The Ultimate Vampire Resource and Directory

Now... first of all this thread is seriously made to warn people... not to just copy and paste things to get a post out of it...This all started because of a long time ago my portfolio was called into question about having copyright material in there... which i felt it didn't but it kind of did. So I heard this that and the other and finally decided to look it all up... first this is the VR rules


"Digital Millennium Copyright Act Policy
VampireRave.com is an Online Service Provider under Title II of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. Section 512 ("DMCA"). VampireRave.com respects the legitimate rights of copyrights owners, and has adopted an efficient notice and takedown procedure as required by the DMCA and described herein. This policy is intended to guide copyright owners in utilizing that procedure, and also to guide webmasters in restoring access to websites that are disabled due to mistake.
Notice to Owners of Copyrighted Works
The DMCA provides a legal procedure by which you can request any Online Service Provider to disable access to a website where your copyrighted work(s) are appearing without your permission. There are two parts to the legal procedure: (1) Writing a Proper DMCA Notice, and (2) Sending the Proper DMCA Notice to a VampireRave.com Designated Agent.
How to Write a Proper DMCA Notice
A Proper DMCA Notice will notify VampireRave.com of particular facts in a document signed under penalty of perjury. We refer to this as a Proper DMCA Notice.To Write a Proper DMCA notice, please provide the following information:

1. Identify yourself as either:
1. The owner of a copyrighted work(s), or
2. A person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.
2. State your contact information, including your TRUE NAME, street address, telephone number, and email address.
3. Identify the copyrighted work that you believe is being infringed, or if a large number of works are appearing on VampireRave.com, give a representative list of the URL´s that contain the works.
4. Identify the material that you claim is infringing your copyrighted work, to which you are requesting that VampireRave.com disable access over the World Wide Web.
5. Identify the location of the material on the World Wide Web by providing information reasonably sufficient to permit VampireRave.com to locate the material.
6. State that you have a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agents, or the law.
7. State that the information in the notice is accurate, under penalty of perjury.

Sign the notice with either a physical or electronic signature.
Sending The Proper DMCA Notice to the Designated Agent
To exercise your DMCA rights, you must send your Proper DMCA Notice to the following agent designated by VampireRave.com (the Designated Agent.) The contact information for VampireRave.com´s Designated Agent is:

Lava Marketing
200 W. Hermosa Dr. #I-104
Tempe, AZ 85282

Email: webmaster@lavamarketing.com
What We Do When We Receive A Proper DMCA Notice
VampireRave.com will follow the procedures provided in the DCMA, which prescribed a notice and takedown procedure, subject to the webmasters right to submit a Counter-notification claiming lawful use of the disabled works.
Notice and Takedown Procedure
It is expected that all users of any part of the VampireRave.com system will comply with applicable copyright laws. However, if VampireRave.com is notified of claimed copyright infringement, or otherwise becomes aware of facts and circumstances from which infringement is apparent, it will respond expeditiously by removing, or disabling access to, the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity. VampireRave.com will comply with the appropriate provisions of the DMCA in the event a counter notification is received by its Designated Agent.
Notice to Users of VampireRave.com Systems
Pursuant to the Terms of Service Agreement you agreed to when you were permitted to become a System User, you are required to use only lawfully-acquired creative works as website content, and your website may be disabled upon receipt of notice that infringing material is appearing there. VampireRave.com also respects the legitimate interests of webmasters in utilizing media content lawfully, being permitted to present a response to claims of infringement, and obtaining timely restoration of access to a website that has been disabled due to a copyright complaint. Your System Use privileges will also be suspended. You may protest a DMCA notice by submitting a Counter-notification as described below.
Writing and Submitting a Counter-notification
If access to your website is disabled due to operation of the VampireRave.com notice and takedown procedure described above, and you believe the takedown was improper, you must submit a Counter-notification.
Writing a Counter-notification
To Write a Proper Counter-notification, please provide the following information:

1. State that access to your website was disabled due to operation of the notice and takedown procedure.
2. Identify the material that has been removed and designate its URL prior to removal.
3. State, under penalty of perjury:
1. Your name, address, and telephone number,
2. That you have a good faith belief that the material was removed or disabled as result of mistake or misidentification of the material.
3. That you consent to the jurisdiction of the Federal District Court for the judicial district in which the address is located.

