Comments on: Copyright for copywriters

By: Nigel Nobles@no win no fee

Nigel Nobles@no win no fee — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 04:11:09 +0000

I was also confused about copyrights and how it all works. Your post cleared a lot of the questions I had. I still have one more though. What about articles that you find on article posting sites like ezine and the likes? Can you use them if you give credit to the writer and where the original article came from?

By: Rosemarie Cornacchione

Rosemarie Cornacchione — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 16:45:09 +0000

A really helpful article. Ive had to look more closely at copywriting issues lately and it has been quite daunting but this has helped enormously.

Thank you for this.
Rosemarie

By: Chas Walton

Chas Walton — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 13:41:22 +0000

Thanks Tom, that’s a good summary.

Writers should specify how clients use their work before they pay the bill. Most clients publish straight away, then pay weeks later. That’s fine, but you don’t want to be on the back foot if they don’t pay. They could argue that immediate use was an implied term of the contract, and that breach of copyright doesn’t apply.

My terms contain this line:
“Prior to transfer of copyright, you are granted a licence to copy or transmit the works for the limited purposes of evaluation and comment.”

(A licence is what you give to people to whom you don’t assign copyright.)

Something along those lines makes it absolutely clear that the client will be in breach if they use the work and don’t pay up.

By: Sue Keogh

Sue Keogh — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 15:23:39 +0000

Thanks for this post Tom – I’m in the process of revising my standard contract so this is really useful!
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By: Ben Locker

Ben Locker — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 12:39:08 +0000

I didn’t realise that copyright didn’t pass to the client on payment. Thanks for clearing that up.

I have, however, twice threatened to get copy taken off a website because of non-payment. One person concerned paid up, the other lost his copy – though I didn’t chase it any further as the amount in question didn’t make it worthwhile.
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By: Peter Baruffati

Peter Baruffati — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 17:32:20 +0000

I once used the line “copywriting worth copyrighting” to describe my services but didn’t do a hell of a lot about it when it came to carrying out the sentiments implicit within.
However, there were occasions when I would send ideas to myself by recorded delivery in a sealed envelope with my own signature scrawled across the seals.
When I signed for the letter, that was proof that I received it on a certain date. It remained (unopened) gathering dust until I was satisfied that it was my ideas that needed dusting down and not the envelope.
Ah well. Copywrite to copyright, dust to dust!

By: Helen @ Business Plus Baby

Helen @ Business Plus Baby — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 13:23:37 +0000

Thank you! I was just about to start researching copyright myself, so you’ve saved me a lot of time.

By: Tweets that mention Copyright | UK copyright law for writers | ABC Copywriting blog -- Topsy.com

Wed, 14 Jul 2010 11:20:55 +0000

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Andrew Nattan, Sarah Turner, Tom Albrighton, Claire McCarthy, Christine Cawthorne and others. Christine Cawthorne said: Useful, I had been wondering this very question recently RT @ABC_Copywriting New post: Copyright for copywriters http://goo.gl/fb/Av7VF [...]

By: Andrew Nattan

Andrew Nattan — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 11:10:39 +0000

Thanks Tom!

I’ve had copyright crop up a few times, and I always assumed it just transferred over once payment had been made. I’ll have to bookmark this now, for the next time it pops up.
.-= Andrew Nattan´s last blog ..Five Tweets That Teach You How to be a Writer =-.