When is posting a photo on Xomba ILLEGAL?

..the thousands of posts that direct people to sites where they can illegally download and/or view movies. These posts seem to clearly violate both Xomba and Google AdSense rules.

I think it would be good to have a ruling from Xomba Central once and for all about what is OK and what isn't.

It is not necessary for a photo to have a copyright notice. With or without the notice, that photo is the artistic work of the person who took the photo.

The best policy is not to copy a photo unless you have permission from the photographer. Just post a link to it. It is legal to post a link to copyrighted work.

The laws about copyrights and photos are very clear, whether the photo is found on the internet or in a magazine or taken in your local photo studio by your family photographer.

Just as the rules about plagiarism are clear. Don't cut and paste or copy someone else's work. Write it yourself in your own words.... not theirs.

The laws concerning the linking to movies and other copyrighted works are a bit murky. There are some court decisions pending and I am sure that the situation on the internet will be clarified in the near future.

My understanding of the links to movies is that linking to them does not violate Google policies, just as linking to a photo does not violate their policies... that it is legal to provide the links.... not legal to host the downloads.... I believe that is why Xomba allows people to post the links... because Xomba is not hosting the downloads....

At least that is my understanding.....

Angel

Some people here seem to exist solely to post such links, which is stretching the definition of "writing community" just a tad.

If the courts decide that downloading media without paying for it is illegal, then linking to it would surely be illegal, just as it would be illegal to tell people where to buy street drugs (using addresses as opposed to what to look for in general) or how to whack somebody.

On the plus side, I've seen many users taking the mature step in just providing the link to the photo or photos instead of lifting them from the host site and posting them here. I certainly see that as being legal because it is not taking money out of the pocket of the copyright holder, in contrast to people who misrepresent the photos as being their own work product and marketing them to get clicks.

Once I get my websites going in the next couple of months (almost have the themes worked out), then I will be pursuing permission to put up certain copyrighted works, in addition to creating my own works to be copyrighted.
_______________________________________________________
"In a time of universal deceit - telling the truth is a revolutionary act."--George Orwell

I'm getting paid to write. Find out WHY!

...is against Xomba rules, as far as I can tell.

#19 in its posting policies specifically prohibits "Content which promotes or condones any criminal activity or provides instructional information about illegal activities including... copywright [sic] or patent infringement." Saying "Download/watch [movie, TV show] here" and providing a link sure sounds like promoting and condoning to me.

As far as posts that exist solely to provide links, that's why xomblurbs were created--to offer bookmarks, links, etc. A xomblurb doesn't even have to have two words of text.

I personally think xomblurbs are unnecessary... as jdubhub says, they don't make a lot of sense in a "writing community." Xombytes only have to be 25 words, which is a pretty easy requirement to meet.

the rules the way we want others to behave here.Xomba has framed the rules by taking into consideration all these and they are pretty clear and straight.

I would like to quote my friend Idlewild's own words here.

"If there is a certain amount of content on this site that you feel violates the rules, it is likely that the Xomba staff is aware of it, and has decided it is acceptable.

People who have been on Xomba for a while have experience in posting content here, and seen many changes in the site and its rules, partly in response to issues about acceptability of content, etc. And any rules in any organization are subject to interpretation by the management that has created those rules. You may interpret the rules one way, but that doesn't mean Xomba interprets them that way."(http://www.xomba.com/maria_sharapova_crotch_shot_is_exhibit_b_in_court_case_vs_japanese_adman#comment-13103)

P.S.:- (This post is really thought provoking and worth considering by members.My comments are in reply to the members' comments here.)

it is definitely up to Xomba Staff to determine how to interpret the rules. But... it seems that there are some questions that xombies still have about photos and other topics, and it would be helpful if the Staff could resolve these issues once and for all.

For example, some recent posts included photos that the person posting them did not have permission to use. Xomba informed the person that these photos were not allowed because of this, and the photos were later removed (by Xomba or by the person posting them, I'm not sure).

I'm OK with Xomba interpreting things as they wish, but in some cases clarification from them would help. (They do periodically spell out the differences between xombytes and xomblurbs, as this is a recurring problem.)

Nick and Dave are usually pretty good about straightening things out when they are notified of a problem...

I suspect that with the huge increase in traffic on Xomba, they are somewhat.... ahhhh ... tied up trying to keep the server serving..... which is probably more important at the moment....

At least that would be my best guess...

Angel

Yes, I'm aware of the controversey over this.
Nick and I are going to discuss this tomorrow.

Sorry, but I haven't read the whole comment thread, I've got a lot to do tonight.

This article is a great Eye opener for all of us!