On 9/27/00 3:29 PM, Ryan S. Dancey ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) wrote
>No way.
>
>It's not a license - it's a statement of intent. There's no offer,
>acceptance or consideration; it's not a binding contract using the statute
>of frauds.
>
>It doesn't give anyone any rights; it just gives them a little piece of mind
>about doing something that's totally illegal.
I'd like to point out to the members of the list that members of the D&D
fan community have taken it upon themselves to consult with lawyers on
this very issue, and were given answers that differed greatly from Mr.
Dancey's answer above.
While I'm not a lawyer and I am not stating verbatim what was said, the
gist of it is that it would be very difficult indeed for WotC to go after
fan sites after saying that it was okay to make use of their material. I
heartily encourage anyone curious about the issue to seek legal opinions
themselves. Remember, WotC's legal team is not a source of unbiased
opinion on the issue, nor is any employee of WotC. It's often a mistake
to take a corporations proclamations about what is and isn't legal at
face value, they can, do, and will misrepresent legalities when they feel
it is in their interests*
* for an example, call up any recording company, and ask if it's legal to
tape a CD you own for purposes of listening to it on your car stero.
You'll as likely as not be told that it is illegal. It is not only
legal, it is specifically stated that it is legal in the law.
--
Russ Taylor (http://www.cmc.net/~rtaylor/)
CMC Tech Support Manager
Duke Phillips: Why do you have to be so critical?
Jay Sherman: I'm a critic. It's my job.
Duke Phillips: No, your job is to rate movies on a scale from "good"
to "excellent".
Jay Sherman: What if I don't like them?
Duke Phillips: That's what "good" is for.
-------------
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