3d animation / COpyright music

[Salik Syed]

Hi , i need some help w/ the copyright thing
are there any loop holes like i heard if u use it for less than 31 sec it doesn't apply ??
WE finished the whole thing it took 4 long weeks and we submitted and used LINKIN' PaRK music and they say it's copyright infringement and need written consent so can anyone please help us out we put a LOT of work in to this and we don't want it to go to waste ! please please help us.
Thank You
Salik syed / Lead 3d animator

[Clark Gilbert]

I'm no expert on this, but if the deadline to submit has already passed I seriously doubt you can fix the animation and/or resubmit it. All you can do is try to get written permission. In the other thread it seems like the 31 sec thing might not be true.

Good Luck

[Madison]

If you're in a bind, try calling a local radio station. They may be able to help you understand the law with regard to licensing and copyright infringement.

[Koko Ed]

Originally posted by $_@_1_i_|<
Hi , i need some help w/ the copyright thing
are there any loop holes like i heard if u use it for less than 31 sec it doesn't apply ??
WE finished the whole thing it took 4 long weeks and we submitted and used LINKIN' PaRK music and they say it's copyright infringement and need written consent so can anyone please help us out we put a LOT of work in to this and we don't want it to go to waste ! please please help us.
Thank You
Salik syed / Lead 3d animator

You guys would have been better off covering your bases and doing it yourself. You guys did awesome work and it may go to waste because of something like this. Always make sure your sure before you do something. It's just better to be safe than sorry.

[nkrumm]

When I first heard that FIRST would be cracking down on copyrighted music in animations, i didn't quite believe they would carry through. After all, many animations have gone for years using music ... why would they change it this year.

When our team did get message regarding this, however, i quickly realized they were serious. Perhaps it has to do with the DMCA, where FIRST could be held accountable for the "copyright infringement" of animations.

After thinking about this for a while, I also concluded that
Now for the argument: using copyrighted songs in animations probably is not illegal .

Here is the argument:

Copyright law (USC Title 17, Chapter 12) holds that authors of content (music, art, whatever) have exclusive rights to their work for a certain period of time. These rights include publishing, etc.

The Constitution is also not silent on the issue: Article I, Section 8 states Congress shall "... promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive rights to their respective writings and discoveries".

In addition to all this, there is also the concept of fair use. Fair use entitles copyright holders (i.e. the purchaser of a CD, movie or whatever) to make certain use of that material.
For example, you might quote a book in a book report, use a snippet of a movie in a multimedia project, or copy and distribute some text for a class. This is all fair use.

Although there are no clear lines, no black and white, the courts have deemed the following uses as "fair": criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, research and parodies.

The guidelines for fair use are:
1. The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes -- Courts are more likely to find fair use where the use is for noncommercial purposes.
2. The nature of the copyrighted work -- A particular use is more likely to be fair where the copied work is factual rather than creative.
3. The amount and substantially of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole -- A court will balance this factor toward a finding of fair use where the amount taken is small or insignificant in proportion to the overall work.
4. The effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work -- If the court finds the newly created work is not a substitute product for the copyrighted work, it will be more likely to weigh this factor in favor of fair use.

[taken from http://www.eff.org/IP/eff_fair_use_faq.html]

As you can see, using music in our animations is a clear case of fair use: The projects are non-profit and educational. They use only a small portion of the larger work. Finally, they do not infringe on the market of the original work.

Here are some links that can be helpful in assessing fair use:
- http://www.eff.org/IP/eff_fair_use_faq.html - EFF, a watchdog organization for copyright in the digital world
- http://fairuse.stanford.edu/primary/index.html#caselaw - Stanford University's copyright page. Many links to court cases and primary sources.
- http://fairuse.stanford.edu/primary/...95F2d1171.html - ELOISE TOBY MARCUS v. SHIRLEY ROWLEY, one of the many court cases involving the issue. See Section III especially


Now, I believe that it isn't legal for FIRST to withhold animations that make fair use copyrighted material. If this came to a court case, I believe that FIRST would be forced to give in on their stance. (I'm not a legal expert, but i did write a 25 page paper with over 30 sources on copyright law).

If there are enough other teams in similar situations, I think it is mandated to write a letter to FIRST and Autodesk explaining this. If nothing can be resolved, I would suggest further legal action, using the EFF or similar organization as a legal counsel.

Thanks for reading
Nik

PS if anyone is interested in talking more, my AIM is krumm99

[dlavery]

There is no way to sugar-coat this, or make it any easier to accept. If you used Linkin Park music - either a direct use of their recording, or your own performance of one of their copyrighted songs - in whole or in part, and you did not obtain their permission to do so in writing, you are screwed. That is a direct violation of the rules. It is very clearly spelled out in the Autodesk Visualization Award rules and submission sheets that unless you either own the copyright or have permission to use it, you can't use copyrighted materials.

Note that whether the use of copyrighted music in your animation is "legal" or not is irrelevant. The rules as stated in the Autodesk Visualization Award write-ups have nothing to do with the legal definition of "fair use" or anything else. The rules for the award are what the rules are. The use of a piece of Linkin Park music without permission may or may not be legal in any other application. It may or may not be considered fair use for any other purpose. Neither of those matter. The RULES say you can't do it for THIS competition. Therefore, your entry will probably be thrown out by Autodesk without further consideration.

Don't count on any special leniency or leeway from Autodesk just because you put in a lot of effort on the rest of the animation. Write this one off as a painful lesson learned, and move on.

-dave

-----------------------------------

Y = AX^2 + B... ehhh, whatever

[Koko Ed]

Where were your mentors?
They should have made sure everything was OK before it got sent out and there were no violations.

[reisser]

I think the information in this thread is very useful. However, what we may think should be the rules and what is actually the rule are two different things.

If you want to compete, you must follow the rules completely. Forgetting about "fair use", one must remember that FIRST is supposed to serve as a realistic learning experience for students. While this competition may be "noncommercial", when each of us FIRST students move on to our respective careers, it will be a commercial environment. I think it is in the best interests of the organization to train us to be sensitive to copyright laws so that when we do enter a career the same issues don't befall us, only with actual legal consequences. FIRST prepares students for the rest of their lives. Why shouldn't they hold us to copyright rules that any other respectable animation studio must abide by?

Food for thought....

[Salik Syed]

too bad, anywayz i look at the brightside of it ... this years wasn't too good animation i guess i was happy w/ it 1 freshmen(me) doing most and 2 seniors helped me w/ a few models, hope fully next yr i'll get a bunch of people to help me and it'll be better,... it's just our first yr. of course i'll try all that fair use stuff anywayz! no one wants their creation 2 go 2 waste!

[Gun]

I feel you bro, i had the same problem, although resolved cuz i used
a classical music. Isn't there a anyway to contact the record publisher,
cuz if you get in touch, i am pretty sure they will let you use it.

[Dima]

Autodesk and FIRST must be able to use the animation for thier own use and hence the need for the written permission from the publisher or whatnot. They don't want to get sued by the plublisher or what not.