So find them and threaten to press charges!

That just... sucks O.o

It IS an honor if they choose your picture, but using it without permission and also getting money for it in return... Crap.
Is there a way to contact the people who done this?

Plumbers?

I'm with Asphyx - Knock 'em dead!

Sounds like a legit case for legal action to be taken to me.

Hit 'em in the wallet

Well, at first I thought that comment on your art was just to anger you....but...

http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/jun.....er+Capris.jsp#

GAAHHHHHH!!!! That is IT! thanks for finding that

Double-check that it really is the exact same picture, though. From the sound of it, it could just be a very similar design -- that's a fairly common type of pose to use for things like that.

I browsed the Kohl's website but couldn't find it there...

http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/jun.....er+Capris.jsp#

Yeah, guyver47's comment with that link showed up after I hit "reply" to post my comment. >_<

I simply wanted to help as well as see the product for myself. I searched Kohl's website for "tiger", and found the item that way.
I'm not really interested in playing "who found the link first", but the time stamp clearly shows my comment was placed 4 minutes before your first comment with a 6 minute interval before the second one. :3

Um, I didn't find the link at all, so I'm not disputing who found it first. >o_0<

I just wanted to make it clear that your comment with the link wasn't on the page when I wrote and posted my comment (probably I needed to refresh the page or something; I was using the Back button a lot), because otherwise it looked like I was so dumb I didn't see a link right above my comment. :p

There. That's now way more time and energy spent explaining this than it ever needed. ;)

I mistook your comment then, I apologize :)

I've seen the pants the picture is on and beyond any question you have a legit case here, and you should be getting serious compensation for it.


DON'T LET THEM GET AWAY WITH IT!

Agree'd

Big companies shouldn't be allowed to steal art just as much as some Chinese guy making knife handles should...

Okay, I posted that comment _before_ the link above showed up. Yeah, that's either the very same image (perhaps with a very tiny modification on the length of the teeth), or they gave someone your pic to "redraw" so they could claim it's an original design.

Prosecute.

In fact here they are on the website, zoom in and you can tell it's definitely your work on there.
http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/jun.....er+Capris.jsp#

Contact Kohls coperate, give them the evidence and they may just pull the line from shelves. Most coperations dont want anything to do with lawsuits.

They've already sold tons of them though. The damage is done. I'd sue for royalty on every pair made, and if they pull the line, every pair sold.

Agreed, and you have precedence for doing that. That's typically what happens. Not only do you get the royalties, but you are entitled to ALL profits as damages. Talk to an attorney. Some will give free consultations.

But never trust a lawyer that does. ^^

This is direct copyright violation. Not just money for profits or damages but it's a $250,000 fine. ANY lawyer would pick this case up in a heart beat. Oh *is drooling* this is soooo sad just so $$$ awesome because it's pure bank if they chase this!

Aim for the throat.

This is going to far!
Obtain Legal help before you contact anyone.
Do it right from step one.

Kill killlllllll

That's just bull.

Yup, I would sue them.

its why i hate humanity. =D

I have better reasons than that to hate humanity.

OMG... O.O

I'm sorry to see this happen to your art :(

Sic 'em, bwah!

You definitely have the evidence to press legal action

Why not contact these people? You could get some green off of this.

Were it me, seeing my design bouncing hypnotically on some bubbly teenage sexpot's ass might be enough. But you could pursue this for your deserved reward.

What would a good Objectivist do?

An Objectivist would do what was within their rights in correlation to their values. It depends on who they are. They may not care and decide not to pursue it, or they may care and decide to pursue it within their rights. I can't speak for all of them. :)

In seriousness, I'd probably drop a note to them. You could send them a DMCA notice, or even just a formal looking copyright notice, make it all official and they'll probably drop the line instead of pay you anything.

Just dropping the line is insufficient if they've already profited from the infringing product, and they should know it. They might hope that other people don't know that, I guess...

Art theft is like goin' ta see Gallager perform... ya want a good seat but ya better bring somethin' ta cover up with!

Oh yeah ya definately got a case with this an I sure as hell wouldn't be so foolish ta use a tiger without his consent... (hell I'd still be wary even WITH his consent heh) ;) I say go fer it!

*gets a front row seat fer this an makes sure ta bring clear plastic ta shield himself from the gore* :P

Ask for money and recognition of your work. I'd definitely talk with some legal expert before you call kohls though. That way you can be fair and firm without being taken advantage of again.

I wish you good luck in getting the money you deserve for your artwork.

This is about the only kind of art theft that pisses me off, the rest of it is just people being people. You need to prosecute them, don't be another ripped off artist who does nothing when this happens.

dude. lawsuit. If not kohls, or the manufacturer, definitely the ass of a designer who put that out ther5e as their design.

What time is it?

Time to sue the pants off them!

Literally!!!!

Muhahahahahahaha...

.....

Seriously... I've seen alot of art theft in the world, but I think this is new......

Sue the /b/tards....

