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Copyright laws of selling fakes and replicas.....
Skinpinch
Posts: 1,531
I just read that thread on the '52 Mantle scam, and it got me to think....do any of the scammers ever get in trouble if they are selling fake cards? Or, are they off the hook when they add the dreaded "it is not graded, so i am selling it as a reprint?"
Are these fish just too small to fry, or is there nothing legally to be done to them?
Mail fraud is a possibility, but it seems they are off the hook with that quote on the fraud part.
I guess a fool and his money probably ends up being the answer.
Are these fish just too small to fry, or is there nothing legally to be done to them?
Mail fraud is a possibility, but it seems they are off the hook with that quote on the fraud part.
I guess a fool and his money probably ends up being the answer.
0
Comments
There is also trademark law protection. If the mark is still being used, it does not expire. Assuming Topps is still in business, they would have the right to block anyone from reprinting their cards, even after the copyrights expire. Cracker Jack is probably the best known example of cards which have trademark but no copyright protection. Teams whose logos are used can also enforce trademark rights to reprints that feature those logos.
There is also tort law (i.e., fraud and deceit). This does not require a manufacturer or licensor to enforce, but can be enforced by an injured purchaser or law enforcement agency (and under certain circumstances by someone suing on behalf of the general public).
Living players have image protection under another area of intellectual property law known as right of publicity. This can extend to the estates of deceased players in some circumstances.
The "disclaimers" that some sellers of reprints use would not be sufficient to absolve them from criminal or civil liability. Announcing that it IS a reprint gets you off the hook for fraud, but may still leave you open to criminal copyright or trademark infringement.
Nick
Reap the whirlwind.
Need to buy something for the wife or girlfriend? Check out Vintage Designer Clothing.
If all wrongdoers were pursued and prosecuted,
there wouldn't be time for anybody in the world to do anything else.
All scammers are betting that the LAW isn't going to care about them;
but sometimes dey do -
"All evil needs to triumph is for good men to do nothing."
<< <i>All scammers are betting that the LAW isn't going to care about them; >>
Mark
That is at the center of the problem...and it is probably true to some degree.
Remember this weekend when a guy posted that this card was being sold almost simultaneously.
Well, I emailed everyone and found out that the current owner is holding and has no intention of selling the card. Thus, obviously a stolen scan...I contacted ebay fraud...I contacted the second seller and told him what I knew...the item was dropped but we all know there is enough evidence here for a case of fraud!
Will ebay report it? Right.
your friend
Mike
<< <i>21671. (a) Any sports trading card that is altered or refurbished
shall be accompanied by a certificate stating the exact work done to
the sports trading card, the date the work was performed, the cost of
that work, and the name, phone number, and address of the person who
performed the work.
(b) Any person or agent thereof, who knowingly sells or trades a
sports card in violation of subdivision (a), shall both:
(1) Refund to the buyer, the full amount paid for the altered or
refurbished sports trading card or the full retail value of any
nonmonetary consideration received in exchange for the altered or
refurbished sports trading card, or both.
(2) Be liable to the buyer for a civil penalty not to exceed five
thousand dollars ($5,000) for each violation. Each card sold
represents a separate and distinct violation.
21672. (a) Any person, or agent thereof, who knowingly
manufactures, produces, or distributes unlicensed or counterfeit
sports trading cards with the intent to deceive, injure, or defraud
another, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
Any person, or agent thereof, who violates this subdivision shall
do both of the following:
(1) Refund to the buyer the full amount paid for the unlicensed or
counterfeit sports trading card or the full retail value of any
nonmonetary consideration received in exchange for the unlicensed or
counterfeit sports trading card, or both.
(2) Be liable to the buyer for a civil penalty not to exceed five
thousand dollars ($5,000) for each violation. Each card sold
represents a separate and distinct violation.
(b) Any person who knowingly sells a cut, unlicensed sports
trading card that has been produced by cutting the card from a
publication in which unlicensed sports trading cards are bound,
without disclosing the source and the means of producing the card,
with the intent to deceive, injure, or defraud another, is guilty of
a misdemeanor.
