Masterfile's Copyright Registration Method Held Invalid by California Court

[fighting_masterfile]

the next step they did to me was send it over to NCS and try to get me to pay from there.  Now this is only a claim not a debt so that is a fail on their part.  Read up on here and get educated.  Dont give in to them but read and get educated.  You can also have oscar fight for you if you wish.  Right now I'm still mad and will be fighting back.  I will not go down with out taking some others down with me.

[Greg Troy (KeepFighting)]

Jstar, first off let me welcome you to the forums and I think you are doing the right thing by continuing to read up in the forums as there is a wealth of information contained in them. As far as the recent court ruling pertaining to master file it certainly will make it harder for them to pursue legal actions against their letter recipients providing the image in question is part of a bulk or series registration.

I think your first step should be attempting to find out if the image in question masterfile has sent you a letter over is registered with the copyright office as a single image, a series of images or registered at all. If you can find out this information that will help guide you in your next steps. If it is registered as a series or group of images they will have a very hard time pursuing legal action against you. Regardless of how the image is registered they can still harass you through letters, NCS and attorneys letters.

You also need to decide the level of involvement you are willing to put into this. You can read and study the forms and educate yourself and deal with them directly or if you feel you need more information and advice than what can be gleaned here on the form I suggested Eli support phone call with Matthew Chan, this maybe had for a minimum $50 donation to Eli. As every situation is different and unique, Matthew can offer insight and suggestions to your situation. The other option is if you just want it to be handled and not hear from them anymore would be using Oscar's defense letter program, you can read about both at the following link:

http://www.extortionletterinfo.com/forum/getty-images-letter-forum/getting-help-with-your-extortion-letter/

I myself have chosen the route of fighting Getty on my own, while I have consulted with and retained a local IP attorney about my case I have him there mainly for backup in case Getty should be foolhardy enough to attempt to take me to court. If you should decide to fight this on your own I recommend planning out how you'll respond to each step of the process and having a plan ready to go and being prepared so you know exactly what you will do at each stage.

Keep reading and educating yourself, ask questions of the form and keep us posted on what you decide to do.

[SoylentGreen]

It's important to note that MF's recent court loss would not prevent them from filing another lawsuit in the future.
However, the more that such cases are lost in court, the weaker their legal standing becomes in similar lawsuits (all things being equal).
Furthermore, one should not automatically assume that all of MF's collection is registered incorrectly.
Much of it apparently is, but it's important to do some digging and research.

S.G.

[Matthew Chan]

Oscar submitted the latest documents regarding the Masterfile vs. Chaga case. It has been uploaded to ELI Document Library on Scribd. These are practically mandatory reading and basically takes the wind out of Masterfile's nasty reputation of filing lawsuits. If Masterfile hadn't stupidly tried to claim $6 million, maybe Chaga and Oscar wouldn't have had to embarrass the entire stock photo industry most notably PACA, Nancy Wolff, Steve Weinberg, and Masterfile.

Transcript of Proceedings
http://www.scribd.com/doc/99957273/Masterfile-vs-Chaga-Transcript-of-Proceedings-June-18-2012

Courts Finding of Facts
http://www.scribd.com/doc/102659307/Masterfile-vs-Chaga-Court-s-Findings-of-Facts

Entered Judgment
http://www.scribd.com/doc/102659308/Masterfile-vs-Chaga-Entered-Judgment

Report to U.S. Copyright Office
http://www.scribd.com/doc/102659309/Masterfile-vs-Chaga-Report-to-Copyright-Office-After-Judgment

These documents are very good reading and quite a brutal and explicit setback to those who followed Attorney Nancy Wolff's and PACA's "shortcut" and circumvention copyright registration advice.  Every member of PACA who followed Nancy's advice has found out the hard way her advice did not hold up.

The stock photo companies are more interested in assembling huge collections of images to control the inventory and artificially inflate their values than to follow rules to be eligible for copyright infringement claims.

The Court's Finding of Facts listed "multiple deficiencies" and that NONE of Masterfile's copyright registrations complied with Section 409 of the Copyright Act. NONE!!!!!

You can find this scathing list of Masterfile's deficiencies in the "Conclusions of Law" section. This really gives a huge black eye to Masterfile, Nancy Wolff, Steve Weinberg, and PACA.

Oscar seems certain they will appeal this case but they have to know that this will be an uphill battle.  And if they lose or not granted the opportunity for an appeal, it's over for the copyright extortion business from the legal perspective.

Nevertheless, the legally uninformed, ignorant, and spineless will continue to stupidly pay up but that is besides the point.

I have so much to say regarding the mindset of the stock photography industry and many photographers.  This entitlement mentality they have regarding how they conduct business with their images will put them under. There will soon come a day that most images will become nearly worthless if they don't start "getting it" in their heads that doing it the way they are doing it will continue to drive customers away.