Sue them good!

Wow. For the first time, someone actually has a legit case for stolen art. Go after the mofos, they're makin' moolah of you.

Fucking art thieves!
Go kick their asses, LITERALLY!

Don't give them a chance to pull the line, sue them right from the start since they have already made money from your work!

Ugh. Yeah, Id say sue the pants off of them tho.

Where is your pic with the sabretooth Dustmeat?

http://www.fanarchive.net/Artists/M.....toothtiger.jpg

OH HELL YES sue them.

OBJECTION!!!

I call Mr. Wright to represent you ;)

So what are you going to do? o.o;;

Talk to a lawyer.

If you do nothing, who's to say they won't use your art again? Whoever designed those pants probably collects art they like and who knows how many more or your images, and other artists images, they have on hand to use. Don't be nasty, just be legal. Don't automatically sue either...open a dialog with the people who are in charge of the design, and if they don't pay you any mind, then get legal...because lawsuits cost money and time and annoyance and you don't really want to have to deal with that if you can avoid it and compromise with some settlement instead.

They're a corporation and you're you; they're the ones with the bottomless pockets. Get a dated copy of the illo on hand and anything else that can link the image directly to you, and establish that your copyright preceeds the product line. Then contact the ABA branch for your state and see if you can link up with a copyright lawyer who'll work pro bono (or for whatever you can afford). Ultimately, we're just a bunch of cheerleaders. Get some real legal advice.

Mah two cents.

You know what to do.

Sue, sue sue!

I seen a similar case before on the news where a girl went to a T-shirt print shop to have her collage tunred into a T-shirt image. The T-shirt place kept her art and made more for himself she found out and put a stop to it.

She won a lawsuit against him. Interesting twist to the case it was a collage that featured the copyrighted character "Joe Camel" but it didn't change the outcome since her art was deemed an original made from pices of exsisting art.

In your case this is not pices of your art, it's not a collage just becasue it has the word tiger over it, and it's not parts of art if the only part that's missing is your signature. And it's not similar to your art it is your art right down to the finest details.

So I see a lawsuit win

Art theft is art theft, is art theft. No way around it.

You have evidence, and the ability to show that you're the original artist, you have every right to see you get your just rewards or legal action.

I'm with the the rest of the crowd on this one.

Aw, they're not even nice pants :(

agreed XD

An idea maybe no one else has thought about...

Perhaps some crap artist on DA or somewheres saw your drawing, copied it, and posted it as their own.... and then maybe Kohl's bought it off them.

I would hope so :/ A part of me is thinking that the company won't claim fault for it, and the other artist won't be doing anything besides saying "Oops! I copied that, sorry."

Or, if they can find enough minor differences (I think it's 20% or something) nothing will be done as well, because it would be counted as a "different" work.

E-mail a Kohl's rep... usually they actually have no idea this is going on and it's some "artist" they hired ripping people off so they can have a job.

Well, besides Kohl's selling it, the line/manufacturer is Derek Heart. Even if they do just pull the line to try to keep from paying you, they should still owe you for any pants that have sold :P

Silly clothing people...how stupid can they get? Before contacting Kohl's or DH I'd contact a lawyer to check out the case and to write up any letters that get sent to the companies. That way it'd be all official and documented. (Some lawyers will do things for free if they think they will win the case and just ask for a percentage of the winnings)

I hope it all works out! Good luck!

Haha, you SO are going to have a major retailer on their knees.

HOLY CRAP.

Sue them.

Gotta do someothing hun! Very serious matter here

Oh, and if a major multibillion dollar retailer thinks your art is good enough to sell clothing, when are YOU going to sell it? :>

Excellent point.

More importantly Meg, if you don't sue, you may end up LOSING all right to your artwork and allowing it to become THEIR property.

If you don't fight for your legal rights in North America (especially in the US) then you forfeit them.

That's trademarks, not copyrights.

You obviously haven't read about some of the proposed changes to the copyright laws that Disney and other companies are pursuing then

Hmm. In the US, for now at any rate, your copyright is yours for seventy years after you're *dead* (and presumably can't be expected to defend it). That number used to be fifty, but Disney just put in a lot of effort to make it longer, and it would be weird if they were to try to reverse or do away with that. But then, I haven't heard about these proposals you mention (to make copyright law mirror trademark law?), so I can't say.

God, I hate people :(

you should at least get a free pair of pants....

Err, maybe not those, though. Aside from Meg's tiger, I wouldn't want those specific pants...

If you dont sue em, I will for ya :P This is the meal ticket lol....either that or your foot in the door to some company hiring you on for clothing design.

I say, rip out their jugular. Monetarily-wise, I mean.

Seriously though, spill their perverbial blood. Have no mercy!

Dude. That makes me wonder how many other stolen logos are out there. They may say "Oh no, it's not YOUR picture. See we altered it by putting "TIGER" across it." or some stupid thing like that. Is there a way to show that you drawn this picture before the release of their pants to prove that you didn't copy their logo and then try to sue them? They may try to pull that crap.

