Grizabella
Apology accepted. No problem.
I could have worded that post better and saved the negative impression but I didn't see how it sounded when I wrote it.
Who Owns a Tarot Spread?
Apology accepted. No problem.
I could have worded that post better and saved the negative impression but I didn't see how it sounded when I wrote it.Metafizzypop
I just wanted to pop in with an update and let everyone know how the story turned out.
I contacted Pinterest and explained the situation to them. And they were very helpful. My tarot spread had been pinned to roughly 300 boards on that site, and it looks like Pinterest removed them all. Apparently, my little creation was very much in the copyright-able territory. Granted, Pinterest is a big site and the possibility exists that a stray image or two still remains. But I haven't found any lately.
It was great to see how efficient they were about it. It's good to know that people's intellectual property has value somewhere on the WWW (the Wild Wild Web), and that it's not OK to use other people's stuff however you want.
I also noticed that the form that Pinterest uses for people to report copyright infringement has changed. Shortly after I contacted them, the form got some options added to it. I actually wasn't able to use the form, because it didn't leave me room to explain that the infringement involved not the image, but only the text within the image. So I had to write an email explaining. Now the form has some extra options added, which allows people to be more specific. I don't know if the change happened because of my case, but the timing is interesting.
Anyway, my Haunted House spread has been removed from Pinterest. I wanna say thanks to everybody who came into this thread and offered ideas and advice. It was all helpful, and it was great to hear other people's points of view and perspectives.
I contacted Pinterest and explained the situation to them. And they were very helpful. My tarot spread had been pinned to roughly 300 boards on that site, and it looks like Pinterest removed them all. Apparently, my little creation was very much in the copyright-able territory. Granted, Pinterest is a big site and the possibility exists that a stray image or two still remains. But I haven't found any lately.
It was great to see how efficient they were about it. It's good to know that people's intellectual property has value somewhere on the WWW (the Wild Wild Web), and that it's not OK to use other people's stuff however you want.
I also noticed that the form that Pinterest uses for people to report copyright infringement has changed. Shortly after I contacted them, the form got some options added to it. I actually wasn't able to use the form, because it didn't leave me room to explain that the infringement involved not the image, but only the text within the image. So I had to write an email explaining. Now the form has some extra options added, which allows people to be more specific. I don't know if the change happened because of my case, but the timing is interesting.
Anyway, my Haunted House spread has been removed from Pinterest. I wanna say thanks to everybody who came into this thread and offered ideas and advice.
It was all helpful, and it was great to hear other people's points of view and perspectives.danieljuk
oh that is great news metafizzypop! I have tried to contact them twice in the past, once about some art that was sharing without the artists permission (I talked about in my much older post in the thread) and another time there was a worm going around the site and people were getting hacked all over the place and then boards / images would be posted without the person knowing. I contacted them to ask them how this was happening. They didn't reply to either problem and the second time their webform just would die during the process and never complete I actually stopped using them for ages because I didn't trust them anymore! This makes me feel happier towards them now
That is great they replied to you, are taking it seriously and have removed your tarot spread They seem to be taking complaints more seriously now. Great result 
I actually stopped using them for ages because I didn't trust them anymore! This makes me feel happier towards them now That is great they replied to you, are taking it seriously and have removed your tarot spread
They seem to be taking complaints more seriously now. Great result Metafizzypop
Hi there danieljuk. And thanks for your support. Sorry to hear you had trouble getting answers from Pinterest. But there may have been reasons for it. In the case of the artist whose work was being shared without permission -- Pinterest won't do anything unless they hear from the artist herself. Still, it would have been only decent of them to get back to you. They should have answered about the other problem, too. But if it's any consolation, you probably weren't the only one having tech issues with the site.
I think they've gotten their act together though. They had to, if only because they've become an enormous site.
I think it's safe for you to go back to Pinterest, lol. They seem to have gotten better at dealing with issues that come up. Even a seemingly minor thing like a tarot spread. They took it seriously and handled the problem well.
