Universal's legal action against 11th Hour

POSTED BY: CABridges
UPDATED: Monday, November 13, 2006 09:47
VIEWED: 59280
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BOOMERGOODHEART

Wednesday, October 25, 2006 8:32 AM

What's next? I suppose all the Browncoat groups out there who depend on fan work to raise money for their charities are just SOL, huh? Nice.

I love my country, but I really REALLY hate the corporate politics.

BoomerGoodheart
"I love my Captain."

ARBAS

Wednesday, October 25, 2006 9:29 AM

If this is genuine then the solution is simple - let Universal know that the Browncoat community will completely boycott all Universal products, let the companies that have paid for the merchandise licences know that the Browncoat community will completly boycott their licenced products etc etc etc but before we start talking about that sort of action we have to verify that this is actually from Universals legal people. No point in going off half cocked.

SIMONWHO

Wednesday, October 25, 2006 9:30 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 6ixStringJack:
Jadehand... I like your idealism, but I've been through enough to know that counting on 24 million people boycotting Universal would probably never even happen. You can't even get a national no-gas day organized when gas tops $3.00/gal for the national average.... not to mention the fact that I can't count on many of my friends for anything in the first place.

There is a method we can use as a response to Universal but it's a nuclear option, only to be used to defend ourselves against direct hostile attacks and when we're sure that Universal has no interest in producing a sequel.

I don't even want to mention it because I'm still hopeful this can be resolved sensibly. But if it can't, there are options available to us.

MRT

Wednesday, October 25, 2006 9:46 AM

Posted by Wyyrdo on the OB

Quote:

Lot of panicking going on right now, and rightfully so. After years of the careful and unspoken “we won’t notice fan-made stuff as long as it doesn’t compete with our own merchandise, should we ever get around to making any” attitude from FOX and Universal, a conflict has arisen and a heavy hand is making itself known. No longer will fans get away with their own Serenity logo T-shirts or barely-Photoshopped crewmember designs. It’s not worth the hassle and Universal is well within their rights to block such things, even though in the real world I suspect this will end up costing them a lot in good will and fan backlash.

So, they can take our ship and take our crew and leave us to buy whatever licensed items are left over. But, and this is an important but, they can’t take the ‘verse from us.

I see it as a challenge. Can we move on and create artwork and graphic designs that represent what Serenity means to us without actually referencing the movie or its characters? I think we can.

Let’s make our own crews, our own worlds. The juxtaposition of the old west and space is not copyrighted. Nor are courtesans in futuristic settings, beat up spaceships, pretty captains, crazy telepaths, cliche-breaking funny drama, or even the Papyrus font (well, not the free version, anyway). Don’t make a poster of Mal. Make a poster he’d hang up, instead. Show us the glory and freedom of flying through the black but use your own ship design. Can’t use Blue Sun? Fine. Invent their competitor.

Such designs will not sell as easily as Serenity stuff does, obviously. No built-in advertising, no already-known symbols and catch-phrases. They won’t help promote the show or the movie as well. And for many of us, such creations simply won’t be as satisfying because we fell in love with this ship, with these people.

But I don’t want this recent legal action to mean I’ll never see any more 11th Hour artwork ever again. Running this site I’ve gotten to see the work of many insanely talented people, and I want more. Let’s go find it.

And you know what? I bet it’ll be cooler, funnier, and better than whatever Universal finally produces.

There is a balance here between our shared, and I believe righteous, anger at the way this situation has been handled and the fair and legitimate point that guys out there have paid for the right to produce lisenced goods. For example, the guys at QMX love the 'Verse and have gone about everything above board.

What we and Universal need to do is get some perspective, support the legitimate production of lisenced goods while also encouraging the Signal by allowing artistic spin-offs. We can't blame Universal for protecting their property, but we can be pretty disgusted by the heavy-handed approach they've taken in doing so.

11th Hour has stripped down her shop to its legitimate essentials, and it is now up to us to keep putting dollars both into her hands and into those of the lisence holders as it is through the latter that the message will be carried back to the studio and through the former that the 'Verse will take on new forms. Nothing could be gained by deliberately preventing the BDM going as far into the black (financially) as we can take it, nothing except a lack of a sequel on financial grounds - the only real grounds that we can influence.

Sorry for the diatribe, but there is a lot of (understandable) anger floating around so I have tried to balance it... Let's take the BDM into the black and search out that sequel, but let's do it with 11th Hour, Black Market Beagle and the rest of the shop crews on board!

