--- In SkunkworksAMA_at_yahoogroups.com, "Skye Bluedeer" wrote:
> I believe the way things go is as such:
>
> You can not copyright a character. You can, however, trademark
> a character. There is a difference between the two. You cannot
> take someone to court for violating a copyright on a character,
> but you /can/ take them to court for violating a trademark.
>
> (snipping for space)
>
> Trademarks, however, are different. You may not reproduce any
> trademarked character in any fashion with the intent to profit
> from it. However, you can produce variations and 'fan art'
> of that Trademarked character, but you may still not profit
> from it. This means if Artist #1 creates a character and
> Trademarks it, and sells images of that character as part of
> their profitable income, then Artist #2 may not do so in any
> fashion, without express written permission of Artist #1.
>
Exactly... Characters CAN be protected... Also, I know someone who
creates reproductions of things like insignia pins from Star Trek...
It's legal for him to do so, in extremely limited quantities, so he
tells me... Maybe not ethical, but legal...
Similarly, the lady in question would be in the wrong if she produced
Natasha dolls as a regular product, but not for a limited production
in and of itself... The fact that a custom job costs so much would
be more important than the fact that she's only producing one
item... Which is why she always contacts the owner of the character,
and gets permission first...
And if the owner says it's okay, there's no problem...
Received on Sat Oct 25 2003 - 12:04:39 CDT