Does anybody know the law suit that had been a hot legal huffing and puffing until last month?
You all know J K Rowling, the creator of Harry Potter novels.
October last year, a 50 year old librarian and pottermaniac called Vander Ark and his publisher RDR Books in Michigan announced to publish a reference guide of Harry Potter Lexicon, a Harry Potter website that Vander Ark has run for about a decade.
Over ten thousand readers have accessed the comprehensive Lexicon and Rowling herself used it for her reference, she even gave it the Best Fan Site award in 2004.
Rowling and Warner.Bro stood up to sue Vander Ark and his publisher for infringement of copyright laws and stated that it was plagiarism of her efforts to make a quick buck.
In April.15 2007, she said in the court that she had been planning to write her own Harry Potter encyclopedia to donate the sales to charity in London, and said his book was sloppy, lazy and added too little or no criticism, and her attorney said he just rearranged the furnitures of Rowling's books. She also said she had to stop her creative work because of it.
The defendants said the book was written within the range of the Fair use of copyright law and thus it should be publishable. His lawyer said authors do not have rights to ban a fan-written guide just because she does not like it.
Why she calls it plagiarism?? (she sees his book as a direct substitute to her novels, and also to her unpublished encyclopedia.)
Well according to the judge, they took too much original language from her novels to be entitled as a reference, and it could impair the sales of Rowling's two companion books Quiddich through the ages and Fantastic beasts & Where to find them, and the sales of her upcoming book as well.
Hence they failed to establish a compelling defence to invoke Fair use.
Better read this up →http://
September 8 this year the court finally ruled in favour of Rowling and made an injunction barring the publication of Vander Ark's Lexicon permanently...but the defendants are not still giving up publishing the Lexicon.
You now might think J K Rowling is a little too greedy about money, because though she is wonderfully generous to the charity she is supporting, she remains enormously rich.( you know the novels have sold over 4,000 copies all over the world)
And she bashed all away at the Lexcion site she once praised in admiration. She said she regretted that she gave it the award bitterly haha.(well maybe because the site was available FREE)
Some fans think the decision was unfair to Vander Ark, for she sounds like she should have a right to even control over discussion spaces shared for fans that do not belong to her.
She must be aware of the fact that her creation has gone out of her control.
Some see it was absolutely just, because however we get familiar with Harry Potter universe, own all the series, and run a rich fan site, Harry Potter is clearly HER creation.
This is one truth that stands unshaken.
Some other noteworthy? opinions are:
・Vander Ark initially had no intention to publish his Lexicon; it is merely his hobby and it was RDR Books that approached him into publishing the printed version, so he is the poor victim of his own efforts. Rowling should have compromised to save his face.
・There is a necessary and healthy line between what the initial author owns and what follow-on, or "secondary," authors get to do, and Rowling is running over that line like the Hogwarts Express. The creators of H.P. Lexicon may not be as creative as Rowling, but they are authors, too, and deserve a little respect from the law.
・If Rowling had written her own encyclopedia before Vander Ark set to publish his, it wouldn't turn out to be this ugly legal issue because Fair use protects unpublished works as well.
It's a legal issue and many legal terms are seen but it's very disscuss-worthy I think?
So where exactly are ya on this?
You all know J K Rowling, the creator of Harry Potter novels.
October last year, a 50 year old librarian and pottermaniac called Vander Ark and his publisher RDR Books in Michigan announced to publish a reference guide of Harry Potter Lexicon, a Harry Potter website that Vander Ark has run for about a decade.
Over ten thousand readers have accessed the comprehensive Lexicon and Rowling herself used it for her reference, she even gave it the Best Fan Site award in 2004.
Rowling and Warner.Bro stood up to sue Vander Ark and his publisher for infringement of copyright laws and stated that it was plagiarism of her efforts to make a quick buck.
In April.15 2007, she said in the court that she had been planning to write her own Harry Potter encyclopedia to donate the sales to charity in London, and said his book was sloppy, lazy and added too little or no criticism, and her attorney said he just rearranged the furnitures of Rowling's books. She also said she had to stop her creative work because of it.
The defendants said the book was written within the range of the Fair use of copyright law and thus it should be publishable. His lawyer said authors do not have rights to ban a fan-written guide just because she does not like it.
Why she calls it plagiarism?? (she sees his book as a direct substitute to her novels, and also to her unpublished encyclopedia.)
Well according to the judge, they took too much original language from her novels to be entitled as a reference, and it could impair the sales of Rowling's two companion books Quiddich through the ages and Fantastic beasts & Where to find them, and the sales of her upcoming book as well.
Hence they failed to establish a compelling defence to invoke Fair use.
Better read this up →http://
September 8 this year the court finally ruled in favour of Rowling and made an injunction barring the publication of Vander Ark's Lexicon permanently...but the defendants are not still giving up publishing the Lexicon.
You now might think J K Rowling is a little too greedy about money, because though she is wonderfully generous to the charity she is supporting, she remains enormously rich.( you know the novels have sold over 4,000 copies all over the world)
And she bashed all away at the Lexcion site she once praised in admiration. She said she regretted that she gave it the award bitterly haha.(well maybe because the site was available FREE)
Some fans think the decision was unfair to Vander Ark, for she sounds like she should have a right to even control over discussion spaces shared for fans that do not belong to her.
