That’s right, even us individual artists of all types without corporate deep pockets will now have an option through the legal system to fight IP infringement! This is fabulous news to me, along with the much overdue (and still insufficient) covid relief bill.
You’ll probably see and hear a lot of fear-mongering about this bill, warning that grandmas and even children will be thrown in jail for simply downloading a meme, but please ignore the spin, it’s not based in fact.
The truth is, this bill has been moving through Congress at a glacial pace since 2011 and had been in the works even before then. It’s been re-worked and modified, and no it’s not a golden ticket for copyright trolls.
Quite the opposite in fact! We’ll be limited to how many claims can be filed each year, and bad or malicious claims can ban a person from using the tribunal again for some time. In fact, because of the voluntary nature of it I would argue it’s still not protecting indie artists enough, but the pressure from Big Tech and anti-copyright groups forced that option. I’m still waiting to hear back from those who are more in the loop regarding whether or not the claims filed will be a matter of public record. I’m hoping yes, as there would be at least some incentive then for the defendants to agree to the process in order to prove their innocence if they feel they were in the right, along with the risk that the person filing a claim could end up taking them to federal court instead and they would not be able to go back to the small claims option after if I’m not mistaken.
Don’t just take my word for it, here’s a great article breaking everything down and covers all the concerns:
https://illusionofmore.com/omnibus-bill-passes-congress-anti-copyright-crowd-turns-shrill/?fbclid=IwAR2leK30SYOiy_hwI1gCBVn2-CwI3HLTIWlQcnBMFb38QJbNXHUAPn05fjs

*Update: As of February 2023, the legal issue between Paris Hilton and myself has been privately resolved

How cheap does someone have to be, to find a listing for digital wing overlays and cut & copy the wings out from the preview image rather than buy them for a measly $6.99??

I got a message yesterday linking to an Instagram post from Paris Hilton, asking "are these your wings?" Yes, yes they are, and what is especially disappointing is it appears my wing image was cut from the listing graphic.

The listing is here: https://fancy-fairy-wings-things.myshopify.com/products/titania-fairy-wings-transparency-stock-png-files

That's right - rather than buy the legit files they happened upon, it appears this person instead copied the green wings out of my graphic, infringing on my intellectual property and violating my copyright.
I expect this is what they did because you can still see the edges of the yellow wings that are behind the green ones in my listing graphic and they included the wings in back on each side, which are in exactly the same position as in the graphic.

The files do not come that way.

I've sent a DMCA to Paris' merch store email, I've commented on the post as well as tweet at her and lots of other people have commented on this as well with no response.

Looks like another artist, Indg0 may have also been infringed in this image!

It's their background used here, without permission or payment according to Indg0.

I'm gonna need to see some order receipts if I'm wrong - and credit on the post - because there are no digital wing orders from her or anyone tagged in the post, which can be seen here: https://www.instagram.com/p/CE7-zZqHIG0/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

This is not the first celebrity infringement and I'm sure it sadly won't be the last as long as entitled wealthy celebs assume they can take whatever they want from indie artists due to their privilege and power. Paris Hilton's image is shown here in Fair Use, for the purposes of criticism, public commentary and communicating important news to the public about a public figure. For more of my experiences with copyright infringement, you can see my past blog entries by clicking on the Copyright Issues link on the right.

Oh and also? Just read today that she’s been heaping some praise on Trump, saying:
”He’s a very nice man. I think on TV people like to say things about certain people, but he’s actually a very sweet person. I like him a lot.”
GROSS.
She’s got an awful history of racist behavior as well, but somehow is still famous for being an heiress and the world’s first influencer.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2016/09/14/paris-hilton-praises-donald-trump-on-cnbc?source=twitter&via=mobile