Copyright Infringment and Derivative Works
So recently I've been reading Super Junior fanfiction, mostly about Hankyung x Heechul [Hanchul]. There was this one fic that I really liked, which the author claimed to have based on a book. As I couldn't wait for another update, I went to search for the original book itself because she said she didn't really change much of the plot from the original story.
As it turns out, the author hadn't changed much of the original plot. In fact, she hadn't changed anything except the names of the characters. Here is a screen shot of part of the first chapter:
http://img851.imageshack.us/i/fic.jpg/ (if the picture doesn't work)
Here is a screen shot of the same part of the original book:
http://img59.imageshack.us/i/unledgs.png/ (if the picture doesn't work)
Because one screen shot of a certain part of the fic is not sufficient evidence, here is the original work in full (it's a .rar file, please use WinRAR to unzip it):
http://www.mediafire.com/?fb1x18okm3yng3n I didn't upload this, I found the link in a Google search I did when I went looking for the original book.
And THIS is the link to the fic. I will not mention any names, or titles.
I'm not the only one who notices the blatant similarities between the two versions right? And although she put a disclaimer at the beginning of each chapter, I am absolutely certain that this is NOT considered fanfiction. I left a comment on her latest chapter, asking if she knew that this wasn't allowed, and she left an author's note at the end of it stating that she spent hours working on each chapter every day, hence the fast updates, and that she had left a disclaimer stating that she owned nothing. She further stated that she will not update the fic until I responded to her message. I left her a private message on LJ, apologising for having left a public comment about the issue.
Then I did some research.
I live in Australia, so maybe our laws are slightly different, so I made sure to search American laws. Fanfiction is considered a derivative work, which is defined as:
"A typical example of a derivative work received for registration in the Copyright Office is one that is primarily a new work but incorporates some previously published material. This previously published material makes the work a derivative work under the copyright law. To be copyrightable, a derivative work must be different enough from the original to be regarded as a "new work" or must contain a substantial amount of new material. Making minor changes or additions of little substance to a preexisting work will not qualify the work as a new version for copyright purposes. The new material must be original and copyrightable in itself. Titles, short phrases, and format, for example, are not copyrightable."
Basically what it's saying is that a derivative work, in this case fanfiction, uses SOME of the original material, but in essence must be a new, original work in its own right. Simply copying out a story and substituting names is not enough to be a derivative. If it does not have this element of originality, it has breached derivative-work copyright infringement laws.
I am certain that I am in the right here, but I know I could have handled the situation better. I should have approached the author privately first and not left a public comment. For that, I apologise. I left myself logged in because I am not one of those people who do not take responsibility for what they say about others. This post is left unlocked because if people who read that fic and heard what happened want to know my side if the story, they can at least see where I'm coming from.
As it turns out, the author hadn't changed much of the original plot. In fact, she hadn't changed anything except the names of the characters. Here is a screen shot of part of the first chapter:
http://img851.imageshack.us/i/fic.jpg/ (if the picture doesn't work)
Here is a screen shot of the same part of the original book:
http://img59.imageshack.us/i/unledgs.png/ (if the picture doesn't work)
Because one screen shot of a certain part of the fic is not sufficient evidence, here is the original work in full (it's a .rar file, please use WinRAR to unzip it):
http://www.mediafire.com/?fb1x18okm3yng3n I didn't upload this, I found the link in a Google search I did when I went looking for the original book.
And THIS is the link to the fic. I will not mention any names, or titles.
I'm not the only one who notices the blatant similarities between the two versions right? And although she put a disclaimer at the beginning of each chapter, I am absolutely certain that this is NOT considered fanfiction. I left a comment on her latest chapter, asking if she knew that this wasn't allowed, and she left an author's note at the end of it stating that she spent hours working on each chapter every day, hence the fast updates, and that she had left a disclaimer stating that she owned nothing. She further stated that she will not update the fic until I responded to her message. I left her a private message on LJ, apologising for having left a public comment about the issue.
Then I did some research.
I live in Australia, so maybe our laws are slightly different, so I made sure to search American laws. Fanfiction is considered a derivative work, which is defined as:
"A typical example of a derivative work received for registration in the Copyright Office is one that is primarily a new work but incorporates some previously published material. This previously published material makes the work a derivative work under the copyright law. To be copyrightable, a derivative work must be different enough from the original to be regarded as a "new work" or must contain a substantial amount of new material. Making minor changes or additions of little substance to a preexisting work will not qualify the work as a new version for copyright purposes. The new material must be original and copyrightable in itself. Titles, short phrases, and format, for example, are not copyrightable."
Basically what it's saying is that a derivative work, in this case fanfiction, uses SOME of the original material, but in essence must be a new, original work in its own right. Simply copying out a story and substituting names is not enough to be a derivative. If it does not have this element of originality, it has breached derivative-work copyright infringement laws.
I am certain that I am in the right here, but I know I could have handled the situation better. I should have approached the author privately first and not left a public comment. For that, I apologise. I left myself logged in because I am not one of those people who do not take responsibility for what they say about others. This post is left unlocked because if people who read that fic and heard what happened want to know my side if the story, they can at least see where I'm coming from.