? About "Theft" of your Content...

[Blam!]

Say you have a retail business that sells "wigits", & have set up a nice website, that includes a page devoted to answering common questions about "wiget" use.
You visit a (very) major "wiget" manufacturer's site, & find that about 50% of their "Product Support" page is Your copy, word for word!!
Any thoughts??

[Advisor]

Blam,

Read this article: Google Nails Copyright Infringers (http://www.highrankings.com/issue048.htm#guest)

Hope that helps!

Jill

[Dan0]

Google is bound by the Digital Millenium Copyright Act, and they have a formal process for removing infringing content from their index.

I would not stop there, though, I would also send the infringing company a DMCA notice. There's a very good chance that the content was placed there by a low-level employee or contractor, who just didn't feel like working that day.

[Blam!]

Thanks All for the informative help!
I'm off on Vacation for a week, but I will address the issue when I get back.
1) I have been advised by someone to first file a formal copywright for my webpage, before I decide to take any other sort of action.
2) I sell the "Wiget" Mfgr's products too, (bought thru distributors), but they also sell direct on their site.
3) I had used my FAQ page in question as an Article in a "Wiget" related magazine recently (My name as Author), which I understand this mfgr is "loosely" affiliated with, or sponsors. This is most likley where the plagerist got my copy..
... It s more "frustrating" than anything else, to see my work copied w/no credit, even though it is only being used as some product support FAQS, & the "nightmare" thoughts of Me perhaps being accused by Them of the plagarism, sometime down the road!!

[Dan0]

Originally posted by Blam!
3) I had used my FAQ page in question as an Article in a "Wiget" related magazine recently (My name as Author), which I understand this mfgr is "loosely" affiliated with, or sponsors. This is most likley where the plagerist got my copy..
Make sure you didn't sign away the rights when you did this - if the magazine owns the rights they may have given this company permission to reproduce the material, or even sold it outright.

[steelcityinternet]

If you look down this page, I've also posted a similar problem. The site has stolen all my site text and their design is a carbon copy of one of my client's. Very very infuriating.

So far, they've ignored my emails, as have their ISP, so I'm going to try the Google option next, then maybe my solicitor.

I advise printing off both your site and theirs and making digital copies. Also, post more copies to yourself by recorded delivery in case you need proof (if you are willing to go to court that is).

[Dan0]

Steelcity: You have a very different problem, because you're dealing with someone who has no reason to care about what you're doing. Although I'd imagine a phone call to the offender's ISP, or to the offender themselves, will get you farther than an email.

Blam: You ought to be able to get this addressed pretty quickly by phone. If the company is publicly traded, you could start with a call to their investor relations department to ask them about what a DMCA copyright infringement case might do to the stock price.

A phone call to a senior manager or executive in the marketing arena is usually enough to get someone's attention. The chances are good that the copying was done by a contractor, or a low-level employee.

Trying to resolve anything like this by email is going to be more difficult. Picking up the phone, and asking people if they know part of their website is infringing a copyright, will get you a lot farther, a lot faster.

[LouiseB]

One of the resellers of our products has copied our website word for word and picture for picture. He has copied all the useful links that other customers have posted on our site also which concerns me as they have given me permission to publish the links but not him.

His site is the same background colour as mine but he has changed the font and the menu bar slightly.

I have asked him if he is going to create his own site and expressed my concerns and am awaiting a reply.

How much is this likely to hurt my rankings - I was thinking mainly of the fact that it is duplicate content on two different domains.

Any advice would be appreciated.

cheers

Louise

[Advisor]

Louise, follow the instructions in the article posted above, and you shouldn't have any problems with Google.

Jill

[LouiseB]

Thansk Jill but I didn't really want to cheese him off as he spends quite a bit of money with us. Having said all this, he has contacted me this afternoon (hows that for timing) and has told me that he is creating his own site design. So all's well that ends well.

Louise