Intellectual Property and Publicity Rights
Starsvg.com is a community built on respect and recognition of designers. We ask, rather we beg, that you remember this when you are posting work on Starsvg.com. If you make sure that all the works you upload consist of your very own, original ideas and are not infringing on the intellectual property or publicity rights of another, you will help us foster the supportive and creative environment that is Starsvg.com. AND, besides being counter to all that Starsvg.com stands for, stealing other people’s work and passing it off as your own is against the law.
There are several international treaties that relate to intellectual property, but the laws are not uniform across the world. However, generally speaking…
COPYRIGHT law protects the expression of an original idea recorded in a tangible form, such as artwork in the form of photographs or paintings and literary works in the form of poems or stories.
TRADEMARK law protects the use of words, symbols, designs or logos that identify and distinguish a source of goods.
PUBLICITY RIGHTS protect an individual’s name, image and likeness. Basically this means you can’t use someone else’s identity, to your commercial advantage, without their consent.
A NOTE ON FAIR USE: You might be able to incorporate someone else’s copyright or trademark into your own work, if you do it in such a way that that is considered “fair use” or in such a way that qualifies as another permissible use. However, please be aware that “fair use” typically applies in limited circumstances and isn’t the same as “freedom of speech”. Quite frankly “fair use” is a difficult concept, even for the experts, and the scope of “fair use” is different in different countries. So even if you think you’ve created a work covered by “fair use” or another permissible use, you should talk to an attorney prior to using it in connection with the Redbubble service. While some uses might appear “fair” or permissible to you, we ask that you understand that Starsvg.com must act in accordance with its Notice and Takedown procedure when a report has been received. Additionally, certain works may be taken down without a specific report being received if we are otherwise alerted or aware of potential infringement issues.
Ultimately, you take full responsibility for the works you upload and display on Starsvg.com. This is reflected in the Starsvg.com User Agreement Use .
So please do us all a favour and if someone has created or owns the rights to a picture, painting, photograph, logo, font, svg or any other work, copyright, trademark or publicity right (regardless of whether it’s an individual or a large global company), obtain consent before you sell that work on Starsvg.com. This will help ensure that you don’t infringe the rights of any third party and help us promote an encouraging and inspired environment at Starsvg.com filled with wit, soul, meaning and aesthetic genius.
REPEAT INFRINGER POLICY: It is Starsvg.com ’s policy, in appropriate circumstances, to disable and/or terminate the accounts of designer who repeatedly infringe or are repeatedly charged with infringing the copyrights, trademark rights, other intellectual property rights or publicity rights of others.
Notice and Takedown Procedure – Reports and Complaints
Starsvg.com respects the intellectual property rights of others and we ask our designers to do the same.
If you believe that your content has been used in a way that constitutes an infringement of your rights, please notify Starsvg.com support by sending a Notice and Takedown Report, which must include the following important information:
- an electronic or physical signature of the person authorised to act on behalf of the owner of the relevant matter;
- a description of the matter claimed to have been infringed;
- a description of where the claimed infringing content is located on the Redbubble site. URLs should be in the following form:
http://starsvg.com/category/itemname. - your address, telephone number, and email address;
- a statement by you that you have a good faith belief that the disputed use is not authorised by the owner, its agent, or the law;
- a statement by you, made under penalty of perjury, that:
a. the above information is accurate; and
b. you are authorised to act on behalf of the owner of the rights involved.
Please use the Notice and Takedown Report form to submit your report. For all other IP complaints, you can reach us at: dmca@starsvg.com
Additionally, in certain circumstances, Starsvg.com may suspend or terminate designers who in our opinion infringe the copyrights, trademarks, publicity rights, or other rights of others purposely (see deliberate misuse).
If Your Work Has Been Included in a Notice/Takedown Report
If the Starsvg.com Content Team has received a Notice and Takedown Report which specifically notes one or more of your works, the noted works will have been removed. You will not be able to view or update these works.
The Notice and Takedown Report that has been received may or may not have also included other works by other designers, and by removing the work, we are not stating that your work does or does not infringe copyright, trademark or publicity rights law.
We have a legal obligation to act on reports filed in accordance with our IP/Publicity Rights Policy.
While the work may not have been a direct copy of someone else’s work, it may contain elements, logos, or personal likenesses which may infringe on another’s rights.
If you believe a report was in error or should not apply to your work, you have the right to lodge a counter-notification.
We do apologize that we are legally not able to provide individual copyright, trademark or publicity rights advice, or give personal opinions on these matters.
We recommend that you research the relevant copyright, trademark and publicity rights laws and their application to your work on the Internet (a few links below), or consult an I.P. specialist if you are unsure why your specific work may have been included in a Notice and Takedown Report.
General Copyright
Copyright General Trademark
General Publicity Rights
Australia
United Kingdom
United States Copyright
United States Trademark
Filing a Counter Notice
If you believe that removal of the content is the result of a mistake (for example, that you have authorisation) or misidentification, you can send us a Counter Notice using the form below. Such counter-notice must provide the following information: - An electronic or physical signature of the person authorised to act on behalf of the owner of the relevant matter;
- a description of the content which we have removed, including the URL on which the content was located on the starsvg.com site;
- your address, telephone number, and email address;
- a statement by you that you consent to the jurisdiction of the Federal District Court, San Francisco County, California, United States and that you will accept service of process from the person who provided notification described above or an agent of such person;
- a statement by you that, under penalty of perjury, you have a good faith belief that the material was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or misidentification of the material to be removed or disabled.
Please use the Counter Notice form to submit your report at: dmca@starsvg.com
If we receive your counter-notice but your work does not comply with the Starsvg.com User Agreement and/or IP/Publicity Rights Policy, we may inform you that we are not able to reinstate your work. We may also request further information from you in order to determine whether the work can be reinstated.
In many circumstances, however, we will forward your Counter Notice directly to the complainant, which will include your personal contact information. At that time the complainant may take legal court action against you in the United States. If after 14 days the complainant has not taken legal action against you, you may contact us to request that we reinstate your work. If your work otherwise complies with our User Agreement and IP/Publicity Rights Policy, we may reinstate your work at that time.