Please keep us updated with this! I am very interested in finding out what happens.

Kohl's Department Stores
N56 W17000 Ridgewood Drive
Menomonee Falls, WI 53051

Phone: (262) 703-7000

there's the info to corporate hq.

thanks!

You need anyone that knows how to deal with terrorists and douche bags.

I dunno if you can call this "art theft"... maybe "copyright infringement"... either way, if you can prove that your picture came out beforehand, you can sue them.

I highly suggest that.

As some of the others have suggested, get yourself a lawyer who knows the ins and outs of copyright law, gets all of the evidence on your end to show that your art piece was done before those pants came out and then goes after Kohl and whichever company it was that made the design for those pants.

And I think Style is right when he says that if you don't defend your rights now, Kohl and company might find some way to control the copyright to your art. So, strike back at the bastards.

Wow. They ruined your pic :<

GO GET 'EM!!! Wh, they wouldnt sell them at a high enough price to do you justice anyway. I mean, man if it was like... a huge designer brand I would tell you to get some awsome money off it. Everything from Kohls is always clearanced... But yeah, go and get a lawyer into this and fast.

How the hell do you get plumbing out of a Sabertooth?? Man, teeange girls will wear anything thses days xD

I wouldnt wear something if it said plumbing on it! xD

You're entitled to all profits gained from all items in that line of clothing. I suggest you find yourself a lawyer willing to take them on. You have granted no license to use the image, and they have already sold them.

Good luck!

This is good example of a bad way to be complemented. My sympathies. I would find it hard to figure out what I really wanted and how to get there.

Berbalang may be giving you the best advice. Those who have had similar experiences will probably send you an email or a note.

And do you have a friend-of-a-friend in the clothing industry? This sort of bad business probably comes up in clothing manufacturing all the time. There may be layers of sub-contractors involved.

no, but I have a lawyer to help me :)

Do not contact them directly! Go through a lawyer. You could get exploited and tricked. Even getting a lawyer to contact them isn't fool-proof. There are so many irresponsible lawyers who wouldn't give a stuff about this and only want your money, but they are a "necessary evil" in this case.

Yeah I actually zoomed in then cropped it and placed it over your actual art. It's the piece line for line, stripe for stripe, shade for shade except the ugly wording on top of it.

Wow, pretty scary. =x
~kai

You got an image of that? You know so we can dramatize the proof?

http://www.fanarchive.net/Artists/M.....toothtiger.jpg

No I meant the two images layered over each other that Kuro made.

it's on my other computer at work, i'll email it to the CREATOR (damnit) when i go back on Tuesday...or I can do it tomorrow on this computer. xD
~Kai

I have sent a link to the gif i did to dustmeat in a note. When dusty receives it and leaves me a note back, I'll remove it.

as a victim of art theft myself, and it practically ruined my whole art career, i say HIT'EM WHERE IT HURTS! i'm posting this shit all over the webs. hell i might even pickett outside kohls, lol. no joke, i hate this shit. happens way to much.

I say you go to this company, and get your money out of them! That be your art, not thiers and ye deserve money for it!

Brand seems to be Derek Heart. It seems this is only being offer through Kohl stores too.

If you can get the sales records of how many are sold you can easily initially sue for all thier profits or even thier total revenue. I wouldnt expect to get it, but through a settlement you could get a good chunk of it. Well worth the lawyers fees. If one pair was sold everyday between the day you made the pic and today could easily get up in the 6k range.

The only problem you would have is explaining why you havent sued the Tshirt guy and the knife hilt maker who ripped your art. Though financial impracticality and international barriers could easily explain both.

hawww, i already got 150 people boycotting kohl's. Everybody here should spread this word aroudn through jounrals, and LJ and shit. Make'm pay. Hit the man where it hurts, lol.

Out of curiosity... are these people who normally shop there? Or are they people boycotting a place they don't normally shop at?

no, they are all people who sometimes do shop there. And now i got like 250 or so friend and people i know, and others boycotting as well^^

Make them pay you a hefty price.

That reminds me of a time I was at a small hobby shop and there were T shirts you could color yourself and there was one that was an image Xian Jaguar did that made it to the cover of Gallery. When I pointed it out to her she knew nothing about it. She didn't seem too upset over it, though.

Go after them and hang them by the balls this is such bull they pulled they need a big fat lawsuit.

Wow... there's no doubt in that whatsoever. Every detail, even the stripe patterns perfectly match.

Lawyer... big time!

Those prolific bastards! Sue them into dept and Hades! Don't except any offers, just sue and collect what they owe, with interest for every pair made & sold. Also make sure that you have the originals (dated and all for authenticity) so you can really dangle it in their faces and make it a closed case.

the original was sold on Furbid, but the uploads are date-stamped on the internet as February 24 2006

if the original lacks your signature, then this will be hard. However, you would be able to sue the one that bought the image and sold it off to a corporate company. Which would mean someone is going to get a lot of money from 2 sources.

