question... Princess Fraud

[DisneyJules]

I will tell you the same thing I told my daughter when she was younger.

There is reporting and there is tattle telling. Reporting is when someone is going to be hurt. Tattle telling is when someone will not be hurt. Unless someone is going to be hurt or already was hurt, you need to stay out of it.

First off Disney is not a "someone", they are a corporation. Secondly they will not be hurt with this situation (physically or financially).

No one likes a tattler so I am going to have to say MYOB.

I totally agree with this. I think people get something out of tattle telling.

 

[Shmily1]

I am not seeing where anybody said because it is a big corporation, it is perfectly fine. And walking out of a store with a coat that was meant for profit is different.

What I have seen said is that Disney has a huge legal team that explores copyright infringements. They prioritize what is important to go after.

Speeding 5 miles over the limit is against the law. But police don't usually pull you over for going 5 miles over the speed limit.

Reporting a Disney Princess infraction to Disney, while technically illegal, is about the same as sitting on the street corner and calling the cops when somebody goes 5 mph over the speed limit. Not a priority.

Stealing a coat is a whole 'nuther ball game.

No, really, it isn't. It's stealing a product, whether it is a coat or a copyrighted look. That's the point of being copyrighted. The artist /company that has the copyright legally owns it. It is theirs. If you use it, then they should have either asked and been granted permission or pay the owner for the use. Just like if you want to use the coat, you either get permission to use it or pay the owner for use. Stealing is stealing no matter what the item is.

BTW OP, I've reported some before myself. Looking out for other's interest is a good thing, which is not what I'm getting from most of the other's posts, but I guess if you see someone taking things from their houses, "stealing" there too, don't worry about reporting that either. They won't mind.

 

[Granny square]

Attempting to make a profit posing as a DISNEY character or making signs to draw people into your establishment with DISNEY characters , without Disney's permission is stealing . Just as sure as grabbing a new shirt off the rack and stuffing it into your coat then walking out of Macys . Of course I am hearing on this thread that it's OK because Macys is a big corporation and it won't hurt them.

And speeding is breaking the law. Any speeding. Do you call in every speeder you see? Do you ever speed?

There are laws being broken all around us all the time. So the question is do you ONLY care if it is a corporation esp disney? Or do you reports all laws you see broken.

Chances are you don't and you have a rationalization of why it is ok not to. No different than those here who believe that this is not worth reporting.

 

[Hrhpd]

No, really, it isn't. It's stealing a product, whether it is a coat or a copyrighted look. That's the point of being copyrighted. The artist /company that has the copyright legally owns it. It is theirs. If you use it, then they should have either asked and been granted permission or pay the owner for the use. Just like if you want to use the coat, you either get permission to use it or pay the owner for use. Stealing is stealing no matter what the item is.

BTW OP, I've reported some before myself. Looking out for other's interest is a good thing, which is not what I'm getting from most of the other's posts, but I guess if you see someone taking things from their houses, "stealing" there too, don't worry about reporting that either. They won't mind.

If it makes you feel better, go ahead and report the Princess parties.

I disagree it is the same as stealing from a house. As I said, in my opinion, it is more along the minor lines of going 5 miles over the speed limit. Technically illegal, but not taking away profits from a business, since the business does not provide the service.

If I saw somebody shoplifting out of a Disney store, that would be stealing and I would be reporting. A princess party, I agree with others that is more along the lines of tattling.

To each their own.

 

[Shmily1]

If it makes you feel better, go ahead and report the Princess parties.

I disagree it is the same as stealing from a house. As I said, in my opinion, it is more along the minor lines of going 5 miles over the speed limit. Technically illegal, but not taking away profits from a business, since the business does not provide the service.

To each their own.

It does make me feel better and I will continue to do so even though they are not party princesses but the likeness of Disney characters that I have reported. I was taught that wrong is wrong and stealing is stealing, no matter what the item or if they are making money or not. It's not theirs to use no matter how they are making money.

 

[sam_gordon]

It does make me feel better and I will continue to do so even though they are not party princesses but the likeness of Disney characters that I have reported. I was taught that wrong is wrong and stealing is stealing, no matter what the item or if they are making money or not. It's not theirs to use no matter how they are making money.

I'm also curious, do you call and report speeders doing 5mph over the speed limit? After all, "wrong is wrong".

Sent from my Kindle Fire using DISBoards

 

[Granny square]

I'm also curious, do you call and report speeders doing 5mph over the speed limit? After all, "wrong is wrong". Sent from my Kindle Fire using DISBoards

Or go 5 miles over. Photocopy something copyrighted, or jaywalk, have a drink before 21, no wear a seatbelt, or whatever.

 

[Hrhpd]

It does make me feel better and I will continue to do so even though they are not party princesses but the likeness of Disney characters that I have reported. I was taught that wrong is wrong and stealing is stealing, no matter what the item or if they are making money or not. It's not theirs to use no matter how they are making money.

Has Disney ever prosecuted on any of your tips?

You have your Disney Travel Agency linked to your profile. When you click your screen name and then click "go to Shmily1's homepage," it brings you to a travel agency.

Not sure, but pretty sure this might be against DIS policies as the DIS is sponsored by its own travel agency.

Should we report you? It is, after all, stealing business from Dreams Unlimited.

 

[Tozzie]

I can not believe how rediculous this thread has gotten. Infringing on a copy right or using a trademark is not even in the same universe as shoplifting or burglary. The copyright and trademark infringement are not crriminal acts . You cant compare the two so please stop with the nonsense of trying to compare them.

 

[Shmily1]

I'm also curious, do you call and report speeders doing 5mph over the speed limit? After all, "wrong is wrong".

