Harry Potter and the Deathly Lawsuit

[Nylan]

So apparently this is a few months old, but I think the discussion is still valid.

For the longest time, Harry Potter has been churning out piles and piles of steamy spinoff-works, ranging from Malfoy-love-fests and Harry-Hermoine shippers to Christian analogies and philosophical/political debates. Up until now, J.K. Rowling has been fine with all of it.

Now, however, she's got her panties in a bunch, and is suing the authors of a guide to the Harry Potter world.

Does she have the right to do this sort of thing? Do they have a right to make money from something they did not create? Why the sudden change in policy from J?

My first reaction was to support J.K. Rowling's right to her own work and it's profits. Now, however, I tend to agree a little bit more with this guy.

But what do you think? Should fans be able to publish guides such as this, or should they be the right of the author alone?

poll coming

 

[Kraznaya]

If its on the Internet, its fine. But not in book form.

 

[emzie]

I'm not going to read the article, so I have no clue if it's mentioned, but I know she's actually used that site.

They should just have to pay royalties.

 

[bhsup]

Wait, didn't she say she was all done writing Potter books? Yeah okay, I support her right to defend her copyright, but she's now outted as a blatant liar.

 

[North King]

Wait, didn't she say she was all done writing Potter books? Yeah okay, I support her right to defend her copyright, but she's now outted as a blatant liar.

No. She's said for a while that she was going to do an encyclopedia.

 

[bhsup]

Whoops. My apologies then, and thanks for the correction.

 

[Nylan]

On the one hand, I see where she might fear this will hurt her encyclopedia, and as an aspiring author I know how troubled she might feel...even if she's absolutely rich. The accuracy of the book would trouble me as well.

However, I also find that this contradicts the spirit of everything else she's ever done with the site, and is a 180 degree turn on her previous fan-work. This feels like a betrayal of genuine interest in her world and more of a monetary pursuit.

 

[Bill3000]

No. She's said for a while that she was going to do an encyclopedia.

Holding a monopoly on an idea if that idea isn't put into place in the material world is stupid.

 

[Ondskan]

Damn . .. .. .. .. .. She's gone from nothing to multi-millionare because 14 year old kids with a bad imagination and "I'm a nerd but not really" mentaility beg their mommy to buy them a book.

Do you know that she says she's all for helping children and feels for the poor but has sued a school in India for making a copy of the harry potter castle?

I spit on people like this and there's a limit to what 8-10 hours of work a hour is worth no matter WHAT you do.

 

[Souron]

This is old news to me.

The issue is that J.K. Rowling considers this retelling of the books, to be an inappropriate way to profit from her creativity. If copyright laws have any meaning, then she has a point. The Lexicon is not just any readers guide. It serves as a complete reference to everything mentioned in the HP books. One could read the Lexicon and know everything there is about the books.

The Lexicon, which was and continues to be an online guide to HP, has responded to fans' requests to make a print version of the lexicon. J.K. Rowling, herself has said that she supports the online version of the lexicon, and she and her publishing company have granted it permission when asked about potentially infringing content. Surely a print version of the Lexicon would be no different. But a print version is different, because now the Lexicon would be making a substantial profit from her work, instead of being a free to everyone web site.

 

[GinandTonic]

Didnt she say her print encyclopedia would be for charity?

 

[Ondskan]

She's said alot about charity and then turns on it and wants even more money. Greed..ah...

 

[Brighteye]

It does seem that the idea of making money from the encyclopaedia is what distresses her.
From the entry referenced in the article, it is just a rehash of what's in the books. It's a collection of what she's written, and I agree with her that it's nice for it to be freely available, but there really wasn't any commentary; it was purely factual. There's a difference between making it easier to understand her ideas by rearranging them for free, and selling the rearrangements on for a profit.
If I invent a steam valve and someone uses it in a steam engine, I still deserve royalties, even though the steam engine is a new construction with original thought involved.

 

[Cu Chulainn]

To be fair this encyclopedia uses information that is publicly available in book form. Its simply facts about her books. Further, I find it highly hypocritical for someone who borrowed so thoroughly from mythology and other fiction to be crying foul here. She made a career of taking other people's ideas and stringing them together in new ways.

 

[Masquerouge]

Isn't there a legal precedent for all this? What about all the Star Wars encyclopedias, the Cthulu role-playing game, and all that stuff?

 

[Ondskan]

Well...Lucas ain't a . .. .. .. .. ., she is.

 

[Babbler]

Isn't there a legal precedent for all this? What about all the Star Wars encyclopedias, the Cthulu role-playing game, and all that stuff?

I suspect those were all licensed material, where the publisher got the permission by the copyright owners, in exchange for a cut in the profits.

 

[brennan]

IMO all J.K.Rowling's money is rightfully Jill Murphy's.

 

[Masquerouge]

I suspect those were all licensed material, where the publisher got the permission by the copyright owners, in exchange for a cut in the profits.

So why not do the same here?

 

[Ondskan]

Well...Lucas ain't a . .. .. .. .. ., she is.

Just look at all the parodies of StarWars, used in every small and big show all over the world.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars:_Revelations

From there you can find a list.

You also got the parodies like spaceballs.

And all the books and everything. Few things are liscenced. Why would it be?
First of all, he just as she is rich enough.
Second it gives the franchies more promotion for free.
Thirdly sueing the fans and small companies would only generate negative press and limit the fanbase.

Only greedy and stupid people would sue someone who publishes an entire encyclopedia about a FICTIONAL work that they have made. Instead they should feel honoured.