navis77 Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 i recall seeing one person banned for making a mod that added rap music. but then there are a lot of mods that add radio stations with old music that is fallout-ish that are ok. is there any fair use or copyright type of guides to what is ok and what isnt? anyone know or have links to that kind of info? thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quetzlsacatanango Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 Try archive.org. They have a lot of public domain and CC licensed music. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brigand231 Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 As a time and aggravation saver, make sure to point to your source. As the addage goes, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". Crediting your source is not only required for many things, it will preemptively take care of any doubt as to whether or not the material might be contested and your file hidden until you can prove it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AveTruetoCaesar Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 I want to learn more about these copywrites, because I am at a loss about whats acceptable or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evilneko Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 Rule of Thumb: It's copyrighted and you are not allowed to distribute. Exceptions: If you can prove it's either free-to-share (such as CC licensed) or not copyrighted. There was a fairly thorough discussion of this on the Fallout 3 General forum a month or two ago I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AveTruetoCaesar Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 Rule of Thumb: It's copyrighted and you are not allowed to distribute. Exceptions: If you can prove it's either free-to-share (such as CC licensed) or not copyrighted. There was a fairly thorough discussion of this on the Fallout 3 General forum a month or two ago I think.Then why are there so many mods with copywrited music? I guess if you do a modification (i.e change the tone, speed it or slow is down a but) then would it be acceptable? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evilneko Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 The mods have not been reported, either because the music is "old" so people think it's free, or they just don't care. The moderators do not personally examine every mod on the site. And no, it would not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AveTruetoCaesar Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 The mods have not been reported, either because the music is "old" so people think it's free, or they just don't care. The moderators do not personally examine every mod on the site. And no, it would not.Well, thats good to know, thanks for the info. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urbex Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 The Lil B mod should NOT have been removed.You have to understand that mixtape songs, which are not available for purchase, are freely distributable.They're solely used for promotion, not sale. Basically, if you can't buy the song, you're free to use it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brigand231 Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 (edited) Basically, if you can't buy the song, you're free to use it. This is completely incorrect. I really don't feel like getting into the definitions of rights and distinctions of them. To counter the above statement, however, simply consider this: If a song is recorded and ready for distribution in January, but the label decides not to release it until July it is NOT free to use or redistribute from January to June. This also applies to items that may have been discontinued or sold out. Just because you can not buy a copy of it you do not have the right to use or distribute it. Even songs like "Happy Birthday to You" are copyrighted and would get you into trouble if you recorded it for use in a public mod (story here). The best rule of thumb to follow is that unless it is explicitly stated a song (or other copyrighted material) is available for public use by its owner or you're savvy to the copyright laws and all their loopholes enough to do the math from publication dates, it is most likely not safe to distribute it. Having said that, if you can prove you've altered something 20% or more, it is a new creation and the property of the person who changed it - in which case you'd be wise to document how and when you did such a thing unless someone discovers your work and hires a lawyer to defend THEIR right to it since you can't prove it's yours. Such cases have come up and people have been fined and forced to pay back royalties in restitution on their own creations because they didn't think to protect them. Yes, these laws can also apply to mods, textures, meshes and so on. Edited February 25, 2011 by Brigand231 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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