(no subject)
I've have had a hard time posting to my journal as of late. Any of you who read my journal know that postings are few and far between. I guess the reason is that I just don't feel the need to go on at length about my personal life. I don't feel less stressful or a "release" by writing about my life. It's not that I don't enjoy reading about other's lives...nor do I have anything against such writing. It just doesn't seem to work for me. I do, however, enjoy writing. I currently write game reviews for a few websites and I think I would like to do some writing in my journal. So, from now on I think I'll use this space for writing articles, news, stories, etc. I'll hide the larger pieces behind links for your convenience. Lastly, if I DO feel the need to talk about my personal life I'll do that too! After all...it is my journal. :)
Anyway, below is a link to me rambling about Marvel...
What do most think of when they hear the word Marvel? Five years ago it would have been comics...today it's Hulk, Spiderman, or Daredevil. This is because, for the last few years, Marvel has been branching out into other forms of entertainment...and why not? Translating our favorite comic book heroes to the big screen is a realistic and logical progression. With today's technology we can finally pull off on the screen, what artists have been doing on paper for decades. So what's the problem?
Before I go on let me tell you about a computer game called Freedom Force. FF is an action/strategy title from Irrational Games. The basis of the game is that you control super heroes from the "Golden Age" of comics. For you non-comic types this would be circa 1960's. Perhaps the best part of FF is it's multiplayer features. You can build your own super heroes and send them out on the Internet to kick some ass. The game ships with many original hero skins, but will also let you create your own and import them in. You could even take a picture of yourself and Photoshop it into the game. Since the game only ships with "generic" skins, people immediately started making "real" hero skins like Spiderman, Hulk, and Daredevil. One person in particular runs a site called The Skindex. The Skindex is a community site that features character skins for Freedom Force, The Sims, and Unreal Tournament. Skins are submitted by artists and are available to anyone who wants to download them. Many of the skins are original but many are also heroes from the Marvel and DC universes. None of the skins cost money and there are no banners on the site.
On June 9th Jared Benson, owner of The Skindex, received a letter from Marvel demanding he remove all Marvel intellectual property from his site. The letter can be read in its entirety here. Apparently, Marvel thinks that publicly posting a digital drawing of is a violation of The Copyright Act. Never mind that people have been publicly posting their drawings in some form since the beginning of time. The simple fact that people have taken time to create these skins should be considered the highest form of flattery. So what happened? Why did Marvel, seemingly overnight, mutate into the beast known as MARVEL ENTERPRISES, INC.? The answer is money...having allot of it to be exact.
See, up until recently Marvel was in bad shape. The comic book business hasn't really been the same since the 60's. People just don't buy many comics anymore. There are too many other things that give us immediate gratification...and interaction. Things like game consoles, computers, and the Internet. For the longest time Marvel courted it's main fan base (comic book lovers and grassroots communities) to sustain sales. If we wanted to post and share art it was no problem. It was a show of respect for the company and increased interest in Marvel comics. Today Marvel pulls in so much cash from movie, toy, and video game royalties they no longer need to cater to the old fan base. The very fans that made and kept the company alive from the beginning are now getting the shaft. Today's Marvel doesn't care that there is little difference between uploading a drawn picture and a FF skin. It is so much easier to just call out the lawyers.
The solution to this problem is fairly straightforward. Marvel needs to do some research on how to properly protect their intellectual property without alienating the artistic community. How hard would it have been to work with The Skindex to ensure that any submitted Marvel skins are noted to be the sole property of Marvel? Better yet, set up a partnership with Irrational Games and officially add Marvel Skins to Freedom Force. Why not? It would benefit Marvel, Irrational Games, and the gaming community. As fans we need to make Marvel aware that we won't tolerate a heavy hand. Consumers have always had this power and it's important that we use it. Your money and business is a direct line to the top. Every toy and ticket you don't buy is a reminder to them that throwing lawyers at the community is not a solution.
Anyway, below is a link to me rambling about Marvel...
What do most think of when they hear the word Marvel? Five years ago it would have been comics...today it's Hulk, Spiderman, or Daredevil. This is because, for the last few years, Marvel has been branching out into other forms of entertainment...and why not? Translating our favorite comic book heroes to the big screen is a realistic and logical progression. With today's technology we can finally pull off on the screen, what artists have been doing on paper for decades. So what's the problem?
Before I go on let me tell you about a computer game called Freedom Force. FF is an action/strategy title from Irrational Games. The basis of the game is that you control super heroes from the "Golden Age" of comics. For you non-comic types this would be circa 1960's. Perhaps the best part of FF is it's multiplayer features. You can build your own super heroes and send them out on the Internet to kick some ass. The game ships with many original hero skins, but will also let you create your own and import them in. You could even take a picture of yourself and Photoshop it into the game. Since the game only ships with "generic" skins, people immediately started making "real" hero skins like Spiderman, Hulk, and Daredevil. One person in particular runs a site called The Skindex. The Skindex is a community site that features character skins for Freedom Force, The Sims, and Unreal Tournament. Skins are submitted by artists and are available to anyone who wants to download them. Many of the skins are original but many are also heroes from the Marvel and DC universes. None of the skins cost money and there are no banners on the site.
On June 9th Jared Benson, owner of The Skindex, received a letter from Marvel demanding he remove all Marvel intellectual property from his site. The letter can be read in its entirety here. Apparently, Marvel thinks that publicly posting a digital drawing of is a violation of The Copyright Act. Never mind that people have been publicly posting their drawings in some form since the beginning of time. The simple fact that people have taken time to create these skins should be considered the highest form of flattery. So what happened? Why did Marvel, seemingly overnight, mutate into the beast known as MARVEL ENTERPRISES, INC.? The answer is money...having allot of it to be exact.
See, up until recently Marvel was in bad shape. The comic book business hasn't really been the same since the 60's. People just don't buy many comics anymore. There are too many other things that give us immediate gratification...and interaction. Things like game consoles, computers, and the Internet. For the longest time Marvel courted it's main fan base (comic book lovers and grassroots communities) to sustain sales. If we wanted to post and share art it was no problem. It was a show of respect for the company and increased interest in Marvel comics. Today Marvel pulls in so much cash from movie, toy, and video game royalties they no longer need to cater to the old fan base. The very fans that made and kept the company alive from the beginning are now getting the shaft. Today's Marvel doesn't care that there is little difference between uploading a drawn picture and a FF skin. It is so much easier to just call out the lawyers.
The solution to this problem is fairly straightforward. Marvel needs to do some research on how to properly protect their intellectual property without alienating the artistic community. How hard would it have been to work with The Skindex to ensure that any submitted Marvel skins are noted to be the sole property of Marvel? Better yet, set up a partnership with Irrational Games and officially add Marvel Skins to Freedom Force. Why not? It would benefit Marvel, Irrational Games, and the gaming community. As fans we need to make Marvel aware that we won't tolerate a heavy hand. Consumers have always had this power and it's important that we use it. Your money and business is a direct line to the top. Every toy and ticket you don't buy is a reminder to them that throwing lawyers at the community is not a solution.