Re: [Leica] Copyright questions

["Mxsmanic" <mxsmanic@hotmail.com>]

Harold Gess writes:

> ... I have always understood that the issue of
> copyright infringement on such items hinges
> on the use of the photographs.

In practice, yes; in theory, no.

In _theory_, the copyright owner controls _all_ use of a copyrighted work, even
use of an image for display in your own home.  In _practice_, however, copyright
issues are only raised when some sort of profitable use is made of a copyrighted
work, or when the work is publicly displayed or broadcast.  A good rule of thumb
is to ask whether money is involved; if the answer is no, the risk is low, and
if the answer is yes, the risk ranges from moderate to high.

The problem with copyright law, as with all intellectual-property law, is that
strict application of the principles of intellectual property would bring the
functioning of society to a stop, whereas no application at all of these
principles would leave a large chunk of society begging for money on the street
(since it would receive no income from the intellectual property it created).  A
balance is therefore struck between the two, and the balance shifts constantly,
based on prevailing jurisprudence.  In many cases, the outcome of a lawsuit in
this domain strongly resembles a roll of the dice.

It is prudent to have a good lawyer if you become involved in one (on either
side--since a photographer might well in either position).  And make sure your
lawyer is a specialist in intellectual-property issues, as ordinary lawyers
usually aren't that involved in this domain, and may know scarcely any more
about it than ordinary mortals.