The company behind Trump Watches prominently features an iconic image of the presidential candidate on its timepieces. There’s one big problem: It’s not allowed to.
…
According to the Associated Press, though, TheBestWatchesonEarth LLC advertised a product it can’t deliver, as that image is owned by the 178-year-old news agency. This week, the AP told WIRED it is pursuing a cease and desist against the LLC, which is registered in Sheridan, Wyoming. (The company did not reply to a request for comment about the cease and desist letter.)
Evan Vucci, the AP’s Pulitzer Prize–winning chief photographer, took that photograph, and while he told WIRED he does not own the rights to that image, the AP confirmed earlier this month in an email to WIRED that it is filing the written notice. “AP is proud of Evan Vucci’s photo and recognizes its impact,” wrote AP spokesperson Nicole Meir. “We reserve our rights to this powerful image, as we do with all AP journalism, and continue to license it for editorial use only.”
Meh. The courts are set up to prevent laws from ever applying to Trump anyway. What’s copyright law on the bonfire?
This guy doesn’t even know how to breathe without doing something illegal, does he…?
tbf not owning images of yourself is very counter-intuitive
“Lemme tell ya folks, people say I have the best lungs. Truly spectacular. I can inhale carbon dioxide and exhale fresh, clean oxygen. They tell me this is illegal. That I’m a Russian house plant. They’re just jealous.”
I just want to say:
Fuck Copyright
Sure, until you become a creative professional and you see someone with a lot more money than you making even more money off your work, and then you might instead say “fuck that guy”!
Most people say things like “fuck copyright” because it’s currently set up to benefit employers, large companies, and wealthy people; creators are an obstacle in copyright law. Current copyright law hinders creativity and centralizes wealth. Fuck copyright.
If copyright law was creator-centric, there would be a lot fewer people saying “fuck copyright”.
Personally I’d probably still be against copyright, but only if there was some other way to take care of artists, like a UBI or something.
I’m very interested in a creative perspective who is against copyright. I know there are some comedians that self publish but the expectation is that people will support them because they know the money actually goes to them. They don’t do any DRM, but there are rules about how many times you can download their media, and whether you can send copies or not.
Louis CK comes to mind, who has copyright and licensing information in the terms and conditions on his page. There is an understanding though, that he doesnt care if you break the license. He has said he doesnt care of you pirate it even.
Would he be better off without copyright at all?
If copyright protected the creatives then there would be a lot less antagonism against copyright. Most people are against it because it’s become a lever of control for big companies to use against both the creators and the public.
Note, for example, that in the article in the original post, the Associated Press is careful to say that the person who took the famous photo doesn’t have copyright over it. They do.
And none of them should.
That’s a moment in history, we should all be able to look back at history without a paywall.
I don’t make a living off of my calligraphy or anything like that. But I think that the value is in me being able to create more unique pieces.
Sure you can make a copy, but it’ll never be the same as having a hand made original. Then Again I’m not very good or successful.
If I ever produce a creative work I will release it into public domain.
A lot of authors and artists choose to release their work to the public domain voluntarily.
A few do, sure. Not a lot, though. Pretty difficult to make a living if you’re giving away your work for free.
So don’t make your career locking away human creativity from others. The idea that culture is now monetized is a huge problem for our species.
I’ve always believed that human subjects of photographs should have equal copy rights. Anyone can take your picture and then own that rendition of your face but you can’t take a picture of the eiffel tower at night because you don’t own the lights. Light bulbs have more rights than people.
I mean I’ll lead by saying “fuck Trump” however I would be a little annoyed if I wanted to use a depiction of myself and someone came to yell at me about it.
Regardless of how I feel about Trump, I’m not even convinced that the plaintiff has a real case. From what limited knowledge I have about copyright law, the image might not violate it based on how much of it has been altered. The watches’ images aren’t even in color. There’s also been selective cropping, and some shading has been added in. I think it might be different if they include the original image in the marketing material but I’d consult an I.P. attorney if I were a defendant in such a case.
That’s not transformative by a long shot. It adds no new meaning and is for commercial purposes which has a higher bar in the first place.
This would decimate the photography industry.
Actually no, when you go to a professional photographer to have your picture taken, you pay for it. Because they put in the work and need to be compensated for it. By that logic people would never have to pay photographers for portraits, weddings, none of that. Just because you’re in a picture doesn’t mean you don’t owe a debt to the person who took it.
Yeah, but if I then want to put that picture of me on my social media page or a website or the back of a cheaply-manufactured wristwatch or what have you, why is the photographer allowed to tell me no?
