Here is an interesting discussion at Quilting Business of copyright that I stumbled on (please don’t ask how). It points out two things: how copyright law has effects in nearly all areas of business and; how uninformed most of the public is about copyright, even after dilligently attempting to learn about it.
I’ve had a number of questions from readers about selling the quilts they make and copyright issues. These questions generally fall into two categories:
- Can I sell a quilt I make from fabric that has licensed images (i.e. Disney, NASCAR, etc.)?
- Can I sell a quilt I make from a pattern I purchase that is copyrighted
Although the author poked around in a few places looking for answers, he never got to the right ones because he didn’t do the things he should have done. He didn’t ever read the actual copyright laws (U.S. Code Title 17) and he didn’t contact an attorney specializing in copyright law for an opinion (I am now taking on new clients!). I might circleback around and answer these two questions soon, but I thought it was more interesting for pointing out how the general public thinks of copyright than the actual answers.
Filed under: Copyright
i would say the answer is yes to both question, at least under uk copyright law. i am not sure of the position under u.s copyright law. independent creation is a defence in copyright law and in this case there seems to be originality in the intellectual creation. so go ahead, make the fabirc and sell it. although not very clear on the u.s position, i would think it should be fine unless the approach in u.s is very “barbaric in copyright”.