Posted under Copyright & Ethics & Intellectual Property & Legal Issues & Morals & Technology & Web Design
Last week I mentioned how smart J.K. Rowling was for not signing the rights to her Harry Potter franchise away. By not signing her rights away she has become one of the most famous rags to riches success stories to date. Ms. Rowling went from living in her car with her children to being the most successful children’s literary authors in the world. The billionaire author is a role model for new writers everywhere and a household name for millions of families.
Most people are extremely confused about copyright law and what constitutes as “fair use” and whether or not you should ask for permission to use someone else’s copyrighted works. As a former Intellectual Property paralegal I know how important it is to use materials that are either royalty free of have been granted free to use via written permission from the creator or is in the public domain.