Hm yes, but if someone takes a picture of me without me asking for it that’s different
It is different only in that - in some jurisdictions at least - you can ask for the picture to be taken down or destroyed, and then not if you are a public person appearing in public like Trump is in this case. But that still does not give you the right to use the picture for your own gain without compensating the photographer. Because then you clearly not only have no objections to the picture being taken, but you value that picture, want to use it publicly, commercially even, and again, you owe a debt to the person who took it and in fact depends on people paying for their pictures for their livelihood.
Only if you’re in a public place without a reasonable assumption of privacy (or whatever the specific legal wording is).
You’re not coming up with some clever loophole, all of this has been litigated already in the past.
One of the first lessons we learned when I took a photography class in high school is that it’s legal to take photos of people in public places. Just try not to be a dick about it.
Well yes and no.
A famus artist may sell a picture of theirs to a company, them RHAT company has the copyright, not you.
Lots of artists don’t own their music, don’t own their likeness either.
Yeah try getting copies of a copyrighted portrait made. Wedding photos, school portraits, you name it. Not yours.
Agreed. Hate to be that person but I definitely agree with you. It’s literally a picture of himself. I detest the man but this is dumb to be fair.
I do some professional photography. If I take a picture, I own it unless there’s a written agreement that says otherwise. You can’t claim ownership rights of a photo just because you’re in it - especially a photo taken in a public space.
Unless you take a picture of an… copyrighted landmark…
That’s how you exit the matrix
Sure. But it’s my understanding also that a picture in a public place of me would be fair game. But if someone were to monetize it or use it to promote a product I thought this needs permission. Otherwise why do I usually sign a release when the photo of me is going to be used for advertisements by my workplace for example. The people that asked this of me were professional photographers as well and we were in a public space. I guess I just wonder what release forms and things are for
They have you sign the release so you won’t annoy them with a frivolous lawsuit which will still cost them money to use a lawyer to fight it.
They don’t have to do it.
It’s really not dumb. If copyright law worked that way, no photographer who included human subjects would be able to make a living. Artists deserve to be able to sustain themselves from their labor.
no photographer who included human subjects would be able to make a living.
Sounds great to me! But then, I’m a deranged lunatic from the Taliban
Welcome to copyright law
As usual, this probably won’t amount to even so much as a slap on the gold-plated wrist for him
The watch website says the final version may not look like the pictures. Also they don’t have a production or delivery timeline and no promises of delivery.
Well, that’s kind of what a cease and desist is. It says, in a formal but mostly polite way, “stop doing that or we’ll become less nice”.
And why the fuck should it result in more? This is petty bullshit that doesn’t matter.
You’re a Trump supporter. Your position makes sense in that context.
Add it on the pile hoss, there’s a lot of shit to shovel
Trumpers razor, the correct solution is most often crime
It looks like it’s a re-drawn image and not an actual “copy” of the image, so wouldn’t that mean they can’t do fuck all about it? Obviously it was made to look like the image, but does that actually count for anything? I wouldn’t think it would.
It’s definitely a representation of the original but much like how you can just reverse a video to avoid copyright this isn’t an exact copy of the original.
Edit: I realize now that I was wrong about the reversed video. I do however think this is a weak case legally since it’s not an exact copy but I obviously don’t know what I’m talking about. Lol
You can’t simply reverse a video to avoid copyright. What gave you that idea?
People do it all the time on YouTube?
Surely you’re joking? People do it on YouTube to avoid automated detection. You would be laughed out of court for trying to assert copyright over a reversed video as a derivative work.
Lol. That’s just to avoid the auto detection bots so it doesn’t get easily noticed for copyright infringement. People reverse the videos so they don’t get caught so quickly. Not because it makes them legal.
So, what about the political ad signs it’s being used on? Is that legal? I saw them all over the place.
Political speech has stronger 1A protection than commercial speech and one could argue for a ‘fair use’ exemption. Strong enough to win on its merits? I don’t know – I’m not an IP lawyer, probably not. Strong enough that a well-funded legal team could get a federal judge, hesitant to make a ruling certain to be criticized as ‘election interference,’ to delay a decision until after the election when the signs are all being taken down anyway? I think so.
Copyright protects commercial use so:
probably?I went and read a little and: Nope, gotta fall under fair use and selling a campaign sign with a copyrighted image wouldn’t cut it.
Throw it on the pile.
How so? By creating a derivative image of the one depicted next to the watch?
I hate trump but I hate copyright law way more.
Ugh… Go trump … pukes
EDit: so many people are malding lmao. Even got boneheaded DMS ヾ(⌐■_■)ノ
Do you also hate the wishes of the artist who sold it to the news agency to earn a living and keep the image under editorial use as opposed to being commercialized and sold to benefit the Trump campaign? Whether you agree with how it’s being used or not, that’s what the photographer decided was best for their work.