Any person who violates this subdivision shall do both of the
following:
(1) Refund to the buyer the full consideration paid or furnished
for the cut, unlicensed sports trading card.
(2) Be liable to the buyer for a civil penalty not to exceed five
thousand dollars ($5,000) for each violation. Each card sold
represents a separate and distinct violation.
This provision does not apply to a sports trading card that is
excluded from the definition of "unlicensed sports trading card"
pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 21670 of the Business and
Professions Code by reason of being bound in a publication.
>>
Now I wonder what my local PD would do if I walked in with a trimmed card and said I wanted the seller charged under 21671? Probably look at each other and wonder what the heck I was talking about!
Does your state have anything similar?
Skip
ANGEL OF HOPE
Skip
TUSTIN CA
<< <i>Now I wonder what my local PD would do if I walked in with a trimmed card and said I wanted the seller charged under 21671? Probably look at each other and wonder what the heck I was talking about! >>
Skip
They would also tell you that they have real criminals out there that they don't have the time or resources to catch.
your friend
Mike
I have an original 8mm film done by a man who used to work for the Associated Press.
The film is from the 1960 World Series and shows Mantle hitting 3 home runs.
I was thinking of transferring the film to DVD...do I have any copyright to this or would I also have to get permission from the Mantle estate, the New York Yankees, and MLB?
Would be interested in hearing any thoughts on this.
Barry
**I'm here & NEVER LEFT and never stopped fighting all hobby fraud! ** Know that I've been dealing with constant widespread nerve pain & severe constant weakness at it's worst since 2009. I only learned in 2023 that I inherited my deadbeat/thief father's DNA after he served (dishonorably) at Camp LeJeune with their poisonous ground water for 18-months in 195-54 & I was born with the same altered CAR Gene causing (3) severe Neuromuscular diseases that 1st emerged in late 2001. By 2006 all 3 were diagnosed & ignorant doctors never did a DNA test. If they had they would have known everything wrong with me was ATYPICAL & could not be imply diagnosed like anyone else. I've been homebound/mostly bedridden since 2009 and am still progressively getting worse in NYC that I'm stuck in with a Communist MORON Mayor, AOC who destroyed her District in Jackson Heights near me and all the rest of the THIEF Democraps. I lost my family house in 2025 because my Sociopath/gambling addict mother took an $82,000 loan out on OUR house & never paid it back. While she was forced into a Nursing Home in 2014 catatonic, I got stuck with all the house bills living on nothing but $18K a year in Soc. Sec. Disability & $120 a month in Food Stamps??? So my life's been mostly hell. Yet I still fight for EVERYONE in this hobby who has honor & integrity unlike MANY on Blowout Cards forums including the owner who was HIGHLY OVERCHARGING for cheap single cards multiple sales in S&H. Like $6-$7 for 5 thin cards when actual postage WAS UNDER $2.00! So I've been banned from those forums while liars follow the leader in bashing me will all lies. Use Google AL and look up CARDCOP Sports Cards & you'll see TRUTH about me that I had nothing to do with.
I've been fighting eBay counterfeit cards since they first appeared on eBay. I bought many examples from the biggest BULK sellers & sent the SEALED packages to eBay Security, the FBI, & ICE (the FBI told me they fight counterfeits too). Then counterfeits disappeared off eBay for a couple of years. Then they were back listed as ACEO or "ART" cards which they are NEITHER. ACEO was created by eBay to identify "ART CARDS, EDITIONS, ORIGIONALS" by actual Artists! Yet eBay let counterfeit sellers use this instead of having to list them as (illegal, unlicensed) REPRINTS???
