Re: Copyright Infringement Happening at Conference Group - Help!

From: Wired Heart <wiredheart[_at_]hotmail.com>
Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 16:52:14 PDT

Dan L. Burk <burkdanl[_at_]shu.edu> wrote:
>
> On 07/22/98, Brigid S. Delaney <wiredheart[_at_]hotmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > How would they research the originality of anyone's work? To do so
> > effectively would mean that they would have to read each work or
> > scan each work into a computer with a huge data base to compare
> > words/works.
>
> They most certainly do not research the originality of anyone's work
> that is a legal conclusion.

I worded that incorrectly. Please see below. Thanks.

> > They can't compare on titles considering that titles are not
> > copyrightable
>
> This is really not relevant to whether or not it can be used to
> identify similar registrations.
>
> > and if someone was attempting to copyright another's work as their
> > own, they would hardly use the same title.
>
> If the second registrant is the actual author, how would they know what
> title might have been used on the bogus registration?

Okay, Dan, if you could be patient with me. :-)

Let's take my work. My works are not works-for-hire. The last collection I sent in - for a mere $20 - was registered under:

"'My Legal Name' Collection No. XX"

with alternative title:

" 'My Pseudonym' Collection No.XX"

This collection included 9 pieces of fiction and about 50 poems.

My question is: how do they compare my work (to another's)?

What do they use? The title the work was registered under? That would tell them little in this case.

They can't read each individual work - that would not make sense - because if Employee A reads my work - is he to remember all of the other works in the office so that he can compare, even if he is only comparing individual titles of all the stories and poetry?

And what if Writer B sent in copies of my work as his and another employee was the one who read his. If they actually compared works (or titles), they could logically only do so if they had a database based on scanning in each writer's work or keying in titles.

All this for only $20!!! They are underpaid - even if they don't compare title/title.

Brigid

Brigid S. Delaney
<wiredheart[_at_]hotmail.com>

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Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com/ Received on Fri Jul 24 1998 - 23:52:29 GMT