For many years I have made part of my living from my writing.
I write for magazines, for hire, as a consultant, for my own newsletter,
and for my business.
Recently, I have found that a number of people have taken my written
materials for their own use without any permission or payment.
Of course, the Internet makes it easy -- just download the page
-- and who will ever know?
But when you take my written materials without permission or payment,
you deprive me of my livelihood. You are, effectively, stealing
from me. When you steal writing and host it on your own
Web page without payment or permission, you violate Federal copyright
laws intended to protect writers like me and place yourself and
your business in considerable jeopardy by breaking the law in
this open and public fashion.
What does a copyright cover?
Copyright law can be very technical, but, in relation to the Web,
it says:
You cannot publish (which includes publishing on a Web site as
a Web page) any work which another has written without his or
her explicit permission.
The assembled work of Web pages, specifically including HTML code,
is also protected.
A writer doesn't even have to state explicitly that the material
is copyrighted. It is automatically protected by copyright
laws when it is published in final form.
Words and HTML code can be copyrighted, but ideas can't. If those
ideas are put in other words and form, it is not a violation of
copyright.
Isn't it okay to reprint so long as you tell where you got
the article?
No. If you go to the hardware store and tuck an expensive wrench
into your jacket and walk out the door, it isn't enough to tell
your friends: "I got this wrench from Joe's Hardware."
If you reprint my writing without permission you have stolen it
no matter what you tell people. Of course, it is even grosser
when people take the article, remove my name, and copyright notice,
and replace it with their own. (Oh, yes, a number of people have
done that.)
How can you tell if someone takes your articles?
You'd think that a little Web site tucked away in an obscure corner
of the Internet won't be noticed. However, Web plagiarism is
a relatively simple matter to uncover using any of several Web
search engines.
I found dozens of violations using this method:
Select a phrase on one of my Web pages of 3 or 4 words not
likely to be found elsewhere.
Put the phrase in quotation marks in Google and search.
I can see if that phrase appears on any of the 2 billion
Web pages that Google has indexed.
Then I cut and paste the name and address and URL where I found
the copyright violation into a Web page which I put in a password
protected directory of my Web site. This enables me to check easily
to see if the pages have been removed. It also makes it easy for
the violator's Internet Service Provider to see the comparisons,
if necessary.
Why enforce your copyright?
If I don't search for copyright violations, my claim to my material
tends to be weakened. My own business uniqueness is also diluted,
since people can find exactly the same article or service advertised
elsewhere.
How do you enforce your copyright?
First, I request the copyright violator to remove my copyrighted
material from his or her Web pages within 48 hours.
Next, I check to see if this has been done. If not, I notify
the violator's Internet Service Provider that they are hosting
copyright materials. ISPs become very protective when their subscribers
place them in legal jeopardy, since they now become liable themselves
and have a lot to lose. Often they make it abundantly clear to
the violator to remove the materials. Other times they just revoke
the violator's account for violation of the terms of the contract
which was signed when the service was begun.
If these methods don't work, then I consider legal action.
Many people are unaware of copyright laws, and comply immediately.
My desire is not to embarrass them or ruin their reputation with
their Internet Service Provider or clients.
How much monetary damage are we talking about?
Since I have sold my writing for many years, I have a pretty good
idea of the value of business writing.
Article Reprints which have appeared in Web Marketing
Today, for example, go for $150 or more per use (usually a
one-month use in a print periodical). Only very seldom
do I allow them to be reprinted on another Web site, and only
if that brings benefit to my business. If I were to custom-write
them for a Web design company my fee would be $150 per hour. A
typical article might take eight or ten hours or more to research
and write.
Lost business to Wilson Internet Services because of
potential clients being attracted to another's business by means
of my business writing is hard to assess, but it amounts to hundreds
or thousands of dollars per client, depending on the project.
What should I do if I have violated your copyright?
I require that all Web pages which contain my copyrighted materials
be removed from the Internet within 48 hours of notice via e-mail.
Unless this is done I go to the next step without further notice. (If you need an extension of time to write your own materials, please call me ASAP to make arrangements.)
Beyond that you could:
Apologize to me and ask God for forgiveness.
Adapt ideas to your own business and put them in your own
words. I can't copyright ideas, but I do own a right to the words
and the HTML code.
Compensate me for the unauthorized use or damages.
Vow never again to publish the work of another without permission
or payment.
Be grateful there are copyright laws to protect your work
as well as mine.
Feel free to link to my Web site if you find the materials
useful to you or your clients. You are quite welcome to link to the materials there, just don't host them on your own site.
Thank you for your understanding of both my rights, my reasons
for asserting those rights, and my determination to do so diligently
and exhaustively.
Sincerely,
Dr. Ralph F. Wilson
Director, Wilson Internet Services
Editor, Web Marketing Today