Sent from my Kindle Fire using DISBoards

If I had a way to tell someone was going 5 over, I might. Why not come up with something comparable if you want to get all out of whack about the OP asking about reporting it? That's not even something a common person would know.

 

[Hrhpd]

If I had a way to tell someone was going 5 over, I might. Why not come up with something comparable if you want to get all out of whack about the OP asking about reporting it? That's not even something a common person would know.

I did. See above.

You have a Disney travel agency linked to your profile, which I believe is in violation of DIS policies. That is competing and taking away business from the DIS travel agency Dreams Unlimited.

You have a link. Wrong is wrong.

7. ADVERTISING
The advertisers/sponsors who you see on the DIS are carefully chosen. While we welcome discussion of them as well as other businesses that you have information or questions about, if it's determined that you are using the DIS to promote a commercial venture, you will lose your posting privileges. This includes choosing a username that refers to your business, organization, or website. In addition, links to the company's website will be blocked. Also note that we do not want the boards to be used for solicitations or for requesting referrals. Requests for advertising can be directed to Corey@wdwinfo.com for consideration.

10. LINKS TO OTHER SITES
You are welcome to link to your web site on our boards provided that a) you are not promoting a commercial service or for-profit venture, b) you don't post primarily to promote your site and c) that you place a return link on the home page of your web site. Before posting a link to another site, we ask that you please first check to see if the same information is available on www.wdwinfo.com.

Links in your signature to other websites must be in plain text, as in this example: (www.myexample.com). Any bolding or embellishment will be considered advertising, and is not permitted. For more information on advertising in the signature area click here.

 

[kmb584]

Most kids won't ever get to experience WDW, so if the 4-year-old down the block wants an Ariel ("Sea Princess") knockoff at her party, who am I to judge? Or run yelling to Disney's legal department that "I found one, I found one!"? Sheesh.

 

[msjprincess]

If I had a way to tell someone was going 5 over, I might. Why not come up with something comparable if you want to get all out of whack about the OP asking about reporting it? That's not even something a common person would know.

If I'm going the speed limit and someone passes me I can figure out that they are going over the speed limit. It's not rocket science.

 

[TLSnell1981]

I seriously doubt Disney cares...not worth the time, trouble or fees. A character party means $$$$ in their pocket. I'd wager, that a Princess party includes, dresses, tiaras, goodie bags, paper goods decorations, etc. I think, it's a win-win for everyone involved.

 

[The DIS Moderator Team]

Please remember to be respectful of others if you are going to continue participating in this thread.

Thanks.

 

[Granny square]

I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to be disrespectful. I was just trying to say we all make judgments on what is important enough to let go and that we all inadvertently or intentionally break a law on occasion.

Didn't mean to be offensive.

 

[Airship Ariadne]

Sorry, late to the party, but I am giggling over the idea of "Princess Fraud"... "Be sure to look for the official Disney hologram to make sure your Princess is authentic!"

It is wrong to try to make money off the characters, but would I go as far as calling Disney myself to report someone...nope. Not my fight. At most all Disney will do is send a C&D letter, probably won't even follow-up.

Trouble is these days, there are so many fandoms that people like to honor, and so many corporate owners that want to squeeze every stone dry.

I knew a lady that had an online store...her store name included the word "Mithril" that was invented by Tolkien ...and of course after a few years got a C&D letter...I don't think anyone confused that word in her store name as being official sanctioning, just as a life-long fan making an allusion to the source...but technically, she didn't have any legal leg to stand on and changed the name.

Disney, Chris Tolkien, and Prince are the three most aggressive at protecting their intellectual property.

 

[bcla]

I really don't see much of an issue. Most of the Disney movies were taken straight from published fairytales.

Typically characters that were in the public domain.

However, Disney has licensed stories and characters from living people as well as the estates of creators that hold the copyright. The estate of Edgar Rice Burroughs licensed Tarzan and John Carter to Disney. They've licensed a ton of characters, including Winnie the Pooh, Alice, Bambi, Dumbo, Lady and the Tramp, Peter Pan, Mary Poppins (wasn't there a movie about that?), The Lone Ranger, Mr. Toad, etc.

And even then there have been disagreements about royalties.

https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20070219/015211.shtml

For a character in the public domain, I'm not sure what Disney could do unless there's something totally blatant, including names and color schemes.

I recently took my kid to a birthday party with a mermaid theme. The house was decorated with all sorts of nautical stuff, including some licensed Disney party favors. They rented a jumping room with a licensed pattern of The Little Mermaid from Disney. However, they "mermaid" they hired to tell stories, make balloon animals, and paint faces was wearing a generic costume and nothing that could be traced to Disney.

 

[Burnedout]

I'm not sure on the percentage with something like this but a pattern only needs to be changed 20% to be called ones own. So slight variations may be all it takes to go from illegal to legal.

 

[Disneychick75]

Sorry, late to the party, but I am giggling over the idea of "Princess Fraud"... "Be sure to look for the official Disney hologram to make sure your Princess is authentic!"

It is wrong to try to make money off the characters, but would I go as far as calling Disney myself to report someone...nope. Not my fight. At most all Disney will do is send a C&D letter, probably won't even follow-up.

Trouble is these days, there are so many fandoms that people like to honor, and so many corporate owners that want to squeeze every stone dry.

I knew a lady that had an online store...her store name included the word "Mithril" that was invented by Tolkien ...and of course after a few years got a C&D letter...I don't think anyone confused that word in her store name as being official sanctioning, just as a life-long fan making an allusion to the source...but technically, she didn't have any legal leg to stand on and changed the name.

Disney, Chris Tolkien, and Prince are the three most aggressive at protecting their intellectual property.

Seeing "Princess Fraud" in your post made me think, hmmm, "Hasn't Disney been perpetuating a fraud?" The women dressed in costume in the parks aren't real princesses.