Sending the Counter-notification
To exercise your DMCA rights, you must send your Counter-notification to the Designated Agent for VampireRave.com, whose contact information is:

Lava Marketing
200 W. Hermosa Dr. #I-104
Tempe, AZ 85282

Email: webmaster@lavamarketing.com
Repeat Infringers
VampireRave.com may, in its discretion, use all appropriate means to terminate user access to its system or network who are repeat infringers.
Accommodation of Standard Technical Measures
It is VampireRave.com´s policy to accommodate and not interfere with standard technical measures it determines are reasonable under the circumstances, i.e., technical measures that are used by copyright owners to identify or protect copyrighted works.
Policy With Regard To Non-Compliant Communications
VampireRave.com has discretion to handle non-compliant notices in whatever manner appears to be reasonable given the circumstances presented.
Submission of Misleading Information
The submission of misleading information of any sort in a notification or counter-notification submitted to VampireRave.com voids any claim of right made by the submitting party."


Now it is very well written but says a lot to basically say... don't mess around with things that don't belong to you.

However... what counts? Can you use part of a picture to make a new one? can you draw a new picture with a reference?? The only way to find out is to look up copyright law.... so I did and found basically the best answer in America. "Fair Use"



"One of the rights accorded to the owner of copyright is the right to reproduce or to authorize others to reproduce the work in copies or phonorecords. This right is subject to certain limitations found in sections 107 through 118 of the Copyright Act (title 17, U. S. Code). One of the more important limitations is the doctrine of “fair use.” Although fair use was not mentioned in the previous copyright law, the doctrine has developed through a substantial number of court decisions over the years. This doctrine has been codified in section 107 of the copyright law.

Section 107 contains a list of the various purposes for which the reproduction of a particular work may be considered “fair,” such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Section 107 also sets out four factors to be considered in determining whether or not a particular use is fair:

1.

the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;
2.

the nature of the copyrighted work;
3.

amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
4. the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.

The distinction between “fair use” and infringement may be unclear and not easily defined. There is no specific number of words, lines, or notes that may safely be taken without permission. Acknowledging the source of the copyrighted material does not substitute for obtaining permission.

The 1961 Report of the Register of Copyrights on the General Revision of the U.S. Copyright Law cites examples of activities that courts have regarded as fair use: “quotation of excerpts in a review or criticism for purposes of illustration or comment; quotation of short passages in a scholarly or technical work, for illustration or clarification of the author's observations; use in a parody of some of the content of the work parodied; summary of an address or article, with brief quotations, in a news report; reproduction by a library of a portion of a work to replace part of a damaged copy; reproduction by a teacher or student of a small part of a work to illustrate a lesson; reproduction of a work in legislative or judicial proceedings or reports; incidental and fortuitous reproduction, in a newsreel or broadcast, of a work located in the scene of an event being reported.”

Copyright protects the particular way an author has expressed himself; it does not extend to any ideas, systems, or factual information conveyed in the work.

The safest course is always to get permission from the copyright owner before using copyrighted material. The Copyright Office cannot give this permission.

When it is impracticable to obtain permission, use of copyrighted material should be avoided unless the doctrine of “fair use” would clearly apply to the situation. The Copyright Office can neither determine if a certain use may be considered “fair” nor advise on possible copyright violations. If there is any doubt, it is advisable to consult an attorney."


So Basically No one really knows whether or not you are breaking the rules for sure because the rules depend on too many factors.... It basically just suggests not risking it at all.. but what if the art you are using isn't effected at all by how you are using it, or even better what if the artist doesn't even care? Thing is they could... so even putting art at all on your Profile that you didn't make from scratch is a risk at a law suit... and just in case you didn't realize this means myspace and anything else you use... it's pretty scary to think about a 150,000 bill.

Thank you for posting this.

I do graphics at another group and when we want to use a graphic of an Artist (especially when manipulating with Text and such), we will go to the site of the artist and follow his/her copyright instructions and/or get written permission. And, if asked or required, will post all copyright information somewhere on the page.

This is also one of the reasons I do not post many imges here (I notice a lot are ones that I have seen available for MySpace Members or on their pages) and created my own little webset.

I also noticed that one of the members here is using a tag I made for myself for a different group. I guess you can say I was a bit surprised when I went to rate a profile here and saw it.

It was not the fact that he used the same image--it was that he used the specific tag I made--and seeing seeing the changes he made--it looked like crap. I was almost going to tell him to take it down and I would make him one with the text he wanted.

i have to say that it is great to point this out once in a while..... i personally hope that i have not violated any copyright laws by altering an image ... i don't claim the image as my own nor do i care to ....... the only thing i would claim it to be is my edit for personal use

well I feel the copyrights should be respected . alot of people have their private works on here and some are actual writers and Photographers ..etc, professional people and it just is not right to *take * someones work .. I feel most on here have no problem helping make stuff for another so I feel that the copyrights should be enforced and respected. just an opinion. I know I have some stuff that is puplished and I would not want someone to just TAKE them ya know but if asked then that is different.

