Emily (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} emilyjohnston) wrote in ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif){kind=small} knitting,@ 2006-05-29 12:12:00 |
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Possibly copyright infringement?
I just bought this e-book and noticed that they have included the pattern for Knitty's Haiku, along with Knitty's Daisy (which is actually shown on the item listing, although I didn't recognize it until I started going through other Knitty patterns). Does anyone happen to know whether these reprints are authorized before I email the original pattern creators? Two of the patterns in the booklet are credited as "reprinted with permission," but not the ones from Knitty. There are 20 patterns total, and I'd hate to think that any of them were ripped off!
The ebay seller is goldskyuk. Thanks!
EDIT: If anyone happens to have a link (or would like to find it for me) for reporting copyright infringement to eBay, I would appreciate it. I am drafting an email to the designers of the patterns and would like to include that information as a convenience. I'm in the process of finding email addresses for all the patterns, so this would be a huge help!
ANOTHER EDIT: I have received actual human email back from eBay, and while they seem a bit confused as to the actual situation (they keep referring to other eBay sellers being ripped off), hopefully I have clarified enough that they get the picture. I have also asked for the best way for the infringees to notify eBay and will email it out if/when they respond. If anyone can identify the preview photos in the auctions that are still up, I would HIGHLY recommend emailing the designers (or let me know and I'll do it, since I'm on a roll anyway!)
I just bought this e-book and noticed that they have included the pattern for Knitty's Haiku, along with Knitty's Daisy (which is actually shown on the item listing, although I didn't recognize it until I started going through other Knitty patterns). Does anyone happen to know whether these reprints are authorized before I email the original pattern creators? Two of the patterns in the booklet are credited as "reprinted with permission," but not the ones from Knitty. There are 20 patterns total, and I'd hate to think that any of them were ripped off!
The ebay seller is goldskyuk. Thanks!
EDIT: If anyone happens to have a link (or would like to find it for me) for reporting copyright infringement to eBay, I would appreciate it. I am drafting an email to the designers of the patterns and would like to include that information as a convenience. I'm in the process of finding email addresses for all the patterns, so this would be a huge help!
ANOTHER EDIT: I have received actual human email back from eBay, and while they seem a bit confused as to the actual situation (they keep referring to other eBay sellers being ripped off), hopefully I have clarified enough that they get the picture. I have also asked for the best way for the infringees to notify eBay and will email it out if/when they respond. If anyone can identify the preview photos in the auctions that are still up, I would HIGHLY recommend emailing the designers (or let me know and I'll do it, since I'm on a roll anyway!)
EDIT 2: I reported this item to eBay, and left negative feedback for the seller indicating the copyright violations. I also sent the following email to all the designers (which seemed easier than sending individual emails). If there are any other suggestions, let me know!
All,
I recently purchased an "e-book" (downloadable PDF document) of baby cardigan patterns from eBay seller goldskyuk. Once I downloaded the booklet, I realized that I was familiar with a couple of the patterns, which are available for free online. None of the patterns were attributed, and details such as the names of the patterns and specific yarn recommendations had been removed from most of them, which seemed odd.
With a bit of googling, I was able to identify all of the patterns, which are linked below. I have confirmed that at least one of the patterns was used without permission, and several of the sites linked below include explicit copyright information that leads me to believe that rights were not granted to this seller. If you did not authorize this use of your pattern, I encourage you to report them to eBay (and issuing a Cease & Desist letter directly to the seller may be advisable as well).
I have also included links to the "e-book" auction in question and the eBay seller, and the auto-response from eBay when I reported the item. Photos used in the booklet were taken directly from the websites linked below, and the patterns are quoted almost verbatim (with certain omissions as I explained above).
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Emily Johnston (emily@emilykatt.com)
Online booklet: http://cgi.ebay.com/20-Knitting-Patterns-for-Baby-Cardigans-Vol1-Ebook_W0QQitemZ82 89368682QQcategoryZ41238QQrdZ1QQcmdZView Item
GoldskyUK link: http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQfgtpZ1QQfrppZ25QQsassZgoldskyuk
Patterns included in booklet (items are named as "Baby Cardigan 1," etc):
Baby Cardigan 1: http://www.geocities.com/joyjannotti/babycardiganpattern.html
Baby Cardigan 2: http://www.knitlist.com/01gift/garter-baby-cardigan.htm
Baby Cardigan 3: http://www.wam.umd.edu/~brwb/GarterSt.html
Baby Cardigan 4: http://magazines.ivillage.com/goodhousekeeping/myhome/decorate/articles/0,,28454 8_679697-6,00.html
Baby Cardigan 5: http://www.bbc.co.uk/stoke/my_pages/babywear/hkp/011.shtml
Baby Cardigan 6: http://www.bbc.co.uk/stoke/my_pages/babywear/hkp/026.shtml (this pattern did indicate that it was reproduced with permission by Julia Rees on behalf of Ray of Hope)
Baby Cardigan 7: http://www.bbc.co.uk/stoke/my_pages/babywear/hkp/029.shtml (this pattern did indicate that it was reproduced with permission by Paulene Sibley on behalf of Ray of Hope)
Baby Cardigan 8: http://www.minidata.co.nz/major/freepatt/patt04.htm
Baby Cardgian 9: http://www.ornaghi.it/modelli_en/pisolo_coprifasce_righe.htm
Baby Cardgian 10: http://www.ornaghi.it/modelli_en/pisolo_coprifasce_azzurro.htm
Baby Cardgian 11: http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEfall02/PATThaiku.html
Baby Cardgian 12-14: http://www.knitty.com/issuesummer03/PATTdaisy.html
Baby Cardgian 15: http://www.coatsandclark.com/fun_and_free/knit_out_2003/lw1371.htm
Baby Cardgian 16: http://www.coatsandclark.com/fun_and_free/yarn/lw1330.htm
Baby Cardgian 17: http://www.geocities.com/finkatt/lacy.html
Baby Cardgian 18: http://www.craftown.com/knit/knit47.htm
Baby Cardgian 19: http://www.ptyarn.com/babycardiganset.html
Baby Cardgian 20: http://www.islandnet.com/knitware/freep01.htm
Response from eBay, including links:
Thank you for your report.
We would like to let you know that we have received your email and we
will thoroughly investigate the information you have provided.
Please keep in mind that the reasons for actions taken or not taken on a
specific listing are confidential and between eBay and the seller. We
will not be able to keep you informed of any developments for legal
reasons, but we assure you that we will thoroughly examine this
information. We will take the appropriate action for each individual
case, which may involve removing an item or simply issuing a warning.
If you believe an item is potentially infringing and it was not removed
by eBay, we encourage you to contact the rights owner and inform them of
the alleged infringement. Rights owners may request the removal of
listings they feel infringe upon their rights through eBay's Verified
Rights Owner (VeRO) Programme.
If you would like to see information provided by the rights owners about
items that may infringe their rights including how to contact them,
please visit our list of VeRO Programme participant About Me pages.
http://pages.ebay.com/help/community/vero-aboutme.html
If you are a rights owner and would like more information regarding the
VeRO Programme, please visit:
http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/community/vero-program.html
Please do not respond to this email. If you reply to this message we
will not receive your email. All communications regarding Rules and
Safety should be sent to the link provided below:
http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/contact_inline/index.html
We appreciate your concerns, and we thank you for helping to keep
ebay.co.uk a safe and enjoyable trading community.
Best wishes,
The ebay.co.uk Community Watch Team
