tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27501132.post115221853679115290..comments2023-12-31T01:23:39.943-05:00Comments on Mayerson on Animation: The YouTube Purge and a Copyright RantMark Mayersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00065971589878678848noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27501132.post-705742410841189172009-11-10T02:53:19.305-05:002009-11-10T02:53:19.305-05:00"Right now, there are huge chunks of animatio..."Right now, there are huge chunks of animation history that are unavailable legally. NBC-Universal controls the Walter Lantz library. Viacom controls the Terrytoon library. Sony controls the Columbia library, which includes cartoons produced by Charles Mintz, Columbia and UPA. I've got money I'd be happy to spend to acquire these cartoons on DVD. Why won't these companies take my money? And if they won't sell these items, why are they surprised when a black market develops?"<br /><br />THIS. One of my favorite animated series ever is was taken off the air, removed from itunes, etc etc etc and no DVDs are planned. If the company isn't trying to make money off it anyway, why get upset when people view it for free?Netbugnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27501132.post-1170727049712691962007-02-05T20:57:00.000-05:002007-02-05T20:57:00.000-05:00The whole notion of "intellectual property" is on ...The whole notion of "intellectual property" is on thin ice by its very nature. How can you "own" an idea? A thought? By those rules, "Great minds think alike" (something we've all experienced) becomes "someone just copied me simultaneously!" There can be no progress if everyone is hoarding his thoughts and charging others for access to them.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27501132.post-1154627334109415942006-08-03T13:48:00.000-04:002006-08-03T13:48:00.000-04:00"I've got money I'd be happy to spend to acquire t..."I've got money I'd be happy to spend to acquire these cartoons on DVD. Why won't these companies take my money?"<BR/><BR/>"Now the thing that drives me nuts about this is that so many of the cartoons that were being posted on YouTube are NOT AVAILABLE anywhere else."<BR/><BR/>I've no doubt the corporations in question would be all too happy to take your money. But if you're the only person who is interested in purchasing this material, or even if you're one of a <I>thousand</I> people who might be interested in purchasing this material, that's not likely to provide adequate return on the investment of packaging the material for sale.<BR/><BR/>I think people too often overlook -- or perhaps choose to overlook -- the point that just because <I>they're</I> interested in this stuff doesn't necessarily mean, by default, that there's enough interest out there to make it a commercially viable proposition.<BR/><BR/>And that fact doesn't excuse the owners of such material from taking steps to protect their intellectual property -- even when such steps aren't <I>entirely</I> warranted (as it the case here).<BR/><BR/>It's not a perfect situation, I'll grant you -- but I'll bet even if more cartoons <I>were</I> in the public domain and largely available, people would just end up complaining about the quality of the transfers, and the reluctance of the copyright holders to compile and release collections of better quality from the materials they hold (because of the risk of theft).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27501132.post-1152619632000060512006-07-11T08:07:00.000-04:002006-07-11T08:07:00.000-04:00This was a very insightful read. Internet sites s...This was a very insightful read. <BR/><BR/>Internet sites such youtube and myspace are where the industry is; and is going. There seems to be a huge market now in putting the control into the hands of the consumer, allowing them to control what they see and when they see it, at their own convienience; Tivo is another example of this. <BR/><BR/>I agree with your statement regarding industries, in that they are responsible for mass piracy to an extent by not having items in demand available for purchase.<BR/><BR/>My only regret is that I didn't discover this blog sooner, I will visit often, thanks Mark it's greatly apprieciated!Michael Dedrickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14130497764467042828noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27501132.post-1152378433659858952006-07-08T13:07:00.000-04:002006-07-08T13:07:00.000-04:00Now the thing that drives me nuts about this is th...Now the thing that drives me nuts about this is that so many of the cartoons that were being posted on YouTube are NOT AVAILABLE anywhere else. If Warners or MGM , or whoever owns the copyrights/characters in those cartoons would release collections of them on DVD or , say , release them for download on iTunes,<BR/>I would buy them. Do you hear that Warner Bros. : I will PAY MONEY for DVD's of your old cartoons , but the problem is you're not selling them. (and I don't want them cut up and sanitized/censored ).