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Stay with me - I have never been able to get a really good answer about this and I want to see if anyone here has a good answer. 

Scrapbook paper is usually created by a paid designer.  Some companies believe that it is a COMPLETE work of art and they will NOT allow scrappers to cut it up and create custom scrapbook pages for others with it.  The manufacturer demands that it be sold in it`s entirety - completely untouched - to the consumer at a retail price.  They do not allow it to be purchased at wholesale, cut up and used in a project that is then resold to the consumer - even if the copyright info is included on another sheet.

MY take on this is that scrapbook paper is meant to be a COMPONENT of a finished product - like craft paint or beads or yarn.  No one buys scrapbook paper and hangs it on the wall like an art print.  Can you see the yarn company telling Grandma that she can`t sell her knitted hats?  The yarn company assumes that their yarn will be used to make something else.  The same with a bead company.  Their beads might be beautiful, but they aren`t going to pitch a fit if I buy them from a bead wholesaler and make bracelets to retail on my website.  I`m probably going to say, "Blue Moon Beads" in the description so they will get credit for their beads.  There is this attitude in the scrapbook industry that you must ask each company if they will allow you to use their products for custom work.  I have yet to see a company post their policy publicly.  It seems like no one should have to ask - it should be posted.  The burden of distributing their policy should be on the vendor - the retailer shouldn`t have to beg for it.  Otherwise, I would reasonably assume I could use their products if they don`t tell me otherwise. 

So, what constitutes TRUE copyright violation??  If I use a product that`s meant to be a PIECE of a completed product, shouldn`t the manufacturer understand that?  Some of these scrapbook manufacturers are really way too uptight about their "art" (aka scrapbook paper) and limit it`s use as often as possible.  BTW - we`re not talking about LICENSED patterns like Disney designs.  We all understand that that`s a different issue. 

Opinions???

Wow, I never heard of this one... I am learning with you Scrapbiz...
I don`t understand though..Wouldn`t purchasing the paper buy you the right to use it? You paid for it, it`s not like you are borrowing it to get rich.
Have you ever contacted the main sources? (neha paper for example) I have some insides to neha paper if you`d like to contact them.
Secondly, I don`t know where infringing the copyright would fall into place.. It`s like they are selling you the paper, but you can`t use it.. Why sell it? I think it is just leverage from the company.. Paper is paper and it has millions of uses.. SO if I make a paper airplane? did I tarnish their name? Since it`s supposed to be used in scrapbooking other than paper airplanes?
there are limitations... One thing I would probably worry about is if I were trying to duplicate their patterns and logos... Other than that.. I don`t see where copyrighting would fall into place..

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Edgar Monroy
Web Developer / Owner / Consultant
When starting your own business the need to "know-how" is greater than money!
http://www.nuevolution.net

Thank you.  You`re right - it`s SUPPOSED to be used in something else.  No one ever says, "This is MY paper" when they use it to scrapbook for a customer.  And no one is scanning it and using the same piece of paper many times (a true violation).  They purchase it at wholesale, use it to make a scrapbook page and resell the whole page to a customer who then just glues on their photos.  In the process, the name of the company who made the paper MIGHT be cut off.  That causes a lot of "knicker knotting" in my industry.  It seems all rather "Prima Donna-ish".  It`s paper, not Picassos!

Yes, some companies WOULD have a heart-attack if you were making paper airplanes with their paper and selling the airplanes on eBay - even if you gave them copyright credit.  You are altering their "art". 

~Kim

So why sell the paper then? Regardless of what the purpose is, If I am going to use glue to paste my picture.. it`s at my discretion.. I paid for it so there for I can do what ever I want to do with it..
Selling a paper airplane on e-bay is a bad example; why buy it when you can open your printer`s paper tray and grab a sheet out and make one.
Ok, so how would your industry treat this?? I use cotton paper with water marks when I am addressing a new customer or something legal. I see it has a water mark in the center, so you are telling me I have edit and mofidy my letter and write around the water mark because it says Kelly Paper, or Neha?

It doesn`t make sense... But like I said, I don`t know much about your industry so I couldn`t give you much advise on that topic. But have you tried contacting a company and having your own paper designed?
I`m pretty sure it can be done.
I have a friend with a print-shop.. He water marks my paper with the company Logo on it..
Would you like for me to talk to him? for you??
perhaps you can get crafty and come up with your own designs..

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Edgar Monroy
Web Developer / Owner / Consultant
When starting your own business the need to "know-how" is greater than money!
http://www.nuevolution.net

 

your last posting did not show..

