cartoon copyright

[derrick]

Say I wanted to design a cartoon character for a site, how to i go about getting the character branded to me so no one else could ever legally use him...Also is it something I should be looking at in regards to my domain names themselves?

thanks

[balls_deep]

this should fall under all other publishing, in that once you publish it, it is copyrighted by you. keep proof of your publishing date and no one can legally use your unique character.

the prelinger archives will spider you to more than enough info about publishing and copyrights.

http://www.archive.org/details.php?identifier=prelinger

[phuckbunny]

If you're using a mascot this should fall under trademark law, which takes a long time to actually get cleared but once it's registered you should have an injunction against any attempts to use that trademark. Kind of like "patent pending" - it takes years, sometimes decades to register a patent but you can use "patent pending" to prevent others from using it. Same thing goes with trademarks where you use TM or RM. It's actually simpler than copyright law believe it or not; you can also find out plenty of information about trademark law by going to the library of congress site and other resources like that if you are in the US.

[porn punk]

http://www.copyright.gov/ Here's a copyright link. Make sure you follow through and copyright. Also you might want to write yourself a short script and register it here because it can be done online quickly and will cover you for five years and give you extra backup http://www.wga.org/

Remember to read all the rules because people get confused with what copyrighting and registering actually protects.

Like phuckbunny said, I'd look into the trademarking too, but don't know much of the specifics about that myself

[Cozy Monica]

As soon as something like that is created, it is copyright. Period.

The trouble is when someone goes and uses it, trying to prove that you are indeed the owner and the person that came up with it first.

[jonnydoe]

Exactly what Monica said

[phuckbunny]

Monica is correct and so is John.

However, if you think that copyright law is complicated, wait until you get into trademark law. Trademarks take forever to get legally registered. They are difficult to enforce. Technically every time you write the words "Star Trek" you legally have to add a (TM) or (R) symbol next to those words. How many people do it? How many of them get into trouble?

Honestly I wouldn't worry about it too much. People steal trademark images anyway. Think of those cocaine/coca cola t-shirts as an example. If you're branded, though, that's only added publicity.

Now if you're the guy who invented the "smiley face" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvey_Ball) and didn't register it, then I would be concerned if I were you.

The WGA is the trade union for motion picture screenwriters (Writers Guild of America) and a script and a mascot are apples and oranges, so registering a screenplay has nothing to do with registering a trademark. Last thing to note: ideas cannot be copyrighted. Whatever you plan on registering as your own has to be in a tangible form.

[porn punk]

Originally posted by phuckbunny
Monica is correct and so is John.

However, if you think that copyright law is complicated, wait until you get into trademark law. Trademarks take forever to get legally registered. They are difficult to enforce. Technically every time you write the words "Star Trek" you legally have to add a (TM) or (R) symbol next to those words. How many people do it? How many of them get into trouble?

Honestly I wouldn't worry about it too much. People steal trademark images anyway. Think of those cocaine/coca cola t-shirts as an example. If you're branded, though, that's only added publicity.

Now if you're the guy who invented the "smiley face" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvey_Ball) and didn't register it, then I would be concerned if I were you.

The WGA is the trade union for motion picture screenwriters (Writers Guild of America) and a script and a mascot are apples and oranges, so registering a screenplay has nothing to do with registering a trademark. Last thing to note: ideas cannot be copyrighted. Whatever you plan on registering as your own has to be in a tangible form.

I was referring to if he was writing a cartoon like Charlie Brown or something as far as scripting goes, and only if he wanted extra backup. Actually the Writers Guild doesn't support their members very well at all unless you're a big name.

But to make things even worse. Copyrighting is almost as useless if you consider as you mentioned that you can't copyright an idea (or a plot), name or title. You'd have to almost photocopy a published manuscript for copyright to actually be any good.

Second if you think trademark helps forget it. The people who win that case have the biggest, baddest lawyers or get extremely lucky due to a young ambituous one not afraid to go up against a giant.

So when you come right down to it good luck trying to protect yourself from anything, but you either do that or roll over and die.

[derrick]

Thanks for the responses!

[travs]

what an informative thread useful for me too. thanks

[phuckbunny]

Travs, FYI, you would have a better chance in court if it was copyright law as opposed to trademark law - you create the work and if someone uses it without your permission, you have a legal claim against them. But once you sell your drawing/logo/mascot/emblem, you no longer have exclusive rights and it is up to the buyer to protect that and that goes through trademarks and is more difficult to prosecute and enforce.

The other day I passed by a shop in my neighbourhood which sells various wacky t-shirts and one of them showed Calvin from Calvin & Hobbes comic strip pissing on an Exxon logo. The creator of that image as well as the manufacturer are probably in violation of something - at the very least for not including a (tm) or (r) under each symbol. One could argue fair use for satire, which is weak but could work, but if there was a shirt that said - stupid example but just as an idea - a naked girl with a replica of the Exxon logo that said SExxporn instead of Exxon, and SExxporn was a real company or service, then they would be guilty of what is known as trademark dilution. There are many examples of this in the legal system's history but it basically goes down the fact that registering a mascot with a trademark especially in adult is difficult and difficult to enforce.

I seem to remember that The Hun sued another website for using a similar name - a non porn site I think, in TX - and I believe he won to have that site's name changed. That was an example of trademark dilution because I think The Hun is a regsitered trademark NAME, even if he's in the EU, there is a general copyright /tm convnetion that includes US & Canada. However the viking helmet and mascot don't seem to be trademarked and it would be Mnr. Hun's more trouble than fun to pursue in a court of law if someone came out with a smiliar mascot.

Think of the mud flaps with Yosemite Sam saying "back off". Until trademark law gets somethingi like the 2257 "secondary producer" and the auto shops get prosecuted for selling those, Warner Brothers will have a very hard time enforcing that all of those mud flaps manufacturers and/or auto shops pay them a royalty.