Legal Question in Civil Litigation in New York

copyright

Some time ago I bought a CD of movies which the seller claimed came with FULL resale rights. I have been selling this on the internet. Today I get an email from a company saying they are acting as the agent of the owner of the copyright on the CD and that, by selling it, I violated the law. I explained that I was told it was with full resale rights and had no intention of breaking any laws. I spoke with the guy from the agent company. He said that I was very reasonable and, because I responded quickly, etc. my fine would only be $1000 instead of up to $5000. I asked him how I can be sure HE is not a scam. He referred me to his website which seemed legit. It was a site that offered website hosting, etc. I told him that I would cooperate and pay. He said he will send me an email and then a release. Do I have any options other than this?


Asked on 3/03/04, 1:39 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Louis Venezia Law Offices of Louis Venezia at Union Square, P.C.

Re: copyright

IT SOUNDS LIKE A SCAM!! In the past, there have been companies set up to claim trademark and copyright violations on all sorts of things that were not entitled to copyright or trademark protection. Those who had lawyers with experience paid nothing. Those without lawyers (or lawyers without experience) entered into agreements to purchase licenses for years.

REQUEST A COPY OF THE COPYRIGHT DOCUMENTATION! A sure way to tell if it is a scam is if they refuse to provide you with a copy of the documentation.

By the way, you should have also received documentation when you purchased the resale rights. HAVE YOU ATTEMPTED TO CONTACT THE PERSON WHO SOLD YOU THE RIGHTS?

Our firm provides legal services to protect innocent businessmen from fraud and scams such as this. If you would like to arrange for a consultation, you may contact us at 212-267-7000.

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Answered on 3/03/04, 7:39 am


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