I think they've gotten their act together though. They had to, if only because they've become an enormous site.
I think it's safe for you to go back to Pinterest, lol. They seem to have gotten better at dealing with issues that come up. Even a seemingly minor thing like a tarot spread. They took it seriously and handled the problem well.
Achlys
Quite frankly, if you post it on a public domain such as the internet, then it's free for anyone to use. You can't really claim royalties or anything similar unless you own a copyright for it, which as gar as I understand, you do not.
If it's on sites like pinterest, it's not like that person is making money off of it either, so I don't understand feeling "cheated"
A lot of spreads are similar. There's really only so many patterns and ways cards can be arranged that I don't think anyone owns one particular spread. Even spreads that have been published in things like LWBs are copied and have many variations and no one is able to go after those people for infringement.
I wouldn't take it so personally. It's not being used in a harmful way and you shouldn't make spreads looking for credit. Just be happy that it's being used for others to use and learn from.
If it's on sites like pinterest, it's not like that person is making money off of it either, so I don't understand feeling "cheated"
A lot of spreads are similar. There's really only so many patterns and ways cards can be arranged that I don't think anyone owns one particular spread. Even spreads that have been published in things like LWBs are copied and have many variations and no one is able to go after those people for infringement.
I wouldn't take it so personally. It's not being used in a harmful way and you shouldn't make spreads looking for credit. Just be happy that it's being used for others to use and learn from.
Metafizzypop
Hi there Achlys. Thanks for sharing your views. But the views of the people at Pinterest were very different, and they handled things as they thought best.
I can't say I understand where you heard this. All intellectual property regardless of where it appears has a creator and, by extension, an owner. People can and have been sued for large amounts of money for not taking this into account.
All I can say is, be careful about what you use on the net. Because if you're not, the possibility does exist that something will come back to bite you in the tushy. It happens.
I can't say I understand where you heard this. All intellectual property regardless of where it appears has a creator and, by extension, an owner. People can and have been sued for large amounts of money for not taking this into account.
All I can say is, be careful about what you use on the net. Because if you're not, the possibility does exist that something will come back to bite you in the tushy. It happens.
Zephyros
All that you say is true, and I supported your cause but I still think it is somewhat of a shame. I mean, now that you've won, what will you do? Nobody can see or use your spread now. Am I the only one who finds that sad?
Metafizzypop
Sad? I don't think that people would be deprived of something major if they couldn't find this spread, lol.
Actually, the spread is still available in a number of places. It's right here in the AT Tarot Spreads forum. It'll come up on a search for Haunted House or Halloween. Also, the spread exists on other sites outside AT. Sometimes the spread was used by permission, and sometimes it was not.
Several AT members' Halloween spreads (including mine) are being used without permission and without credit on this site:
http://thatstotallytarot.com/halloween-spreads/
Actually, the spread is still available in a number of places. It's right here in the AT Tarot Spreads forum. It'll come up on a search for Haunted House or Halloween. Also, the spread exists on other sites outside AT. Sometimes the spread was used by permission, and sometimes it was not.
Several AT members' Halloween spreads (including mine) are being used without permission and without credit on this site:
http://thatstotallytarot.com/halloween-spreads/
Achlys
Posting something online doesn't grant you copyright protection. In order to have exclusive rights to something you post on a publicly viewable forum, you would need to own a copyright for it. Otherwise you are tacitly granting permission for anyone to use it and while pinterest may have taken it down, if anything that was more out of courtesy rather than necessity. Js.
If you don't want people posting or using things and not giving you credit, don't post it publicly.
If you don't want people posting or using things and not giving you credit, don't post it publicly.
Laura Borealis
You are incorrect. Understandably so, as there is a lot of misinformation about copyright. Here are a couple of links that can help you understand.
http://www.teachingcopyright.org/handout/copyright-faq
http://www.llrx.com/features/bloggersbeware.htm