Unless otherwise stated, I think once an artist sells a piece of artwork, that artwork belongs to said person who bought it for whatever use they want. I don't know if an artist can sell prints if said new owner wants to keep the copyrights. Or do you as an artist have to specifically sell the copyrights to lose them? I'm wondering what the laws say in that matter.

If I buy a Ford Mustang and put it on the cover of a hot rod magazine, can Ford sue me for using their identity? In that case, Ford has every part pattented too. Their logo is Trademarked.

If the original was sold to someone, who then sold the artwork, or gave it away to be used by a company for a product, I don't know if that's a federal or state issue either. Who owns what by law?

The flaw with your saying is having a picture of a product from a mass-producing company put in a magazine which would be sold, but this is about a personal creation turned into a logo and put on a product itself, which is being sold by a company. Just because someone bought a product through an auction doesn't mean they have the right to do as they please with the image, though it would be virtually impossible to stop it if the original wasn't endorsed by the creator. It would be recognized as Copyright infringement if it were the case.

Well, the "logo" is a fictional logo used on a product more like a print than an attempt at a corporate logo.

I guess I wonder... where does the right of the artist end? When it's sold, or forever? Concept of character is different than the copyright, but the artwork itself was sold. The image was placed online. I know "public domain" might be expressed, even though the artist did not claim it was "for the public domain"... I'm no lawyer, I'm not claiming to be. I'm really curious to learn where this leads and learning more about the rights of the artists in this circumstance.

If I sold a commission to Ford, could I keep them from using it for profit, even though they commissioned it from me?

If they personally bought the commission, it was of their own design and not interfered with by a 3rd party, then it belongs to them without attachments.

if you sold the rights to ford you best be raising rates alot more to sell them the rights with it. My Comic book friend has a huge stink over with walmart when he has to get photo copies of his pics done up, yes the pics and characters are owned by DC, but the art is done up by my friend Louis. So overall no matter if you sold the rights you still have rights as the artist, but they are limited rights. You have the right to have this piece in a personal portfolio and display it for others to see.

I have the original. I won it from Meg off of Furbid. I liked it so much I paid extra. :)

As a fellow artist and friend to Meg, I can promise you I did not sell it to anyone. My guess? Someone downloaded it from one of the places it was posted online, and slapped the type on top, and presented it that way. Happens all the time in the graphics field, sadly.

Meg still posesses ALL the rights to the image. She can make prints of it, license the image out, publish the image in a book, put the image on her OWN clothing, anything; it's HER art. I merely bought the original, and I only have the right to display it at my home, if I so choose. I'd have to ask permission for anything else.

Guess who's gonna be rich?

So you're going to sue first? Excellent. You know, after the lawsuit, you will have enough money to start your own line of clothes ... I mean, why not? People obviously like the design.

Just think, no more work - just art and profit 0.0

Oh yes, and might I suggest:

http://www.mandourlaw.com/

They will give you a 30 min free consultation, and they specialize in infringements.

Have fun suing the crap out of those guys!

Furries vs. Mainstream Retailers.... Take 1...
Aaaaand.. ACTION!!


And they always said there's no way to make money in this fandom! Pshaw!

Maaaaan, I hope you have a better chance than I did! It wasn't Kohls for me, it was a chainstore in Australia, though the shirts themselves came out of China. I was in no position to be able to go after them, which sucked, but yes, it totally gives me definition to 'art theft' I agree.

I posted this a while ago on DA, but there's my art on the shirts as they hung in Streetcore's store. http://arphalia.deviantart.com/art/.....hirts-17254601

Yeah, that happened to my Dire Wolf too. What is it with China?

Bleh. I've no idea. What sucks it they did do a decent job at redoing the design, though I wouldn't have used some of the shirt colors they were. ;p

An utter lack of copyright law. >:[ China even makes imitation luxury cars, BMWs and such, that even have interchangable parts. It's craaaazy. Once it leaves China and enters countries WITH copyright laws, it should no longer be legal, though...

China has absolutely no respect for intellectual property laws, and zero enforcement of international copyright law. There's a saying in many industries, "you can sell one of anything to China"...then you see copies of your thing on the shelves. My company is constantly trying to keep them from grabbing and copying stuff. They even had iPhone clones out like a week after the real one was SHOWN, not even released.

China has an entire faux Disney World.
http://www.japanprobe.com/?p=1678

Creepy.
Creeeeeppeeee.

It was actually kinda funny a year or so ago. China made a big deal because an American company stole some of their "intellectual property" by copying something of theirs... (I can't remember if it was a product or a program) and all of the news agencies were kinda laughing at them. "We became a stable economy because we cheated the world. Now that we're actually inventing things on our own you don't have the right to copy OUR stuff!" they tried to claim. Fuck you, China. Fuck you in your cloned ass.
(By the way... Popular Mechanics also had a thing about a Chinese iPhone clone.. which had more functions and worked with multiple providers too. It was actually an improvement over the Apple phone.)

