Ever had client want you to steal your own stuff?

bigrob

bigrob

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I've put this in the Sports section as it's sports related.

It's long winded but stick with it if you have time and aren't bored stiff.

I'm doing a small job for one of the chaps in my son's rugby union team. He's doing PE as one of his A Levels and has to do a presentation to his PE teachers about his rugby career.

His dad asked all the parents by email if anyone had any video of his son. I have three games of rugby league (when he played that) from two years ago.

So the deal is £120. I produce a video of clips from the three league games and one union game (which will be this coming Sunday).

I decided to put some photos in which I have of his son from this season and I also popped down to his school just before Xmas for a training game. This wasn't part of the deal but I was free so popped along.

I get an email today saying that there is a youtube clip of his son making a tackle in his first game in this country & can I download it and put it in the video !!!

So out of interest I go to look at the clip and lo and behold it's a copy of one I put on youtube three years ago (which I had since taken down). I originally put it on as it was a kid from my own son's team getting hammered in the tackle. :LOL:

Anyway I emailed him back to explain that you can't download stuff like that unless you own the copyright.

I then explained that actually I did own the copyright & someone had obviously copied it at the time from the club he used to play for.

I have told him I have a high def copy that I would include at no extra charge. Quite a nice tackle actually. Here's the original http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlmX6jWk-kA

So there is a funny and a serious side to this tale.

The funny is obviously that I was asked to steal my own work.

The serious bit is.. and this is more of a question than anything.

Do people know it's stealing to download videos from youtube or photos from a website?

Discuss.

And here is the "production" so far. He's the one with the blue knee thing on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcPiy3gg4bk
 
bigrob said:
The serious bit is.. and this is more of a question than anything.

Do people know it's stealing to download videos from youtube or photos from a website?

Discuss.
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In which case you steal everytime you look at a website. Any website. It's all downloaded to your computer.
 
I don't think many people go to their cache after looking at a website to get photos though.
 
Many many people have no idea of copyright, numerous times I have been asked by clients to "just find something useful on google" or similar. Every time they look confused when I say I can't just download something from the web and use it. Normally comes with the comment, sure you can, just right click and go to save.

Then again that is by far not the must stupid thing a client has ever said to me!
 
bigrob said:
I don't think many people go to their cache after looking at a website to get photos though.
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You didnt ask will people go look at them you asked if they know its stealing.. to download from the website and the answer is no.. because how else would you be able to view them.. the website downloads it to your computer for you.. so it cant be stealing..

what you do wiht the pics is when its on dodgy ground
 
Don't be facetious. Of course you aren't stealing every time you view something on the internet. What matter is the copyright license, not the technicalities or semantics around what consitutes 'downloading'.
 
I thought it was implied that it was downloading and using by my description of what was required by my client.
 
mid_gen said:
Don't be facetious. Of course you aren't stealing every time you view something on the internet. What matter is the copyright license, not the technicalities or semantics around what consitutes 'downloading'.
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Post a stupid comment, you will get a stupid answer.

Gary Coyle said:
Come on Phil :bonk: :bonk:
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:D

bigrob said:
I thought it was implied that it was downloading and using by my description of what was required by my client.
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Your description only said that you would be using it. You own the copyright. There is no stealing there.

You then asked if we knew it was illegal to download pictures and videos off the internet, which blatantly isn't the case, as I sarcastically pointed out. That's how the internet works.

It is illegal (although not criminally) to then re-use the materials. We ALL should know this, and it should be common knowledge? It comes up often enough in 'my pictures been stolen' threads.
 
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No what I was saying was that he was asking me to download/copy it when he didn't know who owned it.
 
bigrob said:
No what I was saying was that he was asking me to download/copy it when he didn't know who owned it.
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If in your closing question, by 'people' you meant the general public, then answer is quite obviously no.
 
Yes that is what my question was and no was the answer I figured on but wondered what others felt.
 
bigrob said:
Yes that is what my question was and no was the answer I figured on but wondered what others felt.
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It's only really a question that can be answered with a yes or a no!

All you can do it educate clients on the law and hope they take it on board.

We're all in the same boat, so are all bound to feel the same way.. can't imagine someone popping up expressing their delight to steal work to fulfil their clients order :)
 
Definition of theft :-

A person shall be guilty of theft if they dishonestly appropriate property from another with the intention of permanently depriving them of it.

So a computer by it's very method of operation cannot "steal" anything because there is no intention by the operator. It's called the "mens rea" in law i.e. the guilty or culpable state of mind.

So anything pinched off t'interweb is actually a copyright offence rather than plain old theft because of the intention to permanently deprive bit.

yes I'm a nerd ;)
 
AliB said:
So anything pinched off t'interweb is actually a copyright offence rather than plain old theft because of the intention to permanently deprive bit.
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Wishes more people on TP understood that :(. I've even been told that "it doesn't matter what the law (Theft Act in this case) says, it's still theft" :cautious:

P.S. Nerdery is good. (y)
 
Thanks to "The Nerd" for clearing that up.

Now is it called a copyright offence rather than copyright theft?
 
Downloading pictures to your computer from the internet is niether a copryright offence or copyright theft...It's nothing..

The question is "Do people know it's stealing to download videos from youtube or photos from a website?"

Its is not stealing. its is not theft it is not copyright offence... you are doing nothing wrong..

What you then do with those pictures or videoes is another matter...

How clear is that? :)
 
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