how do mobs like hahateez.com
get away with using celebrity images, trademarked images and logos while i get stuff pulled from cafepress in under 5 hours?!? is it just CP being lame? or are those other tee shirt sites breaking the law to get an unfair advantage over me?
CafePress has strict rules about using celebrity images because they get sued alot and they want to prevent spending money fighting lawsuits for over 1,000,000 potential images.
Because they have an "instant upload" service, they have to be extra viligant so they aren't bogged down in intellectual property lawsuites.
Also, because they are a VERY large t-shirt selling source, the lawyers see products there before they may see them in smaller t-shirt shops. Some companies have people that they hire to search places like Google/CafePress/eBay etc to see if any trademarks/unauthorized images are being used since those are the biggest "marketplaces".
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or are those other tee shirt sites breaking the law to get an unfair advantage over me?
Yes, there are some sites that sell t-shirts that break trademark laws and copyright laws.
Just like there are people that go over the speed limit and don't get caught (right away), there are people who will bend and break all types of rules.
Sometimes they may not know about the laws, sometimes they may know and may not care, and sometimes they may have just not been "caught" yet or served a cease and desist yet. Or it could be that they have lawyers that fight the lawsuits for them.
wat about words in a sentence , like coke or pepsi? like 'pepsi is sexsi' no logo just a word. would that be infringing?
For legal questions about "what's past the line", you'd probably want to talk to a lawyer that specializes in that stuff. Because even if I say, "yeah, it's fine, do it" (which I wouldn't ), you can still get sued and you're going to need a lawyer to defend you.
If you're using someone elses trademark on your products without their permission, generally you're going to have a problem sooner or later.
ah ok. still ****s me, lol. wat about words in a sentence , like coke or pepsi? like 'pepsi is sexsi' no logo just a word. would that be infringing?
I believe it would be since Pepsi was not a word until Pepsico came up with it. If you use Pepsi which is a brand name you could get into trouble. I believe even if you use the red and blue thingy's thye put on top and bottom would be a problem.
You have to realize that these things are not always as clear cut as you think. If a big company is doing something that you think infringes on copyright laws, you better believe that they have an attourney who is giving them guidence. Cafepress obviously will just remove everything that even comes close, to cover themselves.
You should also note that anyone can sue you for anything..that doesnt necissarily mean that they will win.
You have to realize that these things are not always as clear cut as you think. If a big company is doing something that you think infringes on copyright laws, you better believe that they have an attourney who is giving them guidence. Cafepress obviously will just remove everything that even comes close, to cover themselves.
You should also note that anyone can sue you for anything..that doesnt necissarily mean that they will win.
My wife knows someone that had most of their items pulled from their Ebay store because of copyright issues. Created transfers from stock transfer sites, etc.
A few members here have received cease and desist orders from laywers because of trademark infringement problems. And these were people with their own storefronts, not ebay or cafepress.
I got a cease an desist from eBay a few years ago because I had registered a domain name with that had the eBay name in it. What I thought would be a "fan" domain, was a case of "diluting their trademark" in their eyes.
I don't blame them though, when you get a trademark, you have a duty to protect and police it, or you risk losing the rights to the name.
Back to your Pepsi question, yes it would be infringement, I was hit with a cease and desist order for one of my t-shirts that stated "Sex with Me Priceless" and even though I did not use the word MasterCard, nor did I use the exact same design as that used by MasterCard, they hit me with a cease and desist order thus forcing me to stop selling my t-shirts due to the fact that it was "diluting their brand image". People get away with infringing on trademarked logos or celebrity pics all the time, but it still does not make it right.
Back to your Pepsi question, yes it would be infringement, I was hit with a cease and desist order for one of my t-shirts that stated "Sex with Me Priceless" and even though I did not use the word MasterCard, nor did I use the exact same design as that used by MasterCard, they hit me with a cease and desist order thus forcing me to stop selling my t-shirts due to the fact that it was "diluting their brand image". People get away with infringing on trademarked logos or celebrity pics all the time, but it still does not make it right.
Also, you were using "their" advertising in a derogitory way. Not that sex with you would be but you are not only diluting their trademark but using it in a way that's not flattering to their branding.
So where do the countless shirts of "Borat" fall under. These have been around since "Da Ali G Show" but now more than ever. Now they are on olmost every site. Busted Tees has had a Borat reference for a really long time. Now if they don't take it down will they be execute or what.
I believe there is also an issue of what things are used for and how many. Exp: I draw Superman and sell u the drawing but I can't take that drawing and put it on a shirt and sell it without permission of the owners of the property.
Also did anyone watch the movie about Larry Flynn (Hustler mag) In that movie a famouse religious leader took Flynn to court for portraying him having sex or something unflatering as a segment in the mag. In court it was thrown out out because the acts depicted were so obviously not associated with the religious leader that no one who saw it would believe it was true.
Still Flynn had the money to fight so I'm sure he didn't have to worry about cease and desists.
Also, you were using "their" advertising in a derogitory way. Not that sex with you would be but you are not only diluting their trademark but using it in a way that's not flattering to their branding.
Actually, there is a Mastercard commercial that was aired in Europe months ago and, I have to tell you, the "Sex with Me is Priceless" tagline is nothing in comparison to what this commerical depicted. It was the dialogue that was explicit, it was one of the most funniest commercials I've ever seen. My friend emailed it to me months ago and couldn't believe it was aired uncensored but hey, its Europe right? Some of you folks may know which one I'm talking about. I think it enhanced their image rather than dilute it. In any event, the commercial was a surprise to say the least...
Last edited by RisingBlue7; November 3rd, 2006 at 07:06 PM.
So where do the countless shirts of "Borat" fall under. These have been around since "Da Ali G Show" but now more than ever. Now they are on olmost every site. Busted Tees has had a Borat reference for a really long time. Now if they don't take it down will they be execute or what.
If Borat is not a politician (I've only seen the name, but have no idea who he is), then they are most likely doing it illegally or without permission.
It sort of goes back to what Sunny said above:
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People get away with infringing on trademarked logos or celebrity pics all the time, but it still does not make it right.
If Borat is not a politician (I've only seen the name, but have no idea who he is), then they are most likely doing it illegally or without permission.
Now, from what I remember from my college business law class, there has to be reasonable reason for confusion among the buying public for such a suit to have merit. It is slightly different than the Larry Flynt trial, since he was sued for defamation and/or libel (I think), and the issue was more freedom of speech, rather than copyright infringement.
However, as was said before, anybody can sue you for anything, and (almost) anywhere. Hence the Mastercard thing. While one would first assume that there is no chance of confusing financial services with "Sex with me", i.e. that the t-shirt was a Mastercard t-shirt selling sex, it is still believable that someone might confuse it as such.
But that is irrelevant. Even if you were right, you probably do not have the money/time/energy/empy soul to spend a couple of months in court, so they send those letters. Sometimes, rarely, that backfires on the corporations, such as the case of that lady refusing to settle with MPAA after her kids downloaded media content on their computer. Or the case of EasyPizza in the UK, after EasyGroup went after them.
confused/frustrated 
), you can still get sued and you're going to need a lawyer to defend you.
Re: confused/frustrated 
