Minis recast on ebay - copyright infringement

[Goblin-King]

Blatantly copying stuff is never fair use though.
Fair use is stuff like showing a movie clip for a review.

The law is really exciting. I sometimes regret not becoming a lawyer like my brother.
Then we could be solving mysteries together...
He would be the sharply dressed one with a sarcastic sense of humor.
And I would be the cheery one with a suit in pastel blue.
Together we would be: Jensen & Jensen - LAW FORCE!
Would've been great...

What were we talking about...?

[sajungzak]

I have some confusion about copyrights maybe someone could clear up.
Let's say that, in this case, there is a piece of art that is mass produced and there are many copies legally available. For this hypothetical the item is a cassette tape.
I buy a copy at the store. Now I want to make copies for my personal use. Mix tapes could be an example, or perhaps for backup purposes in case the one in use gets damaged.
Now I want to convert the art into a digital file on my computer, and make copies on a cd perhaps even store it in the cloud. I also want a copy available on all my devices.
Then I want to do all of these with my favorite dvd, too. Or photocopy my favorite poster. Now I want a 3d printed backup copy ( Or 12 ) of my legally purchased HeroQuest orc.
Are there any copyright infringement issues with doing any of these things? Note that there is no distribution or selling happening.

[Anderas]

I am not an expert.

Here where I live the personal use copy was always legal except for mp3 and DVD that state explicitly different in their license agreement.

If you go to staples for a copy, however, there is business involved which makes it illegal.

But then, the terms of usage move the responsibility to you, normally, and then they often include a sentence that tells you indirectly they won't look too close. So if there is somebody to be fined afterwards it won't be staples. However, no lawyer no judge: they don't look and you don't tell, everything will be fine.

Just don't sell them on ebay afterwards.

[Goblin-King]

In US it has been the norm to be able to make a backup copy - it has recently been ruled illegal by courts. They are not suing people though. It's illegal, but literally no one cares...
In UK however it's explicitly LEGAL (since June 2014) to make backup copies for personal use only, along with converting to different formats - CD/MP3/pdf/paper etc.
In short; basically you can copy and convert to different formats AS LONG as you don't distribute.

Making copies of your HQ orcs to play with would be straight up illegal though.
They would not be backups to ensure you could keep playing HQ if you lost a mini.
It would not be for convenience either.
You just made a copy instead of buying another model.

The mix tape is an interesting question. I would think it would be illegal as it would constitute as a derived work.
You are not making a backup copy; you are using parts of the work in a way that is not intended. Derived works are only legal with the copyrightholder's permission.

[torilen]

It might be illegal to make copies, even for personal use. Most likely, no one would find
out about it, unless you went around bragging about it. And while a company/copyright
owner would certainly have a case against you for making copies, the person making the
copies (for personal use and/or for back up in case one is lost or broken) would certainly
have a good defense:
- By not allowing someone to make a backup copy of a mini they already own, the court
is simply perpetuating a third-party market in which there is no set price for the minis
and in which price gouging and price-fixing could possibly be quite rampant. The court
is forcing you to take part in this market.
- I speak, of course, specifically of HeroQuest minis, since they have not been in production
for many years, and I'm guessing GW nor Milton Bradley would be able to make you a new
mini to replace one you lost or had broken.

[torilen]

Let me say one other thing, something that a lot of people will probably agree with.
I'm sure we all agree that violating copyright and patent and trademark is wrong
and should not be done if possible. However, it seems to be a recurring issue these
days that copyright/trademark/intellectual rights are being taken way too far.

Look at what has happened in Europe, for example. Some countries in Europe have
passed laws to make it a crime to take a picture of public buildings and then post it
online. A person would have to get a permit in order to do such a thing. So, technically,
a traveler who goes to one of these countries, takes pictures, and posts them on Facebook,
could possibly find themselves embroiled in a lawsuit for violating intellectual rights.

[torilen]

Great article on the subject (with a little surprise from Hasbro).

http://www.zdnet.com/article/3d-printin ... ty-issues/

[Goblin-King]

Look at what has happened in Europe, for example. Some countries in Europe have
passed laws to make it a crime to take a picture of public buildings and then post it
online.

I'm from Denmark and I know exactly what you are talking about!

Newspapers has been fined in the area of £1000 for posting pictures featuring the statue as the main motive.
For me that statue has become a symbol of greed. fraggle the heirs of Edvard Eriksen!

[sajungzak]

Making copies of your HQ orcs to play with would be straight up illegal though.
They would not be backups to ensure you could keep playing HQ if you lost a mini.
It would not be for convenience either.
You just made a copy instead of buying another model.

How can you be sure of this? How is it not the same as a backup cd?

*edit
I really don't know that much about 3d printing either. I guess I'm assuming you can scan a physical model into a digital file of some kind. As long as you paid for the originaI and don't distribute, I don't see anything wrong with making backup copies of miniatures.

[Anderas]

Look at what has happened in Europe, for example. Some countries in Europe have
passed laws to make it a crime to take a picture of public buildings and then post it
online.

I'm from Denmark and I know exactly what you are talking about!

Newspapers has been fined in the area of £1000 for posting pictures featuring the statue as the main motive.
For me that statue has become a symbol of greed. fraggle the heirs of Edvard Eriksen!

Didn't this statue disappear one night for its value in bronze? It really became a symbol of greed, latest after it had been stolen.
Before, it was one of my favorites, to be honest. Beautifully placed in the water, unobtrusive, beautiful, not at all religious... perfect.