Ebay: Keep Calm & Carry On Copyright violation!!

starmirror

:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

I was given a Next canvas 'Keep Calm & Carry On'. Put it on ebay as not wanted. Ebay removed it due to copyright breach :mad::mad::mad: There is no copyright on this quote.

However, www . keepcalmandcarryon . com who are the 'legal rights owners' can report items with this quote as it is their official name!!

My policy compliance has been put down to 'medium'.

Have spoken to eBay twice now but they are being very unhelpful.

What to do?

Lucy

starmirror

oh well... got this reply:


Dear Sir/Madam,

Dear Sir,

KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON ® is now a Registered as Community Trademark (CTM) Registration No: 9455619 in our name: Keep Calm and Carry On Ltd.

A CTM Registration gives the Owner of the Registration the exclusive right throughout the whole of the European Community (including the United Kingdom) to use the Trademark in connection with any of the Goods for which it is registered. It is an unlawful Infringement of CTM Registration No: 945619, without our permission, to apply the Trademark KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON ® to goods for which it is Registered or to their packaging, or to import such goods where the Trademark has been applied to those goods or to their packaging.

If you have received a Take-Down Notice from eBay regarding goods advertised on eBay, this is because the goods concerned fall within the goods of CTM Registration No: 9455619, and we believe either • that you have applied the Trademark to those goods or their packaging or had the Trademark applied for you, or • that you have imported such goods where the Trademark has been applied to those goods or to their packaging. It is also a Criminal Offence as well as an unlawful Infringement knowingly to manufacture or supply Counterfeit Goods, namely goods essentially the same as goods supplied by Keep Calm and Carry On Ltd to which or to the packaging of which the Trademark has been applied.

Our legal team are working closely with aBay and their Vero programme enforcing our rights against any infringement with sellers.

Yours,

Keep Calm and Carry On Ltd.

Sportsandfitness

Not good, you should take it up with next

starmirror

Whatever the case the company has been nice to deal with and have said they will contact ebay to lift the policy breach as I'm not a regular seller of the said item - phew

cotswold19

I had exactly the same thing yesterday. We had a couple of items removed and both Ebay and the company have been very unhelpful and my policy compliance has also been reduced to medium. Ebay just want to protect themselves from copyright infringement (even though it isn't).How can a company copyright something which is now out of copyright. It doesn't make sense and are they now going to contact Next, Past Times, John Lewis etc and stop them producing the items too. Does anyone know if anything can stop this company?

RFW

cotswold19 wrote: »

How can a company copyright something which is now out of copyright.

It looks like they can and they have. Only the originator could stop them or many years of legal wrangling.

wrenlegs

Can I ask a Q? I want to start up a trading as company using the 'keep calm and carry on' logo (but, importantly, changing 'calm' to another word). The crown will also be changed for a different pic and the colour of the rectangle would be altered too. Where now would I stand as far as copyright is concerned? Any advice greatly recieved

RFW

wrenlegs wrote: »

Can I ask a Q? I want to start up a trading as company using the 'keep calm and carry on' logo (but, importantly, changing 'calm' to another word). The crown will also be changed for a different pic and the colour of the rectangle would be altered too. Where now would I stand as far as copyright is concerned? Any advice greatly recieved

It really depends on if it resembles it in any way. If you're talking about Ebay then they will take it down if the copyright holder asks them to, if you're talking about in general then if it isn't cut and dry a judge would ultimately decide.

It's a very grey area and lawyers earn fortunes out of copyright protection. Burberry have a team checking for any tartans that are a bit too similar to theirs.

revpeachy

I'm naive in these matters but surely if one item has to be taken down then all the keep calm and carry on items should be removed too?? There are thousands still listed.

Doesn't the Government own the rights to the logo/slogan; afterall it was "our" war PR machine that created it.

It must be some newbie company, cottoned on to the latest trend and now being an *rse about it.

cotswold19

I think it is a new company chancing their luck and ebay have just capitulated although as there are still thousands listed on there I'm not sure how they are enforcing it. I just hope everyone now avoids Keep Calm and Carry On Ltd as they are a bunch of charlatans. I bet John Lewis's or Past Times' lawyers would give them short shrift but I suppose Keep Calm and Carry On Ltd wouldn't even bother with the big boys as they are obviously cowards and just out to make a quick buck.

revpeachy

Agree with cotswold19....do you think they will take on Imperial War Museum http://www.iwmshop.org.uk/index.html. Surely the sale of second hand goods means our postings are exempt anyway?