First is the case of poor Laynie Link. One of LaynieWear's new releases for the Fashion Expo was a dress called Andromeda which brings to mind the glow sticks we all used as children. A dress made from light that she began creating May 7th and completed on May 12(Date evidence from her website: here,here, here, here, & here). The Fashion Expo began on June 5th so this meant Ms. Link had to wait almost a month to release her product. On June 24, 2008, Laynie Link was sent an accusatory message from someone claiming she stole their work for her project. The accuser proudly boasted that he sent notecards to everyone he knew that she was a thief and filed a DMCA. The accuser has one very BIG problem. According to the creation dates of the two projects, Laynie Link made her creation over 2 weeks prior to the accuser. The accuser's designs were created between May 21 to May 24(Date evidence from LaynieWear: here & here). Now unless Ms. Link is a psychic, there is no possible way for her to copy something that was completed until 12 days after she finished her work. Clearly this designer must be taking a page from the accusers in our earlier blog. I do not seem him going after Spiral Walcher who also has some clothing items made from light. To Ms. Link's accuser: The DMCA provides that you may be liable for damages (including costs and attorneys fees) if you falsely claim that an in-world item is infringing your copyrights. I hope you have deep pockets because if I were Ms. Link I would follow up on this.
The next case is not as clear cut but clearly as ridiculous. It is the story of Delora Starbrook. On June 23, 2007, Ms. Starbrook released her first four hairstyles. A designer, who has been called the Queen of Prims by her friends, has been the person the Goreans go to their fine silks because of the detailed primwork. She has also been a staunch supporter of content creator's rights. Another hair designer named Tekelili Tantalus came out to accuse Ms. Starbrook of stealing her work. Her story changed to stealing her artistic ideas. Rather than approach Ms. Starbrook first, the accuser ran off notecards to groups and everyone he knew. Do the hairstyles look similar? Yes. Are they the same? Not by a long shot. It became clear on the boards and other blogs that the accuser's view was not supported by the public. Despite her ugly smear campaign, the accuser keeps stating that she will not file a DMCA. At least she is slightly smarter than Ms. Link's accuser because he realized he doesn't have a prim to stand on. Some people might be confused by the reference to Ms. Tantalus by the male-like appearance in SL but people should really pay attention to who is in the room when they confess to being a woman. I have to hand it to Ms. Tantalus for being one of the only designers to go the other way.
I hope that they accusers realize that their false claims against these 2 designers are going to hurt their own businesses. No one likes to do business with someone quick to make false statements about their competitors. It makes you look like you are afraid. Darlings, it all comes down to this one thing: concepts that existed long before Second Life existed is NOT your intellectual property. Hair with ornamentation like seen in Ms. Starbrook's works date back to Cleopatra so unless you are willing to accuse the Ancient Egyptians of stealing your intellectual property you owe her an apology. Glowing clothing dates back to the 70s with the era of laser light shows and neon clothing so unless you are will to file a DMCA against the clothing designers of the 1970s then you owe Ms. Link an apology.
Other designers with light/glow based products: Gwen Carillon, Liderc Dagger, Nedalin Malle, Chill Flanagan, Spiral Walcher, and more.
Other hair designers with fantasy styles in similar styles: Sinnocent Mirabeau, Sabine Gully, Rose Columbia, Helena Stringer, Venovara Ivory, Hern Worsley, Helyanwe Vindaloo, Sunnivah Jiutai, and more.
3 July, 2008: There are some new blogs to add to the discussion involving Ms. Starbrook & Ms. Tantalus - PrimTwister War, You make widgets. Someone makes a better widget. ZOMFG! I.P. THEFT!!!, & Blah Blah, Fashionista Hair Dramaz.
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