eBay got too greedy ignoring fakes because as one employee told me by phone "eBay doesn't like losing seller all those fees". NICE, HUH? **** I'll add photos when I find them.****
In 2017-18, I caught a counterfeit PSA 10 1986 Fleer Jordan on eBay for $31,999.99. The seller finally admitted in eBay messages that he** "bought it on eBay for $5.00 & sent it to PSA to see if they'd grade it."**. Then he had no issue selling it on eBay??? I had seen so many fakes & real ones by this point that with a 10X lighted jeweler's eye piece I was able to come up with about TEN reasons why this PSA 10 (now owned by famous rapper/DJ Aoki & his name is on the label) was a counterfeit. I sent the HIGH QUALITY scans of the fake & a real one side by side front & back in early 2018 to eBay, the FBI, ICE & Upper Deck (who owned Fleer since 2005). NO ONE DID A DAMN THING! It sold listed for $31,999 OR BEST OFFER - TWICE for the full $31,999. It's obvious to me the first buyer saw things I did & returned it. The scum seller just relisted it *& it sold days later again this time for good. I wished so badly anyone I sent PROOF TO, WOULD BUY IT AND GET IT OUT OF THE HOBBY, no one did! Now it's a totally worthless MILLION+ card & AOKI won't respond.
HOW MANY OTHER COUNTERFEITS BOUGHT ON EBAY FOR $1-$5 EACH WERE GRADED BY PSA? All grading is USELESS! Millennials & Gen Z who had horrible public educations & usually just as bad parents made card grading a NECESSITY during COVID & ONLY PSA 10's for them were good enough with their parent's money (most who never left home at 30 & never worked???) , so what did they have to lose. THEY KILLED OUR HOBBY.
Now both PSA & BGS are SO BACKLOGGED (up to 11 Million cards each currently or more) that both stopped grading at any level but the priciest (because they are still greedy bastards). I never paid to grade one card & never will. I have been fighting PSA fraud since the mid-1990's & caught Joe Orlando in so many LIES by phone!
I fought LOGAN PAUL & GOLDIN with their FAKE PSA 10 Pikachu Illustrator cards too. I do my research well & never spread rumors. I never lie or exaggerate either. That PSA 10 cards was graded a PSA 9 at least THREE TIMES before it magically got a 10! I saw the back of that actual card with three chipped areas where white is showing that would NEVER grade a 10 with all things being equal, BUT THEY ARE NOT. Once Goldin got involved, he had the card re-cased WITHOUT BEING REGRADED which was PSA's fairly new rule. So MAGICALLY it got a PSA 10 again. Goldin has been a greedy crook his entire life. For Guinness Book to award these two crooked idiots for selling the most expensive card of any kind ever just devalued Guinness Book FOREVER! What about all the people owed money from Logan Paul's LIQUID MARKETPLACE where he sold pieces of that SAME EXACT CROOKED CARD that was NEVER REPAID??? The scum in this hobby never cease to amaze me.
I know more about this hobby from every angle than any other individual BAR NONE & that was a quote by two big card company owners once I gave them a good taste of my hobby knowledge.
Mainly collect ON CARD Certified Autographs from big card companies since 1997. Donated ALL hobby profits in cards/autographs to hospitalized children since 1989. ** Been fighting all hobby fraud for free by myself since 1992 when no one else would.** Became a fully trained Forensic Document Examiner in 1999.Was a 16-year medical professional. My 2nd full time job since 1989 was learning everything I possibly could about the sports card hobby from every angle. Had a website chronicling my anti-fraud endeavors from 1997-2005.
Camp LeJeune poisonous water victim born with altered DNA CAR Gene from my deadbeat/thief father who served there in 1953-54. Been suffering with indescribable pain from (3) Neuromuscular diseases all correctly diagnosed by 2006.
I'm here Allen & never left!
Mainly collect ON CARD Certified Autographs from big card companies since 1997. Donated ALL hobby profits in cards/autographs to hospitalized children since 1989. ** Been fighting all hobby fraud for free by myself since 1992 when no one else would.** Became a fully trained Forensic Document Examiner in 1999.Was a 16-year medical professional. My 2nd full time job since 1989 was learning everything I possibly could about the sports card hobby from every angle. Had a website chronicling my anti-fraud endeavors from 1997-2005.
Camp LeJeune poisonous water victim born with altered DNA CAR Gene from my deadbeat/thief father who served there in 1953-54. Been suffering with indescribable pain from (3) Neuromuscular diseases all correctly diagnosed by 2006.