Oh that is so wrong...

Make 'em bleed

you can make a complaint, your material is copyrighted and so contact a lawyer and talk to them, you very well have a legal dispute on your hands,

Some things you will need,
1: proof that YOU created the picture,
2: Date of which you made the design and how it was made
3: proof that the image is copyrighted [if it was posted on FA there is a copyright agreement that is boundto you, contact FA staff for more info about their "user copyright agreement"

sue the living fuck outta them

You need to sue Derek Heart.

Here you go this may help, I do films so I know all about copyrights!



http://www.copyright.gov/title17/ Chapter 13: Protection of Original Designs

http://www.copyright.gov/title17/ Appendix V: Additional Provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act

http://www.copyright.gov/title17/ Chapter 5: Copyright Infringement and Remedies

http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl102.html Fair Use



Have Fun getting paid!!!

Some random thoughts here...

1. It's possible that Derek Heart acted in good faith, and someone else sold them the artwork claiming it as original. That doesn't necessarily mean Derek Heart is free of any responsibility or liability, but...

2. If you are able to convince Derek Heart that the work is yours, just consider the possibility that they might like it enough that they'd be willing to pay real money for more similar works of art to use as clothing logos. There may come a point where it becomes necessary to wave a sword and shout threats, but (see #1 above) don't be too quick to burn your bridges if this is simply a misunderstanding that could be turned into a real opportunity.

3. Do you know who bought, or currently possesses, the original, in case it becomes necessary to produce it as evidence that you are the original creator? (Conceivably they might have something to do with the image being used by Derek Heart, and that angle might be worth investigating, but to start off with let's assume that's probably not the case.)

I have the original. I won it from Meg off of Furbid. I liked it so much I paid extra. :)

As a fellow artist and friend to Meg, I can promise you I did not sell it to anyone. My guess? Someone downloaded it from one of the places it was posted online, and slapped the type on top, and presented it that way. Happens all the time in the graphics field, sadly.

The company that owns the DeRek Heart US Trademark is Global Gold, Inc.

(from uspto.gov:)
Typed Drawing
Word Mark DEREK HEART
Goods and Services IC 025. US 022 039. G & S: men's, women's and children's clothing, namely, tops, hats, belts, socks, bodysuits, leggings, scarves, vests, swimming suits, swim trunks, coverups, shirts, undershirts, tank tops, T-shirts, blouses, sweaters, sweatshirts, sweat pants, skirts, jogging suits, shorts, pants, jeans, dresses, jumpsuits, rompers and jackets. FIRST USE: 19960101. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19960101
Mark Drawing Code (1) TYPED DRAWING
Serial Number 75259946
Filing Date March 19, 1997
Current Filing Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Published for Opposition September 8, 1998
Registration Number 2206519
Registration Date December 1, 1998
Owner (REGISTRANT) Global Gold, Inc. CORPORATION NEW YORK 1410 Broadway New York NEW YORK 10018
Attorney of Record CHARLES P. LAPOLLA
Type of Mark TRADEMARK
Register PRINCIPAL
Affidavit Text SECT 15. SECT 8 (6-YR).
Other Data The mark does not identify a particular living individual.
Live/Dead Indicator LIVE

A phone number is listed here: http://www.manta.com/coms2/dnbcompany_8mj5m4

Yay, my element! :) If you want to do something about it for a reasonable (or free) price, try your state's local Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts. I've done work with the Massachusetts chapter, and it's a wonderful organization for just this sort of situation.

Thanks!

Derek Heart apparel is sold through more than just Kohl's, including MSN's online store. I didn't find the capris with your tiger, but I did find some sweat pants with a different tiger (didn't recognize it.) You're probably going to have to go after Global Gold as ArbitraryPlaid mentioned above.

Good luck with it and please keep us posted.

I'm not a sue-happy individual, but in this case? SUE THEM INTO THE GROUND!

That's...amazing.

Offer to autograph the pants for $20 each at any furcons you go to...

Looks like you've got a few key pieces of solid help in the mass of replies. I'm interested to see what comes of this.

beautiful picture, btw, I <3 tigers :)

I hope you'll keep us updated on how this plays out! Very interesting...

I didn't see anyone suggest this but...

BUY THE PANTS NOW.

Go out and buy them and/or buy them online. You may want to get the physical evidence before they disappear from online. Screen captures from websites don't mean much since it all can be faked quite easily, but a pair of pants with product packaging AND sales receipt is pretty darn hard to deny.

Go buy the pants now.

Heck, when they get pulled, you may have something pretty neat to have as a rare item in any case.

Please keep us posted if you go after them. I really want to see them bleed for stealing from you.
Things like this happening would make me very nervous about ever posting art. If I had any artistic talent that is.

Artic, StormKitt and ArbitraryPlaid have the right idea on this one! Go after the stem of the issue!

