If you're not aware of what the "orphan rights bill" is, it's a proposed law that if the copyright owner of a image isn't easily found, it's free to use. All creative groups are opposed to this law passing.
But here's the thing I'm taking issue with. What the detested orphan rights bill would make legal is already happening illegally. There are companies that are grabbing images from Google Images and using them for commercial use, thinking (or not thinking because they are incapable of rational thought) that what they're doing is just fine.
The prevailing attitude seems to be not getting caught means no foul.
Here's a picture of sneakers that were designed with one of my images.
Here's an article I wrote outing the company that provided the image.
http://bermangraphics.com/blog/the-orphan-rights-bill-our-greatest-fear/
Larry Berman
http://BermanGraphics.com
412-401-8100
Larry Berman
<a href="http://BermanGraphics.com">http://BermanGraphics.com</a>
412-401-8100
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Comments
It is a sad fact of life that when anything can be copied or duplicated without a whole lot of effort there will be crooks who will take advantage and do it. Ethics and conscience seem to be a thing of the past for many.
So sad to hear Larry but I am afraid it might become worse before it becomes better. I think these are lawmakers getting in bed with big corporations to give them the right to steal anything they want. I always get nervous looking at my web stats when I see hits form China etc...How could I fight Walmart if they say they bought the image from a small graphics company in China? Corporations count on the fact that fighting copyright infringement can be difficult and expensive to the artist..
It is so sad... Much of society today has become lazy from both a labor and creativity stand point. So many look to survive by standing on the shoulder of others.