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Edgar Monroy
Web Developer / Owner / Consultant
When starting your own business the need to "know-how" is greater than money!
http://www.nuevolution.net

It sound to me like ScrapBizKim is onto a new legal challenge. In the mean time she`ll be earning money with her product and getting a lot of news recognition. :) I admit, it is an interesting situation that may need real legal poking.

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Vincent Wilcox (a.k.a. KRAKR)
Drummer
My band: Letters Make Words

Yeah... tell me about it...
Legal challenges are part of being in business. You just have to take them as they come.
I remember when I first started my business, I had some guy print my Business Cards. What he didn`t know was that my company`s logo is registered. So he decided he was going to use my logo to make a quick buck.
He decided he was going to let someone else use it. When I walked in and saw that he sold my logo to someone else, give or take he changed the color from Blue to black and gray.. But the Battle was there... He requested to see a Copy of the registration, I came back an hour later and showed him the letter.. Boy did his Jaw Drop... He offered me a 1000.00 compensation... I didn`t take it.. I took it down to the court, that`s what I did.. But in your case Scrapbiz, I don`t see the infringment or tarnishing... Paper is paper... and you paid a fee to purchase it so regardless if you use it, there shouldn`t be a problem. The only way I would think there was a problem is if the company was giving it to you for free. Then I can see a problem. But if you are paying for it, You paid not only for the paper but the royalties to use it too..
It`s like the case of the Silent Macarena..

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Edgar Monroy
Web Developer / Owner / Consultant
When starting your own business the need to "know-how" is greater than money!
http://www.nuevolution.net

One of the problems in my industry is that most of these scrapbook crafts are being made by moms.  They get ONE letter from someone`s legal department and they die of fear of being sued.  Creative Memories is my nemesis.  They are an 800 lb gorilla who preys on the ignorance of SAHM moms who don`t know enough to fight.  Their legal department fires off letters to ANYONE using the words "Creative" and "Memories" in the same sentence  - ie "I preserve your memories in a creative manner" on a website would get you a letter in the mail from Creative Memories citing copyright infringement.  Their consultant contract is ridiculous - it prevents you from doing ANYTHING scrapbook business related for 3 years after leaving Creative Memories.  Yet, most of the women who sign it don`t know that CM really can`t do that to them. 

That`s why I`m trying to get a good answer.  I believe I`m correct in my assumptions.  I just want to be able to arm my own business members with good info because it`s come up for them before.  They have had auctions pulled at eBay because someone didn`t like them using their paper to decorate a box. 

~Kim

 

The old boundaries of copyright are eroding in the wake of the generation shirking of music copyrights and filesharing.  You can read the letter of the US Copyright Act here.   From what you`re telling, the stay-at-home moms got what`s called a "cease and desist letter".  They`re basically the equivalent of spammed legal threats and does not mean that their claim holds any substance.  Corporations habitually pepper other businesses with these letters to extort a small quiet settlement rather than expend money on a trial. 

I`ll use Creative Memories in the place of any company that you may run legally afoul of.

Copyright infringment must meet a certain burden of proof and answer the majority of the following questions affirmatively:

1) Does the alleged infringement in fact fall under fair use where the mention of copyright is in a work of review, parody, or comparison to another product?

2) Does your scrapbook attempt to misrepresent itself and imply that it is in fact a product of or affiliated with Creative Memories?

3) If so, is there any disclaimer which makes clear that the scrapbook is in no way related or affiliated with Creative Memories?

4) Is copyright, which is a broad definition, or solely the trademark of Creative Memories being infringed upon?

5) Does Creative Memories engage in the selling of scrapbooks or anything that can be reasonably misconstrued for items you sell?

Copyright and trademark infringment, which are separate things, must meet a burden of proof.  My advice would be to publish your own legal policy that forewarns any company to notify you if they believe infringement has taken place.  Trademarking or copyrighting your own designs will scare off most companies unless they`re willing to spend 6 figures on actual legal proceedings.  Keep in mind that a cease and desist letter is a pre-emptive legal warning.  It`s a way for a plantiff to establish a pattern of infringement if the letter is ignored.  But the legal departments of many companies use text-scanning or data-mining programs and simply automate the process.  Other times, it`s an intern or first-year employee handling this and they may not even follow up on it.

A somewhat reassuring fact may be that all 800-pound gorillas become humbled.  The #1 spot in the Internet and software world has changed hands so many times in the past 10 years it`s made journalist`s heads spin.  To wrap up this overly long answer to your question, throw up legal barriers to litigation with copyrights or trademarks, a pre-emptive legal policy, and a partnership with smaller businesses that may even pay you to use their products as components for your scrapbooks.

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"Forget inspirational quotes to keep you going. If by doing what you do, you get an hour every day to relax, be with the ones you love in comfort without doing wrong, then it is all worth it." -Anon.