Posts by collis

Hey guys,

I just wanted to write and say I know a few people have raised two big issues in particular: that we aren’t communicating often enough (or as well as we maybe used to), and that there isn’t enough (or the right) improvements happening here on the marketplaces.

I think both of these concerns are very valid, and I’m going to think on how best to address them. I think communication maybe has suffered since we changed from our old Site Manager setup last year, and for me these days my work schedule is so heavy that the only time I seem to come by is when there is bad news to deliver (argh!!!) And on the development front, I think we could do well to be more transparent with our plans and roadmap.

Anyhow I will give it a bit more thought and try to come up with a plan to address both issues.

I’m very thankful for all the patience you guys have with us! Sometimes when I read about how long people have been waiting for features or staff replies I flinch. We definitely could do better, and will work towards it. We have a philosophy that Envato is her authors. And if that’s the case, we really should be doing better on these two fronts!!

dSKY: 3. You say that DMCA takedown notice has some serious legal ramifications, how can I sue someone across the world when I know only their Envato account name ?What judicial authority is in charge of the process?

- We don’t give out Envato author account details for privacy (data protection) reasons. It would be up to the rights holder to do their research, find out more details about the author and take action. In very serious situations, and if the copyright holder had the resources, they could use legal advisors in the author’s home country to take action against the author. This is only theoretical though, and we can’t say whether a rights holder would chose to do this. The judicial authority would depend on the countries involved, such as courts in the author’s home country and the courts in the rights holder’s country. It would involve complicated issues of ‘jurisdiction’ which are best left to specialist lawyers!!

Anderworks: Today one of my flyers was soft rejected because of use of a Public Domain picture of Kathrin Hepburn. I don’t get it?

Hey Anderworks I saw you decided to change the image altogether, but here’s the answer anyhow

This is an example of the difference between copyright in the photo itself, and model releases given by the person in the photo. There might not be copyright in the photo (or it was licensed), but the person in the photo might not have given permission for the photo to be used in a commercial context. (That’s why some collections in stock libraries are for ‘editorial’ use only; the people in those photos have not given model release permissions.) There are arguments for and against whether use of a person’s photo in a template preview is ‘commercial’ or ‘advertising’ use. We’ve decided that it’s best to avoid using celebrity photos in previews altogether.

Also I should point out that stuff like this applies to deceased celebrities as often their estates enforce their rights not to have their images used for commercial purposes.

Hope that helps!

BoxedCreative said
Can someone please advise on using branded products, lets say showcasing a particualr product in a magazine layout or a brochure layout? The best example is if you see some magazine layiuts and in their previews they show products such as , Apple, sports brands, celebrities etc.

GraficAndMedia said
Guys, can I use the watermarked picture from Photodune to my flyer and put some color effects on it? (+ I give link in discription). Please fast anwser!

Yep, you can use a watermarked PhotoDune image without purchasing a license as long as you ensure the watermark stays visible, do not include the item in the download, and link back to the PhotoDune image page.

CodingJack said
I know the topic has been a lot about images but I’d like to talk about youtube video for a moment as this hasn’t been discussed.

From this page where Google covers embedding:

http://support.google.com/youtube/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=171780

if you click on:

“Disable / enable the option to embed for my uploaded videos”

you’ll see this exact photo (notice the emphasis Google is trying to make with the big fat arrow)

And because there is no clarification as to what qualifies and what doesn’t, I’m going to assume this means ALL “external sites”. Yes Doru’s example above makes sense in theory, but in practice most blogs that embed videos (the news media being a prime example) have “blogs” that basically exist to generate revenue. Whether it be by website ads or by attracting people to their brand, it’s all relative.

Hey Codingjack, I think as long as the video embed is the straight YouTube embed then there shouldn’t be a problem. However if the video is being ported through some other video player (i.e. without YouTube’s branding, link backs, credits etc) then that wouldn’t be allowed.

Is the default embed the scenario you are describing?

Hi phpdude,

Good questions, a big part is that we’re moving to a different pricing initiative. I hope to announce more details soon which should help explain the changes as well.

On the subject of feature requests, I’ve noticed recently some of the smaller changes have been met with a bit of frustration similar to Orman’s points. This is very understandable, it’s mostly that the things on that feature list you mentioned are all large projects.

Our development team works on a few different queues of projects at once. The small stuff is always churning out, and often things like item badges, the thumbnail changes on AudioJungle and so on, are all from our small queue. The larger queues move much more slowly and this is where the really big stuff happens, and where the bulk of the resources go.

It’s important to have multiple queues because there is a lot of small stuff that mounts up if you’re not careful.

I like the idea of a roadmap. I’ll work up something, as I think a bit of transparency in this area would help a lot!

Hey Orman,

I totally understand and as I mentioned in the post, I’m very aware that these changes won’t make up for the loss of the pricing adjustment tool for authors who were making use of it.

I’m confident that long term you’ll find our pricing plans will work to maximise your earnings and eliminate some of the need to test different price points. But I can understand that’s a bit frustrating to hear, and to see the tool removed.