I know this sort of thing makes tensions and emotions run high but keep and level head and things will probably work out better!

Good luck hun! (not that you need it X3)

What's great for you is that the sabre is STRIPED in the EXACT same pattern as the one used on the image on the pants so it's IMPOSSIBLE for the clothing designer to say that they came up with this design on their own. Stripes = fingerprint = yours!

I hope you make money off this sudden business venture of yours! Perhaps the clothing designer was going to surprise you? Surprise! We used your art! Here's your check! *grins* You just have to take care of the "here's your check" part...

Good luck!

*hugs*

You're right, of course, but in court the question will be can they prove who stole from whom. You and I know that Dustmeat created the image first, but can they prove that to a judge and/or jury that she did and not the other way around. One would hope that Dustmeat's lawyer is smart enough to know what proof is needed.

Dustmeat might also want to buy a pair of the pants as physical proof of the article of clothing. Though it would suck to patronize Kohl's just to do this. *blehs*

*hugs*

Oh, and make sure you get a copy of the image of those pants as proof. I don't know if you can screen cap the zoomed-in image of the design.

*hugs*

Well anyhow, I'm suer that we'll all be holding onto the seat of our pants wondering how this issue bottoms out. I mean, I'd know that i'd sew have a talk with these people if such a thing happened to me cause I just don't cotton to the idea of someone trying to pocket my works. Mmmhmm, and it looks like you got a group of friends that're tailor-made to help you out with the situation.

At least you're not getting kahki about it, taking things all willy nilly and busting a seam. Besides, I'm sure that if you listen to your lawyer he'll make sure you aren't Shorted. Listen to hem, take things calmly, and I'm sure you and the company can iron things out without taking yourself to the cleaners in some legal battle.

I think you're on the button there. It's a clear-cut case following a great number of existing patterns, and as you say this is a pretty close-knit community. I'm sure the situation can quite easily be selvaged, and the ghastly rip-off merchants will bolt the minute tensions fray.

I take issue with the term "art theft" because it doesn't really mean anything in law. You might get further with the term "copyright violation" which this *really is*, and more to the point you my be entitled to royalties because they appear to be selling a product for money based on your design. Big difference in intent and effect between the fannish and the corporate!

Didn't something about this precise kind of crap come up on Boing Boing recently (~~~this year)? No link, sorry. Wish I could remember.

Anyway, scum. Cane 'em.

A lawyer will come up with the proper legalese. I believe the technical aspect is a clear violation of the DMCA, Digital Millenium Copyright Act, among others. Outright theft of intellectual property, all that.

Ugly and evil law, your DMCA. Doesn't look like it applies particularly here (unless it applies to photos on websites of screenprints on t-shirts. Hey, it might). Besides, even if you could get some pictures on the web taken down under Title II, that wouldn't stop the clothing being sold in shops.

The work of the mind (ideas, design concepts, algorithms...) really doesn't have the same basic nature as things (kettles, toasters, video players...). That's why it feels strange and slightly paranoid to me to call it property and say that one can steal it. The line blurs at expressions of ideas as physical objects. That's why this stuff is so fascinating!

But this shonky knock-off is just bloody insulting. That and the fact that Dustmeat's getting screwed out of revenue she's owed convince even a grumpy old copyright minimalist like me to want the sods taken to the cleaners.

What an insulting derivative work.

Is it just me or are these clothing designers completely bereft of originality? I seem to remember reading recently about one who was ripping off internet artists left and right. Making shoddy derivative works. A lot of folks on DA got hit. I don't really remember the details. Have they no creative pride or sense of professionalism?

I only hope this doesn't get more complicated. Good luck with your pursuit of justice.

You are thinking of Todd Goldman.

I really wish we could +fav journal entries, I really want to see how this turns out, best of luck on the upcoming unpleasantness.

Ever hear the term "lawyer"? See one. You might be entitled to a substantial settlement.

Ever hear the term "lawyer"? See one. You might be entitled to a substantial settlement.

Hmm... it's like they cheated you out of the right to negotiate for your work... since they voided that, does that mean the ability to determine the monetary value of the art defaults to you ? (In other words, they lose the ability to negotiate a fee which they would have had if you were a graphic artist work for hire?)

I'll be interested to see what happens.

Also, I wonder if this is the sort of story they like to propagate across boingboing. (I mean they posted this one: http://www.boingboing.net/2007/04/1.....art-swipe.html)

That's the one, thanks. Someone should submit this to http://youthoughtwewouldntnotice.com/blog3/ , the linked-to blog behind the Boing Boing post.

Side-by-side comparisons would have the right kind of visual impact. This kind of cheap, insulting rip-off gets even the BoingBoingers annoyed ^^

Just checked the link, and the Kohl’s site redirected me to http://www.kohls.com/index.html with the message “We’re sorry! Kohls.com is temporarily unavailable. We will be back online soon with great brands, great prices and more!”

