One Voice

One Voice is the name of the group of SL creators and bloggers who have banded together to raise funds to help Gala Phoenix defray the legal expenses of defending herself against spurious accusations of IP infringement.  Why do I say the accusations are spurious?  Look at this analysis and decide for yourself:

 http://www.flickr.com/photos/51633590@N08/7481992220/in/photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/vixenhair/sets/72157622525738660/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/79811990@N02/7315194390/in/photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/66014889@N04/sets/72157629844412780/with/7319785212/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/66014889@N04/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/8869206@N05/
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7072/7268400044_ce0082b8cf_b.jpg 



Here is a timeline of the whole affair:  Salome’s detailed and timelined posts on the subject:  http://salomesays.com/blog/2012/06/the-curio-skin-scandal/  &  http://salomesays.com/blog/2012/07/curious/

Every content creator is vulnerable to this kind of attack, one that costs income if not entire businesses.

The fundraiser will be the 9th-15th at http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Mesh/92/84/22. I am donating 100% of my proceeds from the sale of this mesh wicker set to the Gala fund:

Look at what you can do with mod skills!

Kimmie Rayna had already cannibalized her Rose Manor to make a matching garage, and now she has done the same with her Americana Cottage.  Yes, cannibalize — she unlinked various parts of the house, copied them, and used them to build the garage.  Compare these pics of the garage with the pic of the Americana in the previous post:

Want to learn to make cool things like this?  Check out the Editing Linked Prims page in this blog!

The Americana Cottage

This is the American version of my mesh house (English cottages do not have front porches) — includes a pool in back.  156 prims for the house and everything linked to it.  It has some very special touches created by my design partner Nacy and me.

I will post a marketplace link when it is listed.

Super Low Prim Mesh Brass Bed Set!

Nacy and I had been wanting to make a brass bed bedroom set for a long time, and we are thrilled with the result!  The linens and brass bed (which are not linked so you can buy just one or the other if you like) together are just 19 prims!

The bed linens have three configurations — covers up, covers down, and sleep under covers.

Comes with a lot of great mesh accessories — fireplace, armoire, bachelor’s chests, blanket chest, two candlestick lamps, a beautiful ginger jar, chair with ottoman, pictures, plant, rug, and more!

More details on the Marketplace here https://marketplace.secondlife.com/p/NEW-Buttercream-Damask-Brass-Bedroom-Mesh-Set-72-Prims/3611291.

The set can be seen by the landing point HERE.

A Sad Tale

On the right is a loveseat I made. On the left is one that has been given out for free across the grid. Go ahead and click (twice) to see details.

Notice anything?  Now I am not saying they are identical because the mesh is not identical.  But under copyright law, that really doesn’t matter.  If someone downloads my mesh, takes it into some 3D program, and changes it a bit — or even changes it a lot — or just makes a copy from scratch — it is still IP infringement. 
A friend was visiting and noticed the two sofas side by side; she suggested I slide one sofa over so they occupied the same space.  I tinted mine yellow so you can see which is which. Here is what they look like:

Amazing, isn’t it? A near perfect match, down to the piping on the cushions and the front of the arms.
In cases like this I often hear people say “Oh that came off the internet, there are tons like that on the internet.”  Well in this case, no there are not.  Here is a search of “leather sofa” : https://www.google.com/search?q=leather+sofa&hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&gbv=2&prmd=imvnsr&source=lnms&tbm=isch&ei=_n6wT8bwMsXY2QX6ytDpCA&sa=X&oi=mode_link&ct=mode&cd=2&ved=0CJABEPwFKAE&biw=1908&bih=1233
If anyone sees a loveseat/sofa that looks like mine, let me know. Because I have never seen one. The loveseats were not “both modeled after the same RL source” because I did not use one.
Am I wrong for saying “I know my work. This is my work.”?  Some think so. What I think: It is wrong to take credit for the work of someone else, and worse to sell or give it away. 
A natural question is, how would you prove something like this in court?  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Substantial_similarity
“Substantial similarity is the standard developed and used by United States courts to determine whether a defendant has infringed the reproduction right of a copyright. The standard arises out of the recognition that the exclusive right to make copies of a work would be meaningless if infringement was limited to making only exact and complete reproductions of a work”  
UPDATE:  After due consideration of the fact that picture of my sofa appeared several times in the mesh forum where the maker of the copied sofa and I post, I am willing to give the benefit of the doubt that the copy may have been subconscious.  Certainly it is a copy, but there is no way to prove intent. I did contact the maker in IM first, and when I never heard back from him, I drew a conclusion about his motives. I don’t think it is an unwarranted conclusion but there remains the possibility of unintentional copying, and so that is the premise under which I will operate. I will not file a DMCA; the maker of the copy can decide the right thing to do.
ETA:  There is someting in Intellectual Property Law called Subconsious Copying; there is also the psychological phenomenon called Cryptomnesia