Google images picked up a photo I took and put up on another site. It has been uploaded many times. My name and website are clearly indicated under the photo, but rarely is attribution given. My system tracks the URL's. I follow up and ask for attribution. Usually, people comply. sometimes they take the photo down. Sometimes they ignore me. I always threaten legal action. They pay attention then.

Writing is always copyrighted. Be inspired by it, and use it as a leap into your own take on the subject.

If you steal another person's words, your glory will be short-lived. The writer's world is not so broad and deep and this kind of thievery is not only proscecutable, but you'll never be taken seriously again as a writer once discovered.

If you claim it as your own that's the infringement.
Warhol seemed to get away with it mind!

LordVlkodlak you say that it is 50% but I can't find that anywhere in the VR rules and the Copyright place says

"There is no specific number of words, lines, or notes that may safely be taken without permission."

And on another page of the same website:

How much of someone else's work can I use without getting permission?

Under the fair use doctrine of the U.S. copyright statute, it is permissible to use limited portions of a work including quotes, for purposes such as commentary, criticism, news reporting, and scholarly reports. There are no legal rules permitting the use of a specific number of words, a certain number of musical notes, or percentage of a work. Whether a particular use qualifies as fair use depends on all the circumstances. See FL 102, Fair Use, and Circular 21, Reproductions of Copyrighted Works by Educators and Librarians.


Now in your defense it does say this as well


"How much do I have to change in my own work to make a new claim of copyright?

You may make a new claim in your work if the changes are substantial and creative, something more than just editorial changes or minor changes. This would qualify as a new derivative work. For instance, simply making spelling corrections throughout a work does not warrant a new registration, but adding an additional chapter would. See Circular 14, Copyright Registration for Derivative Works, for further information."




See now the thing is I want you to be right... because yes the internet should be used at your own risk and also I love photoshop-ing images extremely(both in amount of editing and how much i love it) So if you have place that says "50%" is the number please let me know.

When I was going to college I had to take a copyright class. I think the percentage was 25% change. I might have the book somewhere here or at my old house. I will look for it.

But I know how it feels to get something you work hard on get stolen and claimed to be someone else's work.

I made an avatar for VampireRave some time ago. It took everything in me to do the pictures of myself and put lyrics of a song I was writing up for everyone to see. Might not seem like such a big deal to others but it was extremely personal to me and had to deal with things I had been through and me fighting to get through them.

A member on here put it at the top of her profile and claimed it belonged to her. Someone told me of it because they knew me and read what I had placed at the top of my profile about the image. I went to the girl's profile and got mad as hell. She claimed it was her in the pictures. I was tired of the arguments. I had the original pictures with me in them before they went onto the image, I had my notebook with the lyrics in them in their original context, and I had people, including my professor, who saw me working on the image in class (even though he thought it was inappropriate because of the words). I threatened legal action. She took it down immediately afterwards, blocked me, and eventually deleted her account or changed the name or something.

Now I'm nervous about putting anything like that up again on here or anywhere online.

Anyway, I will try to find my book to get the exact percentage that I know.

This is good... I hope this thread will be seen by many of the Sentorans as it is very relevant to their job here and to users that have no idea how copyright works much like I didn't. I anticipate the additional information from both of you.

I hope nobody tries to copyright my profile

I think that this a wonderful post, as maybe now people that think that their pages are with in guidelines they wioll now take a second look. All of my poetry is copywritten, because it has been published. I just think this was a great post and hey maybe it should be made a sticky ?

Regardless of what copyright laws you've found elsewhere, this site was created by, is maintained by, and owned by, Cancer. The site is his and the rules are his. This is all that really matters. If the rules for VR that apply to copyprotected images or otherwise are not to a members liking, the answer/solution is simple.... Leave! ;)

Also, of the images that members steal from the internet or any other sources and alter with photoshop or any other graphics manipulating software, how many of those same members bother to apply for a new copyright for those altered images? In my opinion (And I could be mistaken here.), If the work you origanally used was copyprotected then altered but no new copyright is applied, you do not legally own that image. It still, even if only half is someone elses, belongs to someone else.
Am I right or wrong in this regard?

Bones,

I believe you are positively right bones because for instance like you said cancer owns this site so it has his copyright.

So therefor stating that the same albeit altered a little maybe but still applies if somebody else made a site like this and just modified it.

Well it would technially still be Cancers because he alone has a copyright to this it and any forebodings that pertain to it.

So basically yeah they can not truely own even if altered anything that someone has a copyright on unless they get a copyright themselves to have it.

Xxvampyre,

I would like to say thank you on behalf of the rave peoples about getting this information for use it is much obliged.

Forum threads are meant for discussion but since the policy on copyright on VR is already stated clearly and forced within the site, there is no need for this thread to mention what is already avaiable to all members. Policy is not going to change.
~billy