Coincidence? You decide!

http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/jun.....er+Capris.jsp#
this site still has up a pic of the pants, you can zoom in and see the logo, i hope you get a lot of money out of this and that kohls and the people who made the pants get in huge trouble and really bad reputations for this crap

Holy lawsuit!
Man, you want me to ask my lawyers if they know a good lawyer for this?!

Unfortunately, there's really no way you can undo this injustice. The people who stole from you have resources massively above and beyond those which you can mobilize. Any lawyer you talk to will tell you that no matter how in the right you are, it's just not possible for you to fight the behemoth as an individual. Think about all the people dragged into court by the RIAA with millions of dollars of "damages" on their head. Even if the case is complete bullshit, it'll cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to prove so, and even if you win they will no doubt throw up more legal barriers and appeals until you are finally exhausted. They know they can outlast you in the legal realm.

So really your only option is to go beyond the courtroom...

Fuck, that's ridiculous! I work for Kohls

Whoah, bitches, companymen, they be!

Having lived overseas for years in some pretty interesting places, you wouldn't believe the number of copyright infringements I've seen... Truckloads of fake Louis Vuitton and Gucchi leather goods, fake Rolex watches and armies of badly drawn Mickey Mouses (Mice?) shilling everything from falafel to used socks...

Problem is that the countries in which these infractions take place just don't give a rat's patootie about the protection of IP. In a way, your lucky that you've got an established U.S. based company to go after... Trying to sue an overseas company in a country with little to no regard for copyright laws would just add to your frustration...

Oh, one other thing... Did the addition of the word "Tiger" in the shields change your original more than 20%? The following article applies to architectural designs, but if you change a design by 20 percent, "there is no infringement."

http://www.detroitchamber.com/detro.....amp;detcid=428

It sucks, but I believe the same applies to art... Might be something to discuss with your barrister...
Cap

A competing viewpoint and some additional information for when you speak to your lawyer

http://www.dayofthedeadart.com/copyright.htm

Actually, unless I read the article wrong, it said that "change it by 20% and there is no infringement" is a myth.

Even if it were true, though, I can't see how adding something over the image could truly be said to alter the original image -- this to me would only apply if, say, they had taken the original piece, changed the tail position entirely, cut off the head and pasted on another one, something like that. In this case, the whole image is still there, even if small bits of it are covered up by the added shields.

Wow, that is almost exact line for line. I'd contact corporate, adn tell them you're thinking about filing a copyright infringement suit.

Here's some info on the trademark owner. They probably are the one's that bought the design from whoever copied your tiger

Typed Drawing
Word Mark DEREK HEART
Goods and Services IC 025. US 022 039. G & S: men's, women's and children's clothing, namely, tops, hats, belts, socks, bodysuits, leggings, scarves, vests, swimming suits, swim trunks, coverups, shirts, undershirts, tank tops, T-shirts, blouses, sweaters, sweatshirts, sweat pants, skirts, jogging suits, shorts, pants, jeans, dresses, jumpsuits, rompers and jackets. FIRST USE: 19960101. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19960101
Mark Drawing Code (1) TYPED DRAWING
Serial Number 75259946
Filing Date March 19, 1997
Current Filing Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Published for Opposition September 8, 1998
Registration Number 2206519
Registration Date December 1, 1998
Owner (REGISTRANT) Global Gold, Inc. CORPORATION NEW YORK 1410 Broadway New York NEW YORK 10018
Attorney of Record CHARLES P. LAPOLLA
Type of Mark TRADEMARK
Register PRINCIPAL
Affidavit Text SECT 15. SECT 8 (6-YR).
Other Data The mark does not identify a particular living individual.
Live/Dead Indicator LIVE

* 18 hours ago

Awesome, thanks!

I'm so glad I came across those in the stores xD You've just been open to a law suit in which you should take.

Someone on the LAFF list posted about this. So for fun, I wrote a DeviantArt News entry.
http://news.deviantart.com/article/35650/

Though I also found out that it's the brand maker of the line of pants you should be going after. Kohls wouldn't know that the designer who supplied them with their pants used your drawing on the pants.

Actually you can get the brand maker and Kohl's for this. Brand Maker for using the pic and Kohl's for illegally selling without the rights.

Oh dear!

I wish you the best of luck with your lawyers and getting this worked out!

I remember seeing the original at AC '06 in the artshow. I nearly bought it too!

I happily join the many standing behind you in getting this dealt with.

I've seen more and more cases of furry artests having their stuff ripped and used for shirts and shuck without their knowledge or permission. Apperently the fandom is given such a general lack of any form of respect that people think that its perfectly fine and within their right to blatently rip off artist's artwork and use it for their own personal gain so long as it's furry art.

Contacting them first would be a good idea. If that doesn't work out right, it's suit time.

IMPORTANT!!!

It should be noted that Derek Heart is NOT a Kohls house brand. They buy it from someone else. So technically whoever designs the Derek Heart line is at fault here, not Kohls. Kohls probably had no way of knowing the art was stolen.

