Legoman Posted October 18, 2011 Posted October 18, 2011 I spent a while looking for a thread along these lines, but couldn't find one. So the last few days I've had some free time, with which I've been sorting/re-arranging/cleaning my Lego, to find that some of the stickers are just getting worse and worse as the years go on (My 7191 X-wing display plaque sticker is literally falling apart ), and it's been getting me thinking. Would it be legal to make a copy of the stickers when I first buy a set, and simply apply the copy, Keeping the originals mint? I'm thinking it should be fine, as long as I'm not selling the copies and they were solely for my own use. Can anyone confirm this? My next question then is, For those of you that may already do this or that make custom stickers, Is there any piticluar sticker that is quite close to the sticker type Lego uses? (I'm aware they use different stickers for different things, but any info would be helpful) I just simply cannot stand paying over $300 just to make my 7191 look nice again with fresh stickers I'd much rather legally make a copy.. This is mainly an issue for my Star Wars sets, But I'm sure it applies to most themes with stickers Thoughts and opinions, Anyone? Cheers -Legoman Quote
Jargo Posted October 18, 2011 Posted October 18, 2011 Technically it's still illegal in countries where copyright law applies. However if it's for personal use and the copies are never sold or given away then it's not going to attract attention from the company. To be honest the copyright notice on the sticker sheet should tell you that it's protected property, but like I say, if it's just for you alone then I wouldn't worry. Quote
Legoman Posted October 18, 2011 Author Posted October 18, 2011 (edited) Technically it's still illegal in countries where copyright law applies. However if it's for personal use and the copies are never sold or given away then it's not going to attract attention from the company. To be honest the copyright notice on the sticker sheet should tell you that it's protected property, but like I say, if it's just for you alone then I wouldn't worry. So it's still technically illegal? Intresting. I realize that the stickers themselves are copyrighted but I would have thought that once you've paid for the set, you then have the right to copy it for your own use? Hmm. Thanks for that Edited October 18, 2011 by Legoman Quote
Big Cam Posted October 18, 2011 Posted October 18, 2011 So it's still technically illegal? Intresting. I realize that the stickers themselves are copyrighted but I would have thought that once you've paid for the set, you then have the right to copy it for your own use? Hmm. Thanks for that It is "technically" illegal as mentioned, but if you are making just one copy and just for your personal use, then I wouldn't worry about it. Even if LEGO found out, they would never pursue you for duplicating one set of stickers. So without sounding like I know everything about the law, you'll be fine, just don't sell any. It's just like copying a dvd, if you make a backup copy and you originally paid for an authentic choy and you still have it, it's ok. You just can't sell them. Quote
fyrmedhatt Posted October 18, 2011 Posted October 18, 2011 I don't know about New Zealand copyright laws, but in many places around the world you'd be in the right to make personal copies, that is the case in Norway at least. I hardly think Lego would ever care given they only produce a limited number of stickers for support, so when a set is out of production, there is probably no other way to get replacements than homemade copies unless you pay the Bricklink premium. I will do the same with my stickers, I have not been applying stickers to my sets for the longest time, but finally I've started to buy extra sticker sheets. They add up in expenses rather quickly though, so I think my plan from now will be to keep one mint sticker sheet, apply one, and have a digital copy for the future so I don't have to apply rare sticker sheets. Quote
Legoman Posted October 18, 2011 Author Posted October 18, 2011 Alrighty, Thanks for that guys. Has anyone done this before, and is there anything I should know? Any piticular way to do/not do it? Quote
Shadows Posted October 18, 2011 Posted October 18, 2011 I don't apply stickers to anything because of this exact problem. I have always intended to scan and reproduce any that I wanted to use, but haven't had occasion to bother. I have no problem openly stating that if I ever use a sticker, I would have copied and produced a new one first as a backup (well, I'd use the backup and keep the original). Seriously, they're stickers and you're using them for your own purposes without any form of profit. I'm fairly certain that if you don't go on a huge LEGO forum and post about it (oops! ), no one will care. And yes, it's also legal in some places, so you would need to research that if you're still concerned. Quote
Vindicare Posted October 19, 2011 Posted October 19, 2011 You could always email/call LEGO and get a replacement. I don't kniwsome how far back they go, but that's worth a shot. Quote
JopieK Posted October 19, 2011 Posted October 19, 2011 It is indeed a bit fuzzy. We reproduce lot's of LEGO stickers. LEGO policy is that they don't want us to use the LEGO logo, but they think it is fine to reproduce other stickers and they even refer to us. Quote
Seluryar Posted October 21, 2011 Posted October 21, 2011 It would be nice if Lego could find a new material to make stickers with, Kind of like window decorations that can be affixed and removed constantly without damaging the design/image and then placed back onto the paper that the stickers arrived on. The one irk I have with copying and printing new stickers is that I would have to cut them precisely, which would be difficult since I have hand tremors which could ruin the cut. Quote
