Copyright Infringement Reports (Review guidelines in post #1 before posting here)

Thanks for the support on this David and others......

I hope he gets enough negative comments and "low stars" ratings that he will stop this. Problem is, he has enough of a youtube rating to get advertisement (new egg) on his main page, thus he may be making money off the videos he steals. I have written youtube, but no answer yet. Their copyright infringement procedure is pretty involved.

Web companies like Photobucket have been great about immediately removing my stills from their site. This is another image posting site where people can make money off others photography. In fact, when an image is posted on Photobucket there is a click option to automatically buy that image. I see many chaser images posted, but it takes hours to go through all the weather related shots. Seems a good copyright lawyer could have a field day with Photobucket because the act of posting the image includes the intent to sell.

Gene Moore
 
Is age important?

One more comment on this piracy issue and that is the age of the person involved. Obviously I'm chasing a kid in this situation, maybe 17. Perhaps this should be an expanded thread elsewhere, but should teenagers get a free pass on this? I vote no, because once the video or image is taken others can rip off that work. I've already see a piece of what he did for his site elsewhere.
 
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You would think that after the Napster/MP3 file sharing lawsuits that people would understand how serious and actionable copyright infringement is. The truth is that storm footage and photos have every bit of the same protections as popular music does. If teenagers who shared MP3s with no intended financial gain were successfully settled with/sued for thousands of dollars, an intentional theft of photos or video is just as actionable. Particularly for use on sites whos sole revenue is derived from advertising, which is a direct result of the quality of the content (photos and video).

We as chasers need to start realizing just how valuable our material is (that IS why people are always taking it!!!), and start taking advantage of the laws that protect our material to enforce its copyright. That is the only way things will stop getting stolen. As I said before, a copyright infringement case is a slam-dunk, open-and-shut deal for a good IP attorney. The infringer has absolutely no defense, you as the copyright owner hold ALL the cards. It is in your every advantage to legally pursue infringements.

If I knew years ago what I know now, I could have paid for several seasons of chasing if I had understood how valuable my material was and pursued all of the infringements I found. I'll cut somebody slack if it's a church secretary who unwittingly downloads a picture for the Sunday bulletin. But if it's being used to make money for someone, there's no reason to be a 'nice guy' about it and just let it go.
 
YouTube rip offs/ copyright infringment and more

Re: Gene Moore's youtube video ripe off (see below)

Gene
Videotaping and posting them once was a , a more tedious a task and less and more complicated then it is now. One issue, a big one is copyright and posting anyone's video, when and how and what to do.
I have several questions about youtubing video posting as related to your videopost on Youtube and others posts that I see
(1) Did you insert the music or was that something that person put in?
(2) Was there a copyright on the videos ( or were they taken off)?
(3) You said you took these but I don't have any proof (like an opening screen or what).
(4) What is proper way to credit the your youtube video post?
(5) can't people link to your video(s) and if so what is the proper way to do this?

I am hoping to learn more about these incidents through these questions. You and others may comment as you choose.
Thanks for your time and consideraiton. Love your videos and accounts and videos Gene.

Dr. Eric Flescher ([email protected]), Olathe, KS: Lat 38.834, Lon -94.778: (H) 913-780-5902 : (M)913-486-1247: Storm Satori Blog <http://stormsatori-kcstormguy.blogspot.com/: E.O.A.S. (Earth, Oceans, Atmosphere and Space) Blog & Summer class Johnson County CC, OP, KS<http://eoas-dreric1kansas.blogspot.com/>: :Storm Satori website < http://members.aol.com/kcstormguy/stormsatori/stormsatori.htm

***
Hi,

Some guy ripped off my site and put it on youtube....If you have time could you give him a few choice comments about what he did.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywXiDF8yzDc

Thanks,
Gene
 
Gene Moore said:
One more comment on this piracy issue and that is the age of the person involved. Obviously I'm chasing a kid in this situation, maybe 17. Perhaps this should be an expanded thread elsewhere, but should teenagers get a free pass on this? I vote no, because once the video or image is taken others can rip off that work. I've already see a piece of what he did for his site elsewhere.
Click to expand...

What's he going to learn from the experience by cutting him slack Gene? That he can get by with it next time. Legally it's no different than if he walked into a store and stuffed a DVD in his shirt and walked out. For some reason, the average person doesn't put the same value on something as intangible as intellectual property as they do physical property.

Looking at his recent comments, he is trying to act remorseful but hasn't made any effort to remove them either.
 
It's not going to be easy to get this guy (kid) to stop with my material or all the other stuff he's pirated including the Simpson's.... since he lives in Canada. Youtube knows about this activity, there are very few sites that do not contain clips from movies, TV or private sources like our videos. Sony (pictures) was sueing them, but I have yet to hear the outcome.

One thing we have done successfully is lower his ratings. The flood of nasty comments and bad ratings has dropped him from five stars to two stars. That means he will come up low on the rankings.

In the future anyone that posts here that they have been ripped off we can (as a large group) make negative comments on their site and at least reduce their stars.
icon13.gif
 
If you sent everything youtube needed Gene I am sure they will take it down. It's the weekend, so the people that look at that might not even be working.

Yeah, that guy certainly got a storm he wasn't expecting didn't he.

EDIT: looks like he's pulled down the other two and just Gene's is left up.
 
