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Verified ebay IDs:
US Selling ID: hearthfire**designs*usa [Member since: Friday, Oct 18, 2002 ]
UK Selling ID: *melusine* [Member since: Thursday, 22 Nov, 2001 ]
VeRO Reg. ID: hearthfire-designs

Visit our Website at: www.thehearthfire.com
Business email address ~ info@thehearthfire.com
Website Address ~ http://www.thehearthfire.com

Notice of Copyright ~ ©Copyright 1998 MDO Crafts, Hearthfire Designs ~

Hearthfire Designs Bead&Wire Sculpture and Chartpack Products Website, Products & Photos are ©Copyright 2000 Hearthfire Designs ~ We sincerely appreciate your cooperation in helping us to protect our copyrights.

In order to protect our name and our business reputation, we are a validated member of Ebay's Verified Rights Owner Program (VeRO). We do periodically check eBay auctions as well as act on information given to us by outside individuals. If there is a violation or an infringement of our Intellectual Copyright, we will act accordingly and report the infringing listings to VeRO. This may result in cancellation of the auction. Occasionally, it is possible that some infringing auctions escape our attention. If you have an inquiry or wish to report an infringing listing please contact the following email addresses with details ~
legal@thehearthfire.com
investigations@ebay.com

If your auction is cancelled, it was because you were reported to be selling items/designs which you do not have the rights to sell and have been reported to eBay and VeRO in accordance to stated rules and regulations regarding Copyright. You will be given notice via email from Ebay and should not relist these items without proper authorization(only applicable in cases where the products are used in conjunction with a finished item) as multiple infringements could result in your Ebay account being terminated.

Handcrafted items using Hearthfire Designs products are designed for personal use or for gifts. All designs are protected by the Intellectual Property Laws, Copyright of the United States and International Copyright Law. Our products may be resold by sellers on EBay if included in a finished product (such as a handmade greeting card, scrapbook page or finished item of jewelry). Hearthfire Designs products may also be included in a 'kit' or other such promotion - in that case, written notification should be given at the email address provided above and copyright statements included on any repackaging of the product. We only do this to protect our ideas and designs and the considerable time and cost invested over the years to establishing this business.

Frequently Asked Questions:

Can I take a handmade craft and change it a bit to make it mine?

No. Copyright grants exclusive rights solely to the copyright owner to create derivative works from their original copyrighted material. Modifying or altering a product's design is considered infringement unless expressed permission is granted by the copyright owner. Facts, concepts and ideas are not protected by copyright. How the fact, concept and/or idea is expressed via tangible creation is protected. Changing an image or item by a percentage (10%, 25%, etc.) will allow a person to 'legally' use that image/item - this is a myth that many crafters believe. That is not the law. An image/item must be seen as 'significantly different' from the original copyrighted image/item so as to not be derived from the original. There have been documented court cases in which a modified product or image was not considered infringement because the original image had been changed to such an extent that it was no longer recognizable due to alterations. Altering or modifying copyright works is highy discouraged because most artists, writers, photographers, etc., can recognize their own work even through modifications. Minor alterations of colour, individual componant shape or style, etc. does not change the item/image as a whole - it mearly alters it's cosmetic appearance.

Can you 'share' the pattern so that I can make these myself?

No. A lot of work has gone into development and production of our products. All of our items are packaged for sale and are distributed through select craft stores in the United States and UK as well as on Ebay and our Internet Website. Copyright is held by Hearthfire Designs (2000). Therefore distribution of the 'how-to', patterns or authorization of copies is not permitted. Please do not ask. If permission is granted for one then it must be granted for all - and we would be essentially out of business.

Can I use these products in cards and sell them?

Yes! You may use any of our items for yourself, for gifts or on finished items but the designs themselves may not be borrowed, given or sold, nor 'design instructions' derived and distributed in any fashion (including printed media or via the Internet). If you would like to include some of our items in a 'kit' or as a collection, please let us know. A small acknowledgement on any additional packaging stating our product name and copyright needs to be included. Hearthfire Designs' products are in no way associated with any known documentation or product being produced or distributed via the Internet. Any documentation or instructions regarding our designs are not authorized and may, in themselves, contribute to infringement of Intellectual Copyright. Any products that are sold individually and do not carry the Hearthfire Designs label is not authorized and certainly will contribute to infringement on Intellectual Copyright.

Why was my auction cancelled and why didn't you contact me first?

Any initial correspondance directed towards a fellow Ebay seller could be deemed, by that seller, as auction interference and harrassment. Therefore, I have been instructed by my solicitor to turn all initial correspondence over to Ebay. By allowing Ebay and VeRO to take any initial action, any potential misunderstandings or ignoring of emails are avoided. Regarding the designs themselves. Some of our items had originally been developed by our company founder for use in scrapbooking workshops held in the US prior to 1999 (pattern was for producing items for personal use only and was used mainly in conjuction with the workshop) but was later manufactured and marketed by Hearthfire Designs (post 2000) and have been sold exclusively on Ebay since late 2001. We do not claim to own the market on all items made within a theme or style. Research on other items offered on Ebay (a simple search) will turn up other products along a similar theme as our items. However, these items are significantly different enough from our products so as not to be labelled as derivative works and we would never dream of asking any of these artists to cease selling their items. Many scrapbookers, card makers and beaders are unaware of how copyright law applies to handmade crafts. There are also those who are fully aware that the handcrafted items that they sell on Ebay do belong to someone else (they liked the look of it and thought 'I can do this too!'). I'd like to believe that these individuals are not in the majority. Most crafters don't stop to think of whether they are supposed to be reproducing something - after all, it is a form of flattery, right? Unfortunately, its not right. I doubt anyone would argue the validity of Disney having issue with someone taking one of their copyright images, copying it(by scanning, hand-drawing it, etc...) and sticking it on a card for sale. Profiting by 'using' an established product, item or image is unethical and illegal. By being responsible and doing a bit of research we can usually find out if these items are produced by a company and in doing so help protect the production of products and designs.
Please use your judgement.

If there are any further questions regarding our Copyright policies, please email us at:
legal@thehearthfire.com

Document: @Copyright 2004 Hearthfire Designs.
All data herein has been reviewed and edited by a copyright attorney.

For more information on Copyright and Copyright Laws (international) please see:
United States & International Copyright Law Website
Another excellent site about Copyright issues - clear and plain-talking:
What is Copyright Protection?

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