Difference between Patent and Copyright:
A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a government to an inventor or applicant for a limited amount of time (normally 20 years from the filing date). The term "patent" originates from the term to patent which means to lay open (to public inspection) and the term letters patent, which originally denoted royal decrees granting exclusive rights to certain individuals or businesses.
Copyright
A copyright provides its holder the right to restrict unauthorized copying and reproduction of an original expression (i.e. literary work, movie, music, painting, software, mask work, etc.) It is a legal right (usually of the author or composer or publisher of a work) to exclusive publication production, sale, distribution of some work. What is protected by the copyright is the "expression," not the idea. Notice that taking another's idea is plagiarism, so copyrights are not the equivalent of legal prohibition of plagiarism.
By law, copyright exists from the time of creation of "an original work of authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression." Today there is no need to put a copyright notice to have a copyright. Registration is not required to bring an action for infringement, but if the copyright was registered prior to the infringement, certain statutory damages are available which are not available if the copyright is not registered. It is a matter of good practice to place a copyright notice which includes the copyright holder and year of creation (e.g Copyright, JHU, 2001). Changing items, which include some new work and some work created in prior years can include the multiple years (Copyright, JHU, 2000, 2002).
Since the Alpina is not a "scale" model, but an original artistic creation, I would think it would fall under this category.
However, if there were substantial modifications/improvements and the name itself was not used, then it would be a different plane altogether.
Producing "scale" planes is a different matter. Anyone may make their own "version" of ASW27 for example.
But to copy an Escape, Emerald, Taboo, etc. to sell in the market place would be considered an infringement on the original creator's rights.
T
T&G 32 Mount View Dr Afton, VA 22920
540 943-3356
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540 943-3356
----- Original Message ----- From: "John Derstine" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Saturday, February 05, 2005 5:09 PM
Subject: [RCSE] copyright infringment
In lieu of all the relevant conversation about copyright infringement, here is a post I just ran across on a thread in RC Groups. This is the problem, this guy doesn't seem to have a clue or any qualms about ripping off a manufacturers design. Quote------------------------------------- Alpina sailplane
What if someone here in the U.S. had the capability to manufacture Alpina kits and put them up for sale? Would anyone be interested?
------------------------------------------------------- Here is the link. http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?p=3277586#post3277586
JD Endless Mountain Models http://www.scalesoaring.com email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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