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27501132.post-1152292598179709672006-07-07T13:16:00.000-04:002006-07-07T13:16:00.000-04:00Thank you Mark Mayerson for the information on cop...Thank you Mark Mayerson for the information on copyrights, Ive always wondered how it works especially with animation. Once again your knowledge and info is always insightful, woth reading and often clever.Andre Barnwellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14236322820759158484noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27501132.post-1152240903796116572006-07-06T22:55:00.000-04:002006-07-06T22:55:00.000-04:00I agree with Stephen, there is no such thing as "f...I agree with Stephen, there is no such thing as "fair use" anymore. I admit on my blog I was more or less just sharing and not necessarily offering any real incite like the K's, John and Thad but most of the cartoons I posted aren't available. That's the reason I put them up there. I think YouTube wussed out because they feel they have more to gain by playing nice with corporations and their money than they do with their own users. <BR/><BR/>Another great post Mark.Kevin Langleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07623675845502307848noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27501132.post-1152236711035377452006-07-06T21:45:00.000-04:002006-07-06T21:45:00.000-04:00If a copyright holder is granted rights into perpe...If a copyright holder is granted rights into perpetuity, simply because they are a corporation that would like to profit into perpetuity, this in itself seems to violate the spirit of copyright law. But since this seems to be the way of things currently, should they not at least be required to demonstrate responsible guardianship-- that the public substantially BENEFITS from their continued copyright, and if not, that the property become public domain sometime after the creator's death, as was always intended?I.D.R.C.https://www.blogger.com/profile/08204918752374858278noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27501132.post-1152231802283691562006-07-06T20:23:00.000-04:002006-07-06T20:23:00.000-04:00Great Post!! What makes me so mad about all this ...Great Post!! What makes me so mad about all this isn't so much the copy right laws, or how there abused really...but rather just the insulting slander this whole WB thing is to true Looney Tunes fans! This is in my opinion just the final straw for me in a long string of insults and misjudgements the Warner Brothers corporation has made in defaming and demoralizing those cartoons, characters, and there true fans in the years sense those classic cartoons have been made...it makes me sick!Robert Humehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01845385435580796281noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27501132.post-1152231516764835622006-07-06T20:18:00.000-04:002006-07-06T20:18:00.000-04:00All we can do is RAISE HELL. Everyone should write...All we can do is RAISE HELL. Everyone should write a letter or three expressing their outrage at this.<BR/><BR/>I'm told even the Fleischer Superman cartoons were deleted. Every single one of these is in the public domain.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27501132.post-1152231014936392662006-07-06T20:10:00.000-04:002006-07-06T20:10:00.000-04:00One of the most serious issues involved here is th...One of the most serious issues involved here is the erosion of "fair use" protection. When John K discusses the importance of Robert McKimson to the Clampett unit at Warner Bros, and provides clips illustrating McKimson's style, he is clearly operating under fair use provisions. But YouTube didn't even take that into consideration. They saw Bugs Bunny and deleted it.<BR/><BR/>"Eatin' On The Cuff" is a cartoon that is in the public domain. It entered the public domain long before the Sonny Bono Copyright Extension Act became law. I remember first seeing it on the PBS "Matinee at the Bijou" program back in the early 80s. John K, or anyone else who wants to can legally distribute that cartoon on PD DVDs or over the internet. Yet, YouTube deleted John's clips from that cartoon because of a single letter of complaint- a letter that didn't even establish that the copyright to the work belonged to them.<BR/><BR/>Enforcement of laws that are unreasonable are bad enough... but enforcement of corporate demands that aren't even backed up by law are worse.<BR/><BR/>See ya<BR/>SteveAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com