With respect to analytics on the referral program, I also agree. Our referral program needs a complete overhaul from top to bottom. It’s one of the oldest parts of the codebase, and last time it was modified we had a dramatic set of bugs. This means it’s been on the list of ‘clear the schedule for months in advance’ type projects. It is on the agenda however, but a ways off.

On the open rating system, what sort of thing did you have in mind? Ratings have had a lot of discussions in the team, but I don’t know anyone has ever felt super confident we have a better solution than the current system (at least in my opinion).

Again, I’m sorry this change is impacting you poorly. I hope to be back soon with more details of our pricing plans.

CodingJack said
Has Youtube and Vimeo embedding been discussed? My interpretation of these sites is if the content author allows for embedding it’s fair game. Can we get an official word on this?

Good question, I’m not sure to be totally honest, so let me get back to you tomorrow!

Hey guys! More answers below

survivor said
Hey Collis again,

little bit off the thread topic, but I’m using pictures from one site where almost all photos are licensed with these rules:

You may use the Image

• In digital format on websites, multimedia presentations, broadcast film and video, cell phones.
• In printed promotional materials, magazines, newspapers, books, brochures, flyers, CD/DVD covers, etc.
• Along with your corporate identity on business cards, letterhead, etc.
• To decorate your home, your office or any public place.

You may not use the Image

• For pornographic, unlawful or other immoral purposes, for spreading hate or discrimination, or to defame or victimise other people, sociteties, cultures.
• To endorse products and services if it depicts a person.
• In a way that can give a bad name to SXC or the person(s) depicted on the Image.
• As part of a trademark, service mark or logo.
• SELLING AND REDISTRIBUTION OF THE IMAGE (INDIVIDUALLY OR ALONG WITH OTHER IMAGES ) IS STRICTLY FORBIDDEN ! DO NOT SHARE THE IMAGE WITH OTHERS !

.... so am I ok with using this stock in my previews?

First, keep in mind I am not a lawyer, but I will give you my personal non-professional opinion!

It looks like this license would be OK. You need to make sure that you aren’t making it look like a person in the photo is endorsing your product, that you aren’t doing anything to give a bad name to SXC and so on. But on the whole it looks like an acceptable license.

navigator said
I suppose it’s OK to crop images from Envato Asset Library, even in some cases watermark will go away ???

Ah well, I think those watermarks are there to make sure the images are protected. We’ve paid a license fee to the creators under the proviso that they are watermarked in usage.

starshade said
I am currently subscribed to a royalty free stock where I can download 5 images / day with standard license(no copy limitation and it states I can use the images in websites and blogs). So my question is, can I use those images only in my theme previews ?

It sounds like that would probably be OK, you’d need to read the license terms and double check that usage in promotional materials is OK, but from your description I believe that would be fine to use in theme previews.

dSKY said
Authors from ActiveDen.net had more strict rules about image licencing from the very beginning ot the marketplace.
As an Envato author and a community member for 5 years, I’m looking to move to CodeCanyon and ThemeForest, so I have a few simple questions:
1. Is it allowed to use stills from movies and cartoons ?
2. What will happen to those themes on TF that are using them for a very long time now? 3. You say that DMCA takedown notice has some serious legal ramifications, how can I sue someone across the world when I know only their Envato account name ?What judicial authority is in charge of the process?

Good questions!

1. Nope, unless you have some special license from the creator of the cartoon or movie, you should avoid using the stills.

2. We are working hard to put more effort into educating authors to use only properly licensed images in their work.

Obviously if we get a DMCA takedown notice, we’ll immediately take down the items. And if it comes to light that there are specific items, then Envato in its discretion may choose to remove the items and communicate with the author about the issue.

3. Thankfully nothing like that has ever happened to date, which means I don’t have a real answer. I’ll ask our general counsel and see if she is able to give us some more information.

anderworks said
Today one of my flyers was soft rejected because of use of a Public Domain picture of Kathrin Hepburn. I don’t get it?

Interesting question! This is a good reminder of why our review is intended as a technical and quality check only.

I’ve checked with Jarel, our review manager, who says that you should write to support and it should get forwarded to him to liaise with you.

Hey folks! So a few answers to people’s questions:

peerforest said
i am about to upload a psd template and i have used movie posters in my banner.

so my straight question is can i bundle those photos in main files as well. as the movie posters are of open license i think, or just comment me if i am wrong.

and the other question i need to ask (though, its not related to preview image issue.) i need to know what matter to write in the txt file for each psd page we prepare. what kind of description should we include ?

Hey peerforest, you should not use movie posters in EITHER your preview or download file. Movie posters aren’t licensed for that purpose.

Generally speaking you should stay away from any image you find on the internet which doesn’t come with an actual license explaining what you can and can’t use it for (and of course making sure that it says you can use it for this purpose).

Movie posters, celebrity photos, and images from film and television are often used in news articles and editorial, however that does not mean they are allowed for use in a private commercial setting like selling your design work on the marketplaces.

Hope that helps!

survivor said
Why You need a commercial license for the preview image. You are not selling the photo nor You get the money because of the photo, don’t You?

Basically because you are using the photo in a commercial usage (to help you sell something). So it’s the same as if you were buying it on behalf of a client to help them sell their product.

