[ANSTHRLD] Copyright stuff

[tmcd at panix.com]

Rumil Fletcher <rumil at prodigy.net> wrote:
> While it is doubtful that an SCA person would ever want to sue an
> outside entity for copyright infringement, the reverse is not true.
> It is conceivable that a corporation or other entity could register a
> device matching an SCA set of arms as a trademark for a particular
> product.

Which are you talking about, trademark or copyright?  Trademark is
different from copyright.

Trademark isn't a problem unless you're a merchant and using the
design in connection with goods.  Trademark registration and
protection is for "the registrant's exclusive right to use the
registered mark in commerce on or in connection with the goods or
services specified in the registration subject to any conditions or
limitations stated therein".  (15 U.S.C sec. 1115,
<http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/15/1115.html>)


In any event, the SCA should not get involved in the copyright,
trademark, and real-world arms situation.  If we did, then I suspect
that the SCA could be legally liable to any such real-world owners,
and also could be legally liable to any SCA registrant if they run
into any problems.  Further, the SCA heraldic establishment would have
to worry, not just about SCA conflict rules, but real-world conflict
rules.

No, it's very very much better for the SCA to continue to imply (or,
better, to say explicitly), "We register this design within the SCA.
You are still subject to any real-world laws that apply to you.  Any
real-world problems you encounter, be it copyright, trademark, or
armorial jurisdictions, are your problems.  We make no warranty or
promises about that.".

Daniel de Lincolia
--
Tim McDaniel, tmcd at panix.com; tmcd at us.ibm.com is my work address