Re: [DIYbio] Fwd: 3D printing & intellectual property rights - So why are we bothering with GPL,CC etc licenses?

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Pretty fascinating look at the issue. This one hit me lately when
someone ripped off Dremelfuge for a derivative and didn't even offer
attribution, let alone respecting the share-alike provision.

As he must have used my (copyrighted and licensed) design files,
whether STL or SCAD, to make a derivative design file prior to
offering a "compiled" model for sale, Copyright suggests that the
derived file should inherit the copyright license and be offered
CC-BY-SA.. but as he isn't publishing the design file, but rather the
finished model, it would seem not to apply.

Shapeways seem to take this view, and although they'd rather s/he
respect my *wishes*, they don't feel that models are copyrightable or
licenseable. Or, that's their official
we-don't-want-to-have-to-deal-with-DMCA stance, at any rate.

I have no love of intellectual property as it currently exists, but
the maintenance of code and creative commons requires some form of
community management (according to the findings of the original
"tragedy of the commons" work, unmanaged commons generally collapse),
and the preferred form of management in place is CopyLeft. For
Copyleft to work, and the Commons to be maintained in a healthy state,
it currently requires something resembling Copyright.

It was on this basis that the Free Software Foundation appealed to the
EU Pirate Parties to revise their stance on Copyright abolitionism,
because the abolition of Copyright would allow unfettered abuse of the
Copyleft code commons. Based on that advice, the EU Pirate Parties
instead support total replacement of Copyright with far more limited
and contextual Copyrights based on registration and re-registration by
the owner, instead of the life+70 years nonsense we currently suffer.

Likewise, the absence of Copyright on models would seem to be a
freetard's dream, but in reality it's an invitation for abuse (which
I've already experienced). Patents are still possible on the designs,
even if artistic: Design patents are evidence of that. And the
unfortunate reality is that without a default protection such as
Copyright, many will choose to enforce Patents upon their work,
ruining the possibility of a healthy commons even further.

On 02/26/2013 08:46 AM, Bryan Bishop wrote:
>
> From: Michael@Oz <oz.at.michael@gmail.com
> <mailto:oz.at.michael@gmail.com>> Date: Mon, Feb 25, 2013 at 11:08
> PM Subject: [thingiverse] 3D printing & intellectual property
> rights - So why are we bothering with GPL,CC etc licenses? To:
> thingiverse@googlegroups.com <mailto:thingiverse@googlegroups.com>
>
>
> I came across the following and thought a precis may be handy.
>
> It implies much of what is on the 'verse is not copyrightable
> (apart from the artistic stuff), just useful articles. It would
> even be questionable whether scad programs are copyright.
>
> So are the licensing aspects bogus? I started out thinking so, but
> read on...
>
> http://www.publicknowledge.org/Copyright-3DPrinting
>
> /"In a practical sense, copyrights and patents are mutually
> exclusive. If you have a useful article you cannot protect it with
> a copyright. Conversely, you will not be issued a patent on an
> artistic work.^[9]
> <http://www.publicknowledge.org/Copyright-3DPrinting#_ftn9> That
> means that if something is eligible for patent protection – even if
> it does not have patent protection – it cannot be protected by
> copyright. This dichotomy is part of the reason why most of the
> physical world is not protected by any type of intellectual
> property. Most physical objects serve some utilitarian function,
> which means that they are not eligible for >copyright
> protection."/
>
> /"As 3D printing and modeling grow in popularity, it is likely that
> we will see more companies and individuals assuming they have a
> copyright for a design or object and demanding removal of
> unauthorized versions. While most modern songs, movies, and
> pictures are protected by copyright, the same cannot be said for
> physical objects. For that reason, when a site receives a takedown
> request it may be wise to at least consider if the object is
> protected by copyright in the first place."/
>
> "/For 3D printing, this digital form is often that of an .stl
> file.^<http://www.publicknowledge.org/Copyright-3DPrinting#_ftn43>
> These files can be thought of as the object equivalent of a .pdf
> file – they are more or less universally printable by 3D printers
> and allow objects to be transferred digitally around the
> world.^<http://www.publicknowledge.org/Copyright-3DPrinting#_ftn44>But
>
>
are they protected by copyright? And if they are protected by copyright,
> what does that mean? /
>
> /.Stl files are certainly protect able by copyright. Copyright law
> specifically mentions "maps, globes, charts, diagrams, models, and
> technical drawings, including architectural plans" as included
> within the scope of works eligible for
> protection.^<http://www.publicknowledge.org/Copyright-3DPrinting#_ftn45>
>
>
However, that does not automatically mean that every design file for a
> physical object is actually protected by copyright. /
>
> //
>
> /After all, if a given diagram is the only practical way to
> virtually represent a physical object, a copyright on that diagram
> would prevent anyone from making any virtual versions of the
> object.^<http://www.publicknowledge.org/Copyright-3DPrinting#_ftn46>
>
>
This would give the holder of that copyright a great deal of control
> over the distribution and manufacture of the object itself. /
>
> /In order to avoid this outcome, copyright law limits the
> copyrightability of these types of works"
>
> "Furthermore, even if the design file is protected by copyright,
> creating a physical version will not infringe on any copyright
> that exists in the file. No copyright on the design of a useful
> object extends copyright protection to the object itself."
> ..."//Furthermore, there is some indication that copying a file of
> a useful object protected by copyright for the purposes of creating
> the useful object is not copyright infringement."
>
> /
>
> /"One way to avoid some of these thorny copyright questions is by
> distributing objects and designs with permissive licenses such as
> those provided by Creative Commons.Unfortunately this solution can
> break down when applied to physical objects beyond the scope of
> copyright. To put it simply, you cannot license what you do not
> have."/
>
> /"All of that being said, licensing of noncopyrightable files can
> serve at least two useful purposes – one legal and one cultural./
>
> //
>
> /"The legal purpose is something of a hedge against future legal
> change. As detailed in this paper, there are many open questions
> surrounding just what types (and parts) of objects are and are not
> protectable by copyright. Granting a license today means that the
> usage conditions of the object are clear no matter how copyright
> law evolves in the future. As long as the creator does not believe
> that merely granting the license gives them the right to control
> non-copyrightable parts of the work, there is little downside to
> futureproofing the status of the object./
>
> //
>
> /The second, cultural, purpose is probably the more important one.
> Licensing can be an important signaling device even when it is not
> legally enforceable. Attaching a Creative Commons license is a
> signal that the creator wants to include her work in an
> ever-expanding and evolving network of creativity. It gives the
> rest of the community confidence that they can build on the
> object."/
>
> / /
>
>
> ^<http://www.publicknowledge.org/Copyright-3DPrinting#_ftn55>
>
> -- -- Go visit thingiverse at http://thingiverse.com and stay tuned
> to the blog at http://blog.thingiverse.com.
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