Seriously, get ahold of them and tear them to financial shreds.

You need to talk to a lawyer. Pure and simple. They would know the avenues to pursue to tackle this case, as well as how it could be taken and what kind of damages could be acquired.

Done and done!

Contact the Better Business Bureau. And let then knows whats happened. Thats the only way to get this fixed, then contact Consumer Reporting. They'll give you legal advice.

O_O thats not right...write them, tell them that its your logo and...well...whatever you want them to do about it...and if they resist, i would seriously take them to court. i mean...some small time theft wouldnt be that big a deal....but damn...theyre gonna be selling those..and...just...*growl*

i smell lawsuit, compare the two closely... i offer exhibit A:
http://i24.tinypic.com/288av01.jpg

Definitely threaten them with a lawsuit. You're well within your rights.

Before making any deal with them, I'd want the sales figures of the number of pants sold, and then get with some legal counsel about how much you ought to be entitled to, then push for that amount plus royalties if they continue to sell the line.

But definitely don't let this stand.

I'd sue them then stab them until they are dead.

This is terrible and I hope you take the responsible assholes to the cleaners, but I have to admit I laughed at the comment thread where you found out.

I've a feeling that you're going to be Shmorky VS Goldman #2... But with a dash of Erin Brokovich and a good dose of the opposition trying to exploit furrydom's asstastic sexual rep against you.

WTF T_T That is just totally messed up!

I'm sure you've already spoken to an attorney about Kohl's stealing your artwork that is just plain Bull@#$%!! I'm sure your POed beyond any means.

Hopefully this will all be taken care of and dealt with in legal matters, etc. *hugs*

Hope all the best to you. It's so wrong that someone would do that, especially a company. How could Kohl's stoop so low. v.v Ignorant asses!

I doubt Kohl's knew. The desiger (Derek Heart) made a mistake.

Good luck, and keep us updated, of course... >^_^<

Holy crap! And from a big chain like Khols? Damn. I hope you get a lot of money out of this.

*Kohls

Keep us up-to-date on the events as they happen!

i luv your icon

So did I. Why did it automatically change back to my old one? Weird! o.O

Get a lawyer, pursue damages, have a good Christmas.

Best of luck! hope you come out on top :>

Now you only have to choose between AK-47 and a katana.
Then get straight down to some good ol` justice extraction, yessir 0.0
No, seriously, I've lol`d to many an art theft drama case, but this one gives you moral grounds for some Warcraft-scale slaughtering massacre 0.o
Well, probably not, but outstanding artists like you deserve some credit.

By the way, I've once seen a T-shirt with  Goldenwolf's art on some unknown dude here in Saint-Petersburg, Russia, and we've only got like five furs around. I guess stuff like that happens when designer gets lazy and scours the web for some random catchy looking picture. Oh well, it's teh internets I guess.

Yes, that is one downside to posting art online: if it's any good, someone makes it into a t-shirt in Russia :)

A lot of these comments say "a month ago", so Im wondering, any progress?

Yeah, the lawyer from Derek Heart wrote back. I can't reveal anything just yet.

Alrighty then. Understandeable in legal procedings. As its not something Im familiar with though, i guess I just underestimated the amount of time it can take to get someone to get back to you.

\"13 hours ago\" on yours. I was just about to ask for an update myself!

Well it looks like Kohl's isn't selling the pants online anymore.

Must have switched for the season.

That is straight up bullshit but, legally speaking, in so many ways fucking sweet for you!

You realize the smallest amount you'll get for that in court is $250,000? Dude, sue sue sue sue! Go go go! If you need help chasing after this one legally you have my support. I have all the documents you need to file and can walk you through it.

Really? Could you email them? meglique[at]aol.com

Awesome, I have my little sisters over for the rest of the day but I will pull them tonight.

The first thing you're going to need to do is file the copyright with your nations Copyright office. Are you in the US? Because the US has everything online right now. It does cost $45 and I'll send details about that. If you don't have $45 try pooling it from FA. Trust me...good people here...they will help.

Also, and this seems like a lot of work but this is the best way to do this, gather up all your art for last year because I'm going to have you file it all as a '2007 portfolio' for EVERYTHING is covered in case other things should get stolen. Just simple - smallish files should work. No need to get fancy...

I am consulting a lawyer for my next course of action, because things have just taken an ugly turn...
I will let you know!

You got it! The lawyer would have been the next move. I hope everything is ok. O_O

I just checked the site again and it looks like they pulled the product from the online store at least.

I know this was posted a while back but a just found out. Freaking sucks man! Is there any updates that we're allowed to know about or are things still up in the air?

Eh, most of it is confidential.

I can't wait to see how this turns out. All i know is someones ass is getting burned and it's not you!

Just out of curiosity, has this been resolved? I don't need to know the details if you can't talk about them, so a YES or NO will do.

=^.,.^=

sigh, NO.