THATWEIRDGIRL

Wednesday, October 25, 2006 12:07 PM

Why her? There are so many cookie cutter folks out there making tshirts and posters. 11th hour actually creates her art. She makes new pieces simply based upon the original idea. It's good stuff. If there were products for us to buy, we’d do it. These arseholes are robbing us of all products. No way to search Cafe Press, fining 11th Hour, shutting down websites...they're killing us. They're killing the fandom, folks.

This needs to get out. OUtside our world. This needs to be addressed by all fandoms...especially Universal ones. They need to know what's happening. We need to see this on news sites, blogs, movie boards, everywhere.

www.thatweirdgirl.com
---
"...turn right at the corner then skip two blocks...no, SKIP, the hopping-like thing kids do...Why? Why not?"

FIREFLYGAL

Wednesday, October 25, 2006 12:19 PM

Isn't there one Browncoat out there that knows someone high up at Universal? What about Mary Parent, she's a Browncoat. I for one will NOT be buying any of the licensed items. Perhaps we should ALL send Universal a bill for the marketing we did for Serenity and the sales of Firefly (which I know is Fox, but it helped Universal too)

I aim to misbehave!

Firefly items:
For lapel pins and badge holder lanyards
e-mail FireflyGal1@hotmail.com
www.outtotheblack.com
www.cafepress.com/fillies
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www.cafepress.com/mrsquarepeg.com

MAVOURNEEN

Wednesday, October 25, 2006 12:49 PM

After reading the 108 (as of 8:48 AM EST) responses to this same posting over at whedonesque, I am moved to repost this:

The Ballad of Universal

Take my heart
Take my pay
Sue me til the end of day
I don't care, still found my crew
When I helped you then got screwed

Coats of brown
Here and abroad,
Know the sitch, it's on the boards
Burn my site and be greedy,
You can't take my crew from me.

There's no place I can be
Since I helped YOU make money
But you can't take my crew from me.

~Kessa (for 11th Hour and all Browncoats everywhere dealing with this injustice)
Kessa | October 25, 07:41 CET

BROWNCOAT1

Wednesday, October 25, 2006 12:58 PM

11th Hour,

I am so sorry to hear about what Universal is doing to you. Their heavy handed tactics are inexcusable, especially considering all of the hard work you have contributed over the years to keep the story alive.

Please keep us posted as to what is happening in resolving this issue.

I agree w/ Jadehand and others that something must be done. We should all send emails and letters to Universal declaring our outrage over their handling of this issue. Certainly they have the right to protect their property, but a simple C&D order would have been more than sufficient. For them to demand money & threaten legal action is a tactic I would expect of the Alliance, not a studio who asked for (and REWARDED) our efforts in viral marketing of the BDM.

Perhaps we can also start donations for a legal fund if necessary to help 11th Hour protect herself from the legal dogs Universal has set on her.

__________________________________________
Holding the line since December '02!

"May have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one."

Richmond, VA & surrounding area Firefly Fans:

http://tv.groups.yahoo.com/group/richmondbrowncoats/

http://www.richmondbrowncoats.org

FIREFLYGAL

Wednesday, October 25, 2006 1:29 PM

Can someone at least get word to Adam Baldwin or one of the other BDH's who frequent the boards. Maybe one of them would be willing to donate a script or some other items like Adam did and the money can go to 11th hours defense. Our wishes are nice but she needs cashey money and I would hope are BDH's are up for helping us fight.

I aim to misbehave!

Firefly items:
For lapel pins and badge holder lanyards
e-mail FireflyGal1@hotmail.com
www.outtotheblack.com
www.cafepress.com/fillies
www.cafepress.com/mssquarepeg.com
www.cafepress.com/mrsquarepeg.com

BOOMERGOODHEART

Wednesday, October 25, 2006 1:30 PM

Over on the OB, 11thHour has a website listed in her profile ( http://the11thhour.home.att.net/). It's not the CafePress store, it's her own site with free artwork banners. Well, down at the bottom (way down at the bottom)is a PayPal button. I'm under the impression that she put it on there way back when she started, just as a way to help defray website costs. That seems as good a place as any to contribute to a defense fund. Hmmm...might want to wait until she talks to a lawyer, though, and figures out what's what.

BoomerGoodheart
"I love my Captain."

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