LOL nothing says tornadoes like Tupac Changes. Whenever I'm chasing, I'm always lookin for a purse to snatch, and stayin in the dope game, cause hey...that's the way it is.
 
That thing is useless Gene and a waste of a website owners time. I had the location of one of the images on his server in 3 seconds.

http://www.bobstaake.com/copyno/lichtenstein.gif

The people that grab your stuff and repost it know how to do just what I did to get that. (It's often kids too!)

I stand by my thought that the best way these days to handle it is to let them be your "agents" and work for you. Blast your URL on your images/video and everytime they post it some place, they just advertised your website for you and you didn't pay them a dime for it.

The fiasco with Mike Hollingshead's images is a great example. Could you imagine the kind of traffic he would have instantly had if he originaly would have had his URL on those images that got viral emailed around?

They you just have to worry about going after the jerks that either removed the copyright, altered the material, or are profiting off of it in some way.

Think of it in reverse. How much money would you have to pay out (not including your own time) to get your website URL on just a few hundred websites around the net? How much was that image worth?
 
David Drummond said:
Here's a good one...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-59dOxcDR8o#o8EjM63pXJk

I think it probably has video from every main storm chaser for the last decade or two.

I told him he was stealing and he says he's not, he got it from TV. Doesn't seem to think that is stealing. Seems like that video needs some comments and ratings, don't you guys think?
Click to expand...

At least he removed it now. I will post a one that I just came upon....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8tGywiWfnE&watch_response another Hollingshead Special
 
David Drummond said:
That thing is useless Gene and a waste of a website owners time. I had the location of one of the images on his server in 3 seconds.

http://www.bobstaake.com/copyno/lichtenstein.gif

The people that grab your stuff and repost it know how to do just what I did to get that. (It's often kids too!)

I stand by my thought that the best way these days to handle it is to let them be your "agents" and work for you. Blast your URL on your images/video and everytime they post it some place, they just advertised your website for you and you didn't pay them a dime for it.

The fiasco with Mike Hollingshead's images is a great example. Could you imagine the kind of traffic he would have instantly had if he originaly would have had his URL on those images that got viral emailed around?

They you just have to worry about going after the jerks that either removed the copyright, altered the material, or are profiting off of it in some way.

Think of it in reverse. How much money would you have to pay out (not including your own time) to get your website URL on just a few hundred websites around the net? How much was that image worth?
Click to expand...

I've seen some that hide them where you can't view the page info to get it. I forget how it was, but it popped up into a new window with thumbnails and there was no apparent way to view the page source/info. I think all the creative means won't be able to pass the trusty ol print screen thing.

I don't think it is worth bothering with and probably does more harm than good by turning people away. This reminds me, I still need to figure out how to remove it from my photography sales pages, as it was default with that program and changing the javascript where it says to wasn't doing the trick. But anyway, yeah, as long as something isn't larger than the screen size, good ol print screen will grab it no matter what.
 
My solution to this problem is simple: I don't post video, ever.
 
Great Idea David and linking

(1) posting ratings and comments on the their videos is a great idea.
(2) How about all chasers have a little promo and copyright information in the beginning (I know some of you already do this but do those shysters take them off>) . That way your name etc is on display when they hawk your videos.



:::
David Drummond said:
Here's a good one...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-59dOxcDR8o#o8EjM63pXJk

I think it probably has video from every main storm chaser for the last decade or two.

I told him he was stealing and he says he's not, he got it from TV. Doesn't seem to think that is stealing. Seems like that video needs some comments and ratings, don't you guys think?
Click to expand...
 
Well, I just busted another company ripping off my stuff and posting it as part of their production on YouTube.

Get this, they even had a press release and media coverage for their project in Los Angeles on their website.

When I busted them, here is what they said.

"We can use it under fair use because we pulled it off of The Weather Channels Web Site"

I told this idiot that I don't work for TWC and that as a stringer, the material is mine and I own the copyright, they only own a license just like CNN, National Geo, Fox and everyone else.

I guess they don't think people watch out for their videos. But since this was pirated and used by a production company, um yeah, their pretty much (SIC)fudged.
 
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Shane Adams said:
My solution to this problem is simple: I don't post video, ever.
Click to expand...


Well, my solution, Register My Work With The Copyright Office!!!

I just settled with the company in California for what amounts to about $950.00 per second for unauthorized use of copyrighted material in a production, including distribution over the internet, television, DVD and in a theatrical performance in front of a live audence.

And I get film credit.

Post your work on line, just register it with the copyright office www.copyright.gov
 
There are also images belonging to Dave Crowley and myself appearing on this site. You weren't even in SW Kansas on May 11th, 2005....you were in NW Kansas with everyone else. The video of the 4-15-06 Beatrice, NE tornado was shot by me and I would like my credit added to it, or for it to be removed. I would also like to have the tape back.
 
A while back was doing a google search on lightning images because someone told me a lot of mine were there. It was pretty cool seeing them until I saw this guys home page with one of my images on it. I contacted him and nicely told him to please remove it in the next 24 hours or pay me. he said he didn't steal it, it was on google. I emailed back did you see " Copyright 1999 John Olexa" ? I never heard back and the image was removed. Non photographer types think I was a butt head about it. But dang! I'm trying to make a few bucks and can't be letting everybody use them for free!
 
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