SikhiWiki:Copyright violation

Copyright violation

• If you are alleging a copyright violation on this site, please follow the procedure below:

Please observe the rules for this site - If you feel that an article infringes copyright, you must enter a remark to that effect on the article discussion page. A SikhiWiki Sewadar will then deal with the matter. You must not change the article in any way until the matter has been dealt with by the Sewadar. Changing the article will hinder the Sewadar from making the relevant checks.

In your remark please leave the following details:

• Your name and email address
• The exact part of the article that infringes the alleged copyright
• The original site of the material with a precise url
• The details of the author of that site with his or her name and email address
• If you are not the author, an authorisation from the author giving you irrevocable authority to deal with this matter.

It would help us if you could help us by providing the following optional details:

• Why you believe that the material is subject to copyright if it is a site promoting Sikhism (just as SikhiWiki)?
• Why do you feel that we cannot use that material for educational purposes on SikhiWiki?

You will appreciate that we must first carry out a thorough check before any action can be taken. The more information you provide the quicker we can remove the offensive article. However, we cannot allow users to delete material themselves without following these set guidelines. If the practise of deletion by users was allowed, this site would be prone to constant vandalism and interference from "hoax-sters"

Please observe these rules given above otherwise we will have no alternative but to debar any user who "takes the law into their own hands" and the user will be permanently banned from this site.

Remember that the sole purpose of this site is to promote Sikhi principles, values and practices and that this is done on a volunteer basis by sewadars who receive no money for their time and effort. "The Guru's Sikh, and the Sikh's Guru, are one and the same; both spread the Guru's Teachings." (p444)

Link to External Sites

How to deal with copyright infringment

Below is advise given at site: www.copyrightservice.co.uk to holders of copyright material. (Please go to their site for more details)

The first step is to make the infringer aware of your objection and put forward a reasonable settlement and time scale to reach the settlement.

In your letter you should include:

• The words ‘without prejudice’ at the start of the letter.
• The name of the work(s) you are objecting to.
• The reason why this is an infringement, i.e. an unauthorised copy, adaptation etc.
• State that you believe this act constitutes an infringement. That your work is protected under law and that this constitutes a breach of your legal rights.
• State that this is unacceptable and must stop.
• State what action is required to resolve the dispute, usually you would request the withdrawal of all copies of the work, (and any other encroaching materials).
• Specify a deadline for your conditions to be met (28 days is a typical period).
• State that you are seeking legal advice and that the case will be pursued if they do not comply with your request within the time period.

It is normal to simply request the withdrawal of all infringing work as the first course of action, if however you believe that you are entitled to financial remuneration, such as damages or royalties, then contact a solicitor immediately.

Is it Fair use

the following is quoted from the site: www.publaw.com

[In the USA,] Section 107 enumerates four "fair use factors" that need to be analyzed in order to determine whether a particular use of a copyrighted work is fair use. These factors are:

• 1. the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;
• 2. the nature of the copyrighted work;
• 3. the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
• 4. the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work."

Because the courts consider all four factors - no single factor is and of itself sufficient to prove fair use - publishers need to understand each factor as it relates to determining whether use of the original copyrighted work in the creation of a new work will be considered fair use in the eyes of the court. (emphasis added)

What protection does non-commercial work get?

The following is a quote form the site: www.templetons.com

"While copyright law makes it technically illegal to reproduce almost any new creative work (other than under fair use) without permission, if the work is unregistered and has no real commercial value, it gets very little protection. The author in this case can sue for an injunction against the publication, actual damages from a violation, and possibly court costs. Actual damages means actual money potentially lost by the author due to publication, plus any money gained by the defendant. But if a work has no commercial value, such as a typical E-mail message or conversational USENET posting, the actual damages will be zero. Only the most vindictive (and rich) author would sue when no damages are possible, and the courts don't look kindly on vindictive plaintiffs, unless the defendants are even more vindictive."