Advertising  |  Affiliate revenue sharing  |  Auctions  |  Best Business Tips  |  Blogging  |  Crafts & Hobbies  |  Currency Trading  |  Home Remedies Tips  |  Mesothelioma lung cancer and asbestos  |  Mortgage and refinance |  Pets  |  Web Site design  | 

We would like to thank the local libraries, schools, and universities for recommending students to visit us when doing research on any of our information topics.
 Please check back frequently as new topics are added and current topics are updated daily.

       

Do You Own Your Web Site Design?

Place your TextLink AD here free

 
Web Site design TIPS
 
Information channel:


Your web site has been up for a few months and you are making money hand over foot. While surfing sites one evening, you are shocked to find a competitor using your design. You find out your designer sold them the same design. They must be breaking the law, right? It all depends on whether you own the copyright to your web site design. Many site owners are shocked to find out they do not.

What is Copyright?

Copyright is a method of protection for authors of original works such as literature, computer programs, music, artistic pieces and photographic images. The protection provided by copyright arises under Title 17 of the United States Code. A copyright gives the owner the exclusive right to do or authorize others to: reproduce, prepare derivative works, distribute copies, publicly display and generally use the material that carries the copyright in exchange for something, typically a royalty or fee. The copyright owner often grants this use through a license agreement, but can sell it outright.

Who Can Claim Copyright?

Copyright protection is created IMMEDIATELY upon the creation of a fixed form of the material in question and granted to the person that created the material. For instance, I automatically own the copyright to this article upon completing it. I am not required to file for an official copyright with the US Copyright Office to prove that I am the owner of the content. However, if I want to sue a person for using my article without permission, I must first register it.

What If I Hire Someone To Create A Web Site For Me?

If you hire a person or company to handle the design of your site, the complexities of copyright become a major issue for you. Specifically, the issue of "work for hire" is critical in determining whether you own the design.

"Work for hire" refers to the relationhip between your business and the person creating your web site. If this person is an employee of your business and creates the material within their scope of employment, then your business owns the copyright. However, what happens when the designer is not an employee? In such a situation, the following must occur for the copyright to automatically transfer to you. The work must be specially ordered or commissioned for use as:

It is my opinion that the design of a web site does not fall into any of the above categories. As a result, you do not own the copyright to the design and can do nothing about the fact that one of your competitors is using the design. Obviously, this is not the answer that most site owners want to hear. So, what can you do to protect your business?

When you hire an outside party to design, alter, amend or improve your site, you must have them sign a written contract. The contract must include a clause clearly establishing that the copyright to the material produced is vested with you, not the designer. You should then file the contract with your important documents as some designers "forget" that assigned the copyright to you. Presenting a copy of the contract and noting that it allows for the recovery of attorney's fees usually solves the problem.

The issue of copyright ownership of a web site or aspect of a site pops up often. Finding your design being used on another domain is bad enough, but it can get worse. If you sell your business, the attorney for the party purchasing your business will always ask about the copyright of the site as part of the due diligence process. More than a few business deals have fallen apart when the lack of copyright ownership is discovered. Obtaining copyright at the outset of your business effort will avoid serious problems in the future.

About The Author

Richard Chapo, Esq., is with http://www.sandiegobusinesslawfirm.com offering business law advice to California businesses. This article is for general education purposes and does not address every facet of the subject matter. Nothing in this article creates an attorney-client relationhip.


TODAYS NEWS BY OFFICEJAX FREE ADVERTISING AND AD EXCHANGE SOLUTIONMORE RESOURCES updated Thu. March / 28 / 2024












































































Michelle Belleville  Science@NASA


Design Studies (Minor) | College of Liberal Arts  UNH's College of Liberal Arts


Top 12 B2B Website Design Agencies in 2024  Influencer Marketing Hub













12 Top-Ranked Shopify Web Design Agencies  Influencer Marketing Hub





Top 10 Custom Web Design Agencies  Influencer Marketing Hub



 

People Locator find anyone in the USA

 


Surplus Overstock Jewelry Antiques office cubicles desks workstation tables

Click here to
OfficeJax free ad space available here

 

Find used office equipment in Ohio at www.OfficeJax.Has.It

Find the best fleamarkets at www.FleaMarketWorld.Has.It

Find electric powered vehicles at www.NoGas.Drives.It

 

Free Automatic Link Exchange

Find advertising supplies below wholesale in Akron, Ohio

Akron University of Akron university housing available

domain registration | domain registration | Hunt | Search Engine Services | india online
Text Link Ads

[Back to Top]

 

 

auction news and listings for Akron, Ohio

Akron crafts and hobby news center

Akron currency trading

Akron Ohio pet news

home remedies and tips

Advertising and promotion Akron, Ohio

The Akron blogging news center

Akron Ohio web site design news

Akron Mortgaging and refinancing

  go back

 

server monitor

check web page

HOME | SITE MAP
© 2012 - 2024 All Rights Reserved

Increase pagerank automaticly with HitsSurfer

free page rank checker and seo evaluation tools