She must be aware of the fact that her creation has gone out of her control.
Some see it was absolutely just, because however we get familiar with Harry Potter universe, own all the series, and run a rich fan site, Harry Potter is clearly HER creation.
This is one truth that stands unshaken.
Some other noteworthy? opinions are:
・Vander Ark initially had no intention to publish his Lexicon; it is merely his hobby and it was RDR Books that approached him into publishing the printed version, so he is the poor victim of his own efforts. Rowling should have compromised to save his face.
・There is a necessary and healthy line between what the initial author owns and what follow-on, or "secondary," authors get to do, and Rowling is running over that line like the Hogwarts Express. The creators of H.P. Lexicon may not be as creative as Rowling, but they are authors, too, and deserve a little respect from the law.
・If Rowling had written her own encyclopedia before Vander Ark set to publish his, it wouldn't turn out to be this ugly legal issue because Fair use protects unpublished works as well.
It's a legal issue and many legal terms are seen but it's very disscuss-worthy I think?
So where exactly are ya on this?
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コメント(2)
I believe the publishing company; RDR Books must have known how Rowling would feel and react when they made Vander publish the book, but even despite that, they made it happen even though Vander had no intention of releasing his own book(well, I can't say it's HIS though.). The had known she would break in to their publishing a book without her permission.
They should have either talked about whole about this beforehand with her or at least let her know. Otherwise this wouldn't have become this ugly messed-up situation. Of course I understand both of which were enthralled by her works and they love it indcluding herself, but when money started to involve with, RDR books completely ran for profit-centered policy as her copies have sold like hotcakes and they must have thought the encyclopedia, the unique new-style-version edited by the BIGGEST bluff, a secondary auther would be no exception.
If I have to judge and settle the case, maybe I'll choose J.K Rawling as the winner. Partly becuz I personally like herself and her great eager and dedication to her works. Also if there's no end coming anything soon on this case she would seriously affect her next works...that'd be more disasterous...those fantabulous story of her own works would be distorted badly, allowing her lose a lot of precious life-long assets than money itself. So if psossible I'd like to ask her just make it quick whether she wins or not, just try to be settled down and get some chills-out and get down to work steeping herself in the fantasy world. I know she should know what she has to do now rather than taking much time on trivial things.
I hope so.
They should have either talked about whole about this beforehand with her or at least let her know. Otherwise this wouldn't have become this ugly messed-up situation. Of course I understand both of which were enthralled by her works and they love it indcluding herself, but when money started to involve with, RDR books completely ran for profit-centered policy as her copies have sold like hotcakes and they must have thought the encyclopedia, the unique new-style-version edited by the BIGGEST bluff, a secondary auther would be no exception.
If I have to judge and settle the case, maybe I'll choose J.K Rawling as the winner. Partly becuz I personally like herself and her great eager and dedication to her works. Also if there's no end coming anything soon on this case she would seriously affect her next works...that'd be more disasterous...those fantabulous story of her own works would be distorted badly, allowing her lose a lot of precious life-long assets than money itself. So if psossible I'd like to ask her just make it quick whether she wins or not, just try to be settled down and get some chills-out and get down to work steeping herself in the fantasy world. I know she should know what she has to do now rather than taking much time on trivial things.
I hope so.
No they did not publish the Lexicon yet.
Just before publishing it Rowling came butting in.
I was against Rowling at first, untill I read a copyright law handbook.
It says, a work is considered as infringed only if "substantial amount of the work is copied." The substantial varies from case to case, but in this case Vander Ark's Lexicon has distinvtive language verbatims directly taken from the Harry Potter novels and that is what the handbook refers as "substantial".
What they argued for bringing fair use went in vain just because they exactly did that "only if" part.
She won the case and RDR books had to pay her a large amount of money (forgot how much) but they're still trying to publish the book..
That is why some keep saying that Rowling could have been lenient to Vander Ark because she still has too much enough money if she drops some of the fortune to charity. This is why they say Rowling showed her dark side of fair face.
But the law is law and if it says it is wrong it's wrong.
She won the case and the case is closed.
I now second Rowling because of her creativity is nothing you can compare and it should deserve the protection even though her work is successful and she has finacianlly benefitted.
Just before publishing it Rowling came butting in.
I was against Rowling at first, untill I read a copyright law handbook.
It says, a work is considered as infringed only if "substantial amount of the work is copied." The substantial varies from case to case, but in this case Vander Ark's Lexicon has distinvtive language verbatims directly taken from the Harry Potter novels and that is what the handbook refers as "substantial".
What they argued for bringing fair use went in vain just because they exactly did that "only if" part.
She won the case and RDR books had to pay her a large amount of money (forgot how much) but they're still trying to publish the book..
That is why some keep saying that Rowling could have been lenient to Vander Ark because she still has too much enough money if she drops some of the fortune to charity. This is why they say Rowling showed her dark side of fair face.
But the law is law and if it says it is wrong it's wrong.
She won the case and the case is closed.
I now second Rowling because of her creativity is nothing you can compare and it should deserve the protection even though her work is successful and she has finacianlly benefitted.
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