Websites offering XH558-branded goods

[wcg]

Just been reading my "GMail".......Side-bar links had the following sites :
http://www.thetshirtguys.co.uk/
http://www.mediastorehouse.com/

On the first one , see : http://www.thetshirtguys.co.uk/product.php?id=305
On the second , see : http://www.mediastorehouse.com/dmcs_sea ... indmedia=1

So.....I have to ask........
How much , if anything , are these sites donating / paying royalties to the Trust ?? { And how many more companies are there out there trading on XH558 ?? }
After all , hasn't the Trust copyrighted the use of XH558 { or images thereof } for commercial usage ??
If not...why not ??

[HibsFan69]

Morning Clive

You are correct that the Trust is permitted to use XH558 Vulcan etc etc under license.

I have sent this to the pertinant person in the Trust and will leave it in their capable hands, the Trust do grant allowances so it may be kosher.

Fiona

[scampton61]

No, it's almost certainly NOT kosher! These guys have been ripping off Trust trademarks for some time, and have been warned off before - looks like VTS may need to get tough with them

[wcg]

That was a fast response , Fiona !

Just looking on the T&Cs on "our" Store , where it says :
Vulcan, Vulcan To The Sky, XH558, The Planform and Contrail, together with other related icons, are all protected and can only be used with our written permission. We actively seek and prosecute offenders who try to profit from our properties.
Wonder if anyone from the Trust spends the occasional half-hour doing a quick "Google" or E-Bay search looking for potential infringements ??

[HibsFan69]

Hi Clive

Ebay is normally covered by me, when I have a spare moment and I know that Ian trys to keep up with the stuff on the web but there are loads out there, so some will slip through, but if forumeers want to help maybe we should sticky this thread?

We can't always be on the ball with everything else that the 'Club Committee' & the 'Trust' do, so as the saying goes many hands make light work.

So the rules in very brief simplistic terms for our budding Web Spies, it's Okay to have pictures but not to say XH558, Vulcan, Vulcan To The Sky without the written permission of the Trust although there is ambiguity in using the web address. Also not allowed is the use of the Planform and Contrail.

Using Clives spot if the T shirt just had the picture and no mention of Vulcan or XH558 that would be allowed.

Happy Hunting.

Fi

[wcg]

I suppose one of the problems is that there's loads of stuff out there listed as "Vulcan" , much of which is nothing to do with XH558 { after all , it's a bit difficult to sell parts off a Vulcan without using the name Vulcan , isn't it ? }
As for anyone trading on XH558 , that's a different matter........much more difficult for them to argue against copyright infringement !

Could be a good idea to have a "sticky" where people can query anything they see for sale.
The only other option could be to provide Club / Forum members with an E-Mail link to report things to. The only problem with this is that it could lead to several people reporting the same thing , or the same websites / vendors being unnecessary reported on multiple occasions.

[Topsy]

I saw the t-shirt guys one a few weeks ago and sent a PM to one of the Mods here regarding the possibility of trademark infringement.

Didn't hear anything back though, not even an acknowledgment, so presumed they didn't care.

[HibsFan69]

Will this thread do now that it's stuck like a sticky thing for posting anything we see as a naughty?

Don't forget that this is a club forum and we have to pass these issues on to the Trust so I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for a reply, as they don't always get these thing resolved quickly nor have the time to get back to us when the do resolve issues, it would be nice but so would winning the lottery.

[wcg]

True , but at least by having this topic "stickied" people can see which issues have already been raised { and it saves having to decide who we need to contact ! }

[Sarah Favell]

I saw some legit VTST Calendars in a seasonal calendar shop in Market Harborough yesterday.......do they buy a job lot from the Trust and therefore money is going straight into the coffers?

[Nickolas]

I have mentioned to Ian Homer (PA28) about this sort of stuff before.
I presume that other than a strongly worded letter about copyright issues to 'warn them off' litigation for infringement of copyright is expensive........ do you see where this is going?

I personally urge anyone who is aware of any outlets flogging anything to do with 558 to make Ian aware and if time permits I'm sure that he would let us know if it's kosher or otherwise.

JMO.

Nick

[PA28]

Hi All,

Yes, we do regularly scour the internet for breaches of copyright and several calls and emails go off every week.
Some take longer to "hear" the message, but we generally win out in the end.

More eyes are better, so by all means continue to bring up any further concerns and they will be looked into.

The Global Calendars are a "licensed" product and we do get a royalty off them for every copy sold, where ever that may be, as it is at the point of distribution, not at the retail end.

Regards,
Ian.

[dlw]

Hi, I have monitored the calander shop as there is one in Loughborough. They sell alot of copyright stuff, and I am led to believe it is at distribution/manufacture stage we get paid. Not sure how much but will have a natter with them later today and feed it back.
It is nice to see our stuff along side the Red's and RAF material. I may well get mine from there and save postage (unless we get a higher portion of cash for ordering via webshop direct?).

They put up a poster for us last year by the way.

Hope everyone keeping warm, its minus 6 here today.

[HibsFan69]

David

As with EVERYTHING the ony way to maximise your money going to XH558 is buying off the Trust or Club direct.

Fi

[bovril]

not much can be done if someone wants to flog pictures/t shirts of xh558 without permission as long as the image/drawing is their own. all the club can do is make sure they are not copying club logos/designs and make sure that club goodies are better and great value , so no one will need to buy the others tat .