Law School Exam Hypothetical of the Day

[heidi]

I know that some people believe that if TPTB (the powers that be) ask a fan to stop doing something, the fan(s) in question should immediately stop, no questions asked (except maybe to confirm that the request really came from TPTB and isn't a hoax).

Last week, Hasbro sued the guys who created Scrabulous as a Facebook app, claiming copyright and trademark infringement. So now, there's a lot of irate former Scrabulous users who are calling for a boycott of Hasbro, a return of Scrabulous, etc.

No, the situations aren't completely analogous, but there are similarities - the IP owner is upset about an action they view as infringing and asks the entity they believe infringing to stop and....

Do you think that the Scrabulous creators - who are fans of the Scrabble game (which is protected by copyright and trademark laws), who created something similar and yet with strong and obvious differences - should have removed their game as soon as Hasbro asked them to?

[Poll #1232503]

I'm really curious as to what people who have legal backgrounds would think and do, versus what lay-people would think and do, but I'm not really sure how to ask that in the poll without it getting very unwieldy.

Comments

[gonzai55.livejournal.com]

While I'm in the 'circumstances' camp, I've been working in law offices for 18 years now and I know that, even if you think you're in the right, it's a good idea to cease/take it down until things are sorted out. It shows good faith on your part and limits the damages should things go to heck later.

In the case of Scrabulous, it looks to me like a fairly blatant ripoff of Scrabble. Hasbro shouldn't have left it up that long, but it should have come down the moment Hasbro asked.

[heidi8.livejournal.com]

From my lawyer-perspective, though, taking something that is potentially transformative, without trying to open negotiations first and making the take-down a part of the negotiation process, has the potential to be risky, too. There's very few situations - other than those involving exact copies to which nothing has been added or altered - where the situation can be damaged by waiting twelve or so hours, and getting in touch with the sender of the C&D first.