Remember that your preview images and description are basically your own advertising for your products. In fact you can imagine that if you weren’t a designer (e.g. you are an CodeCanyon author) you could commission a design agency to create your preview images. In that case it seems obvious that the agency would need to be buying licenses. It’s the same when you, yourself are the designer.

Hope that helps explain!

doru said
I don’t understand if we need to ask for permission from the author of the item on videohive, photodune or other marketplace, before we use his preview image, video, audio in our preview?

In relation to the use of seller items without requiring permission, this is explicitly allowed by our terms of usage (http://themeforest.net/legal/membership) at the very end of clause 15. It’s been a part of the terms since 2010, though not something we’ve ever promoted:

“You agree that a Seller may use a watermarked preview of your Product in a preview of another Product without requiring permission from you, without violating your copyright and without providing monetary compensation to you. The Seller must credit such usage by providing a link to your Product.”

Previous to that we had a policy that authors should ask for permission. But over time we’ve moved towards a simpler system. There has been some miscommunication on this issue, as evidenced by the Notes post.

I’m going to clarify this with the team, and will get that Notes post corrected. Moving forward, you can use the explicit permission given in the terms of usage and not need to ask. I’ll organize a follow-up Notes post on the subject.

revaxarts said
Why don’t just buy a regular license? They are really cheap (especially this month)

Absolutely agree Also this will let you remove the watermark, which lets face it is a lot more attractive. And if your item is going to sell hundreds of dollars worth, then investing a few dollars in photos could be worth it.

Also if you have purchased the license you don’t need to add link backs. That Graphic Designer bundle that rvision_ mentioned was perfect for getting photos to use in items.

Of course, I think it’s always nice to link back to other authors. It’s a practice I think is great for the community and helps build cross sales!

Flower said
1. It’s understandable that you have to comply with DMCA law to qualify for safe harbor provisions for service providers but I noticed that you not always do that. For instance our support ticket (#178348) was received by you on 23rd December 2010 and it still didn’t got response (28th January 2011). According to law all the notifications should be promptly forwarded to opposing party and complaining party should be notified about that. This is your article about ‘put back’ procedures: http://wiki.envato.com/selling/copyright-selling/a-dmca-takedown-notice-has-been-issued-against-my-item-what-does-this-mean/ What are authors supposed to do when their notice or counter-notice (or other notices) are getting ignored? Why this happens?

2. DMCA law is strange to me. You act first and ask questions later. Any item can be deleted without preceding notice. Perhaps you can’t do anything about that because that’s the law but in my opinion it contributes to some false claims that come from misunderstanding or mistakes and that can damage both authors and marketplace slightly.

3. It’s good to hear that reviewers will have impact on more things. Good system and requirements seem to be the best foundation of great company. Focus on review more and I believe that such problems may be decreased It’s worth additional funds and hassle in my opinion.

PS
I think that reviewers and support should help authors more on ‘private’ non-official level (as much as possible). Most of the authors don’t know law and they just want to create items. Going towards ‘automated’ treatment of authors isn’t good in my opinion. Friendly, non-official support advices may reduce many problems and passively following law isn’t always good for anyone involved.

Hey Flower, thanks for letting me know about the ticket. I’ll ask one of the team to investigate as I don’t know the details of that particular issue.

DMCA law is a little odd in some ways, but it makes many internet services like Envato and Youtube possible. It can be misused, but when issuing a DMCA takedown notice you are making a legal statement with some serious consequences if you lie, so it shouldn’t be abused.

I think we can definitely do more to help educate and train authors to understand more about their responsibilities. And I hope that authors like yourself will in turn help educate newer, less experienced authors.

Together we’ll make sure that we keep the marketplaces clean and clear!

dtbaker said
From here: When you submit an item to the Envato marketplaces, you’ll always upload a preview as well as a main file. Maybe it needs to mention the “preview” is not only the preview package we upload to envato, it also means the live preview(s) we host on our own servers. Interesting that we can use someone elses watermarked marketplace item (eg: from photodune) to make our previews look nicer (as long as we link to that item and clearly state it is not available in the final download) I did not know we could do that cool!

Ah yes, it’s been in our terms of usage for some time, but I think we need to do a community push around it.

Our aim is to help authors across the marketplaces cross sell each other’s files. Ultimately when a buyer sees stuff they like in a preview, they may (hopefully) go and buy those same items!

Hi folks,

Thanks for raising these questions. We have always had information on the wiki and in the upload instructions about properly licensing images and other assets for use in previews.

I’ve just posted an important post on Envato Notes on this topic to remind authors of their obligation to ensure that we keep the marketplaces free of copyright infringement.

So I’m glad that the community is also working to build awareness for those authors who may not fully understand yet their responsibilities.

Anyhow I hope you all find the post useful. And thanks to matu for raising the post over on Microstockgroup where a similar discussion has been happening.

Hi folks, I’ve just posted up an important post to remind all authors about what kinds of things you can and cannot use in previews on the Envato Marketplaces.

You can read the article on Envato Notes here.

If you have questions or need clarity on any points, let me know in the comments or here on this forum thread and I can answer anything you may be wondering!