
of law may decide that the Vanagon mailing list is a public domain, and
anything posted there is public information. >>
No, this is incorrect. The courts have already ruled otherwise. Placing
material in a publically accessable archive in no way abbrogates the author's
rights. All the internet has done has made it easier for such material to be
STOLEN -- which is why the most recent amendments to the copyright laws (ie,
the 'No Electronic Theft' Act) have increased the criminal copyright-
infringment provisions.
<<Nothing is to stop me from copying all of your sermons and keeping them for
personal use. >>
That is correct. Your freedom to do so is defined under the 'Fair Use'
doctrine of the copyright laws.
<< I believe I could even make copies and give them away unless this in some
way would harm you. >>
You are incorrect on this point. Even if you give the stuff away, by making
copies for other than your OWN use, you have violated the trust inherent in
making material publically available -- as well as my rights under the law.
Let your friends access the files themselves and make their own copies.
The question of showing 'harm' has to do with the collection of damages. Were
I to sue you in a civil court I could probably collect a few dollars for the
copy you made --- plus all of my legal fees. But you've failed to consider
the CRIMINAL aspect of violating the provisions of the Copyright Act. In that
case, a federal prosecutor need only show the law was knowingly broken, and
the only evidence needed would be the extra copy or the testimony of the
person receiving the stolen goods.
<< Now if you published a book, my CD copies may undermine your book sales,
but then again, your sermons were available free and copied before your book
was published.>>
A CD is NOT a public archive, it is in fact a publication, similar to a book.
The book I'm working on contains more than a hundred illustrations. It also
includes a great deal of material that has never appeared on the 'net. I
think it's reasonable to assume people will find it informative and even
entertaining, and that its worth will exceed its price. (And should an
unauthorized CD appear on the market, while I probably will see nothing from
the litigation that will surely follow, I can assure you my lawyer will :-)
<< I'm going to wait for the book version. Can I get an autographed copy? >>
I would be delighted to sign your copy.
-Bob Hoover
