Sparky. In your question, no watchtower would not have any recourse, in my lay opinion. Watchtower only copyright the actual videos that they produce. Unless watchtower entered into negotiations with the producers of the Simpsons for some compensation for their character development they would not be breaking any portion of section 102 or 103 of the US copyright act. The preemption doctorine of section 106(a) of the copyright act bars them from filing a civil action in a state court.
watchtower lapel pins
by wannaexit 58 Replies latest jw friends
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shepherdless
"the bar association and rules from state supreme court bars anyone who is not a lawyer from giving legal advice..."
Actually, you will find there is legislation to that effect, pretty much in every country on the planet, not just USA. It is a real problem when you have non-lawyers spouting incorrect statements of law, using impressive legalistic terms and making random references to vaguely relevant case law.
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Richard Oliver
Sgeperdless. Please tell me specifically what u feel I have said that is incorrect and I will back it up with case law. And the case law I have spouted by any objective reader would see it is on point.
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JeffT
Free lance writer here. I have done a lot of research on copyright issues. The quote a page or two back covers this clearly in my opinion.
Copyright covers a specific picture or story. I can't use that picture or story, or part of a story without the permission of the copyright holder. I can use small portions of it under "fair use" which would allow me to say use a screen print or quote some text in a piece of original writing. Let's say I'm writing an article about the Caleb and Sophia videos. I can reprint a picture of them, or quote parts of the dialog to illustrate a point. Satire is allowed broad discretion to use characters or situations. If they do their own art work and write their own dialog, the Watchtower can't stop the producers of the Simpsons from having fun with Caleb and Sophia.
In the case of the dot org pins, I believe they've trade marked the logo, which is a specific item. But they can't trademark the letters "J" and "W" or ".org" because they are in common use. So anybody can put the letters on anything they want. I've noticed there seems to be a cottage industry advertising such stuff on the internet. From the look of a lot of it, I suspect its small jewelry operations that noticed lots of JW related stuff floating around and jumped on the bandwagon. I don't think they WTBS has any connection to this, and I'm sure they don't have a legal way to stop it. I expect they may get more forceful about telling the sheep not to buy it, unless they set up their own approved source.
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Vidiot
Scully - "It would be even more funny if it was an exJW / Apostate™ marketing those idiotic pins to JWs."
Oh my god, that would be the most delicious irony in JW history. :satisfied:
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Richard Oliver
Yes just as JeffT highlights, Copyright law is very complicated and the Copyright Act has a lot of reasons why something is copyrightable and why something isn't.
Yes people are making money off of these things but it is not Watchtower.
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OUTLAW
Yes people are making money off of these things but it is not Watchtower......RO
There are many ways to profit..
Watchtower could easily put a stop,to JW`s buying WBT$ Idols..
And..
Stop JW`s From Wearing WBT$ Idols,to WBT$ Events..
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But..They Won`t!.......BECAUSE IT`S..
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OUTLAW
Leviticus 26:1
You shall make no idols nor graven images, neither raise you up a standing image, neither shall you set up any image of stone in your land, to bow down unto it: for I am the LORD your God.
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