Good thing the watch doesn’t contain that photographer’s work then
Copyright laws are bullshit in that their terms are way too long and are often too easily abused against people who are using copywritten materials under fair use. However copyright as a concept is not bullshit. Creative works, including photography, should absolutely be protected from unauthorized use for the benefit of the creator.
Also, there is nothing redeemable about Trump. Even if you feel that copyright law is somehow fundamentally wrong, the correct position can actually be “fuck all parties involved” instead of supporting Trump hawking his swag to pay for his campaign of fascism.
I really wish copyright was still how it was in the U.S. for more than the first half of the 20th century: 19 years with an option to renew for another 19 years. That, IMO, is long enough for any entity to be the sole earner from a work.
However copyright as a concept is not bullshit. Creative works, including photography, should absolutely be protected from unauthorized use for the benefit of the creator.
Sure, creative works should be protected. But not all works are creative enough to be protected. I disagree a photograph like this should have any protection. If the photographer put in their creativity or something else to create it then sure. Then it should be protected. This photo was taken on public event of people and stuff out of the photographers influence and IMO shouldn’t be protected
The creativity is in how the photo was shot; the camera settings, framing, when the photographer chose to take the photo, etc. To say that anyone could have taken this exact photo is both incorrect and doesn’t matter. Anyone could have written any book, play, or script but they didn’t. Anyone could have painted pretty much any particular painting, but they didn’t. I don’t disagree that many aspects of US copyright law are ridiculous, but to say there’s no artistic vision in taking a photograph like this is ignorant.
I agree. It would be like a composer who couldn’t play an instrument writing a symphony. Just because he doesn’t have the capability to produce the final outcome doesn’t mean his vision for how the various pieces fit together isn’t an artistry in itself.
That is a very powerful image, moreso than many of the other images I’ve seen of that event. It certainly isn’t because of the people in it, but the timing to capture that gesture and the overall framing add something that is lacking in other pictures I’ve seen. No doubt that is the reason they selected it. Now they will have to use a lesser option.
I think the other comment covered it but I believe this demonstrates a fundamental misunderstanding of what makes photography such an amazing artform. People study and practice, for a long time, to take photos like this. This isn’t a cell phone pointed in the general direction of a subject with conveniently optimal lighting for its tiny lens, though that could produce a good picture, this takes a great deal more experience, preparation, and creativity to frame and capture the subject in a certain way with extraordinary timing to get a dynamic, emotion-filled result.
Your priorities are fucked if you are able to even type those two words next to each other.
Your priorities are fucked if you are able to even type those two words [“Go” and “Trump”] next to each other.
“Go Trump yourself”
“Go Trump to hell”
“Go Trump off a bridge”
Yeah I guess I am.
I also support Ukraine so that makes me Nazi. And Palestine too so i am antisemite…
Edit; I also like killing unborn babies
I am very fucked up ヾ(⌐■_■)ノ
Supporting Trump in any way makes someone more of a Nazi than supporting Ukraine ever would.
No. Just the Trump thing. Conflating that with anything else you said is a very weird bit of normalization for the former.
I disagree with you, but wanted to be unlike the other comments. I, too, hate copyright, but in this case I’d say Trump deserves to lose, just cause he’s a cunt, and winning this will do basically nothing for anyone except him.
You’re letting your hatred corrupt your integrity. How is that no obvious to you here?
it’s
Ummm… no. Copyright law sucks, but it’s really the only protection for artists/writers/etc. in this case, Trump sucks way worse than copyright law lmao.
He’s literally stealing someone’s work and attempting to make money off it as his own.
Yet you say “Go Trump.” Copyright law is all it takes for you to publicly support a fascist. Absolutely amazing.
Sadly, copyright doesn’t even truly protect this artist, it protects the corporation that the artist works for. And THAT is one massive reason why copyright is bullshit.
Without copyright, the artist would be unemployed. Because the corporation he now works for could just take his photos without paying him.
Copyright protects his livelihood. And THAT is one massive reason why copyright is necessary.
Many corporations force you to sign away your work when working for them, so what you describe is already happening.
“When working for them” means “when they pay you”. The point is that the corporation must financially compensate the artist. That’s how copyright makes art into a livelihood.
Without copyright, corporations can use art without ever paying the artist at all.
Correct. There are major flaws and rampant abuse; it truly needs reform. But it absolutely needs to exist and benefit those that create.
Its kind of weird for them to take the fascist thief’s side in pretty much anything
Copyright doesn’t protect derivative works.
Yet you say “Go Trump.” Copyright law is all it takes for you to publicly support a fascist. Absolutely amazing.
Yep, his watch completely erased any wrong he did and now I am full-on maga train. Isn’t it so great that things are so simple ? You could say white and black :)