They are one of the few businesses I know that continue to make enemies by the hundreds each week because they are too stupid to see the big picture. The valuation of all the stock photo companies just took a major hit this year with the onslaught of unfavorable legal rulings against the stock photo industry and copyright trolls in general.

[Greg Troy (KeepFighting)]

Thanks for sharing these with us Matthew.  This is good stuff and I agree with you about the stock photo industry not getting it, there day of reckoning is coming very soon.

[Mulligan]

Those documents made wonderful reading this Sunday morning. Thanks for posting them.

[SoylentGreen]

I haven't had a chance to read the doc's as yet, but I wanted to say thanks for providing them.
MF is/was one of the really aggressive companies, so it's always of interest.
Long term, I don't think that there's a future for these companies in copyright extortion.
It just isn't working.

S.G.

[stinger]

Just out of curiosity, is it considered legal showboating, when the prevailing attorney (in this case Oscar) doesn't make a court appearance and still wins?  Is that like doing a dance after scoring a touchdown, or taunting an opponent after slam dunking a basketball in his face?

All kidding aside Oscar, way to go!  A big win for the little guys.

[Oscar Michelen]

Stinger: If I got this result in absentia imagine what would have happened if I had shown up! In all seriousness, however, I was not going to spend the client's time and money to fly to California for a five minute appearance. Our local counsel also informed me that Judge Real relies on the court papers and that an appearance is only necessary if you have something new to add. 

[stinger]

I say well done.  Anytime you can win by spending the Troll's time and money while not spending too much of your own, you are creating real value.

In reading the transcript, it appeared that Materfile's attorney was trying to take advantage of the fact that you weren't present, and they still lost.  I think that is worthy of a little trash talking - maybe not in the legal community - but certainly here on ELI.

[Matthew Chan]

I believe Oscar has said that ELI is a "rough and tumble" environment. We can engage in an ELI Happy Dance if we want to although it would be unseemly in lawyer circles.

ELI makes no bones about being anything close to a "lawyerly" forum. Having said that, we take victories wherever we can.  And in this case, if that means a legal victory, we can savor in it.

Remember folks, fighting on the legal front is certainly an important one.  Unquestionably and undeniably, that is headed up by Oscar. He may not be here on a daily basis but make no mistake his presence continues to resonate throughout nearly all of ELI's activities. Likewise, the ELI Community can continue to assist him "on the ground" by gathering and reporting on new extortion letters.

Don't ever let the copyright extortionists lure you into the trap of arguing/fighting on their terms even if by chance they manage to score some kind of legal victory. I know I won't.

[Greg Troy (KeepFighting)]

Well said Matthew and thank you Oscar for all you do even though we make you "cringe" from time to time. 

I believe Oscar has said that ELI is a "rough and tumble" environment. We can engage in an ELI Happy Dance if we want to although it would be unseemly in lawyer circles.

ELI makes no bones about being anything closes to a "lawyerly" forum. Having said that, we take victories wherever we can.  And in this case, if that means a legal victory, we can savor in it.

Remember folks, fighting on the legal front is certainly an important one.  Unquestionably and undeniably, that is headed up by Oscar. He may not be here on a daily basis but make no mistake his presence continues to resonate throughout nearly all of ELI's activities. Likewise, the ELI Community can continue to assist him "on the ground" by gathering and reporting on new extortion letters.

Don't ever let the copyright extortionists lure you into the trap of arguing/fighting on their terms even if by chance they manage to score some kind of legal victory. I know I won't.

[Oscar Michelen]

Don't worry Greg.  By last count, it was running about one cringe per ten bouts of laughter

[Robert Krausankas (BuddhaPi)]

Don't worry Greg.  By last count, it was running about one cringe per ten bouts of laughter

I could probably even this ratio out a bit if you'd like! 

[Matthew Chan]

This is an unexpected ELI news announcement relating to Oscar Michelen's recent actions and role in the Masterfile vs. Chaga case.

Certainly, it has been a huge legal victory for victims of copyright extortionists but Oscar's legal actions has created unintended consequences that I find quite disturbing and disruptive to ELI.  It could severely affect ELI's standing within the Google's search engine.  I lay the blame entirely on him.

Because of the massive legal defeat of Masterfile, Oscar has inadvertently forced an ELI name change here of "Masterfile Corporation" to "MasterFail Corporation". Unless there is a successful appeal, there is a good chance going forward we will be using the "MasterFail" name thereby mucking up ELI's standing in the Google search engine. MasterFail is certainly much more accurate and appropriate for the time being.

We hope that MasterFail Corporation has a short, unprofitable life and is put out of its economic misery.