meyerc13 Posted October 21, 2011 Posted October 21, 2011 It would be nice if Lego could find a new material to make stickers with, Kind of like window decorations that can be affixed and removed constantly without damaging the design/image and then placed back onto the paper that the stickers arrived on. You mean something like this: http://www.brickstix.com/ Quote
Seluryar Posted October 21, 2011 Posted October 21, 2011 You mean something like this: http://www.brickstix.com/ Now if only Lego could use this technique without muscling out the little guy that came up with that idea :) Speaking of little guy, didnt a young kid come up with that idea? Quote
kyphur Posted October 21, 2011 Posted October 21, 2011 Actually under "Fair Use" it is legal to make a copy of copyrighted material if you legally own an original and will use the copy in place of the original. This goes for CDs, DVDs, Computer Software etc. Think of if as ripping mp3s from your original CDs. Quote
meyerc13 Posted October 21, 2011 Posted October 21, 2011 (edited) Now if only Lego could use this technique without muscling out the little guy that came up with that idea :) Speaking of little guy, didnt a young kid come up with that idea? Yeah, he's up for young inventor of the year: http://blog.brickstix.com/2011/10/15/vote-for-greyson-maclean/ He's from the same state I am, Wisconsin. I saw these in person at a local learning toy store, I like the idea but the printing they use isn't as detailed as I'd like for my creations, but I think my kids will love them so I plan to pick some up on a future visit. If for no other reason than to support the kid for having such a great idea. Who knows what he'll come up with next given more resources. Back on topic, I wonder if you could print more detail on the same material, for example replacement decals as we're discussing above. Edited October 21, 2011 by meyerc13 Quote
Zeon Posted October 21, 2011 Posted October 21, 2011 Alrighty, Thanks for that guys. Has anyone done this before, and is there anything I should know? Any piticular way to do/not do it? I've done replacements stickers for my classic town sets several times, since my nearest copy shop does vinyl with cutting with a minimum size of 100x100cm, it's quite a lot of stickers actually. I've never had any problem of it. My way is to put the original scan on a layer and draw everything in vector I can in Inkscape (free vector drawing tool), if you have high-res color correct scans for your sets, then it's easier. The second step is to have a separate layer with the outlines for cutting, so you don't have to do it with hand. I got pretty decent results with this method at around 30USD/1square meters of white vinly cut. The transparent stickers are very tricky for it's difficult to have properly covering white paint. (Basically I gave up having transparent stickers) Now I have more stickers than I can handle :) Lego sticker replacements by hatalmas, on Flickr Quote
AndyC Posted October 21, 2011 Posted October 21, 2011 Actually under "Fair Use" it is legal to make a copy of copyrighted material if you legally own an original and will use the copy in place of the original. This goes for CDs, DVDs, Computer Software etc. Think of if as ripping mp3s from your original CDs. No, no it isn't. Aside from the fact that "Fair Use" is a strictly American legal term, that isn't what it means at all. No matter what random untrained but self-affirmed legal experts on the internet might have you believe. Quote
kyphur Posted October 21, 2011 Posted October 21, 2011 No, no it isn't. Aside from the fact that "Fair Use" is a strictly American legal term, that isn't what it means at all. No matter what random untrained but self-affirmed legal experts on the internet might have you believe. Since I'm in the US that's what I'm familiar with and that's the context that my replies will be seated in. "Fair Use" is a rather broad legal term here (in the US). I covers such things as: Students photocopying textbooks. Teachers/schools copying material for educational use. Individuals copying others' works to be used in their own. Making Back-up Copies of Computer Software. Making Back-up Copies of CD/DVDs. For each of these the requirements to be considered "Fair Use" varies. For example a student can photocopy parts of a textbook or reference book (encyclopedia for example) as long as they are only copying a portion (not the entire book) for use related to classwork. I can copy Movie Posters as long as the copies are resized and/or reshaped to an extent that they can't be confused with the original work and they are being used for non-commercial application personal use. Media in general can be backed-up if you intend to store the original for safe keeping and use the back-up in it's place. Technically one could argue you are doing exactly that with the stickers. I'm sure most countries that honor copyright/patent/trademark laws/concepts have a similar set of exceptions. But I think the bottom line is that as long as you're copying the stickers for your own personal use and not reproducing them in mass then selling them you're okay. FWIW: - I am not a lawyer - I never played a lawyer on TV - I can only share my layman's understanding of such concepts - I make no implied promises regarding your experiences in such matters Quote
MAH4546 Posted October 23, 2011 Posted October 23, 2011 (edited) Technically it's still illegal in countries where copyright law applies. However if it's for personal use and the copies are never sold or given away then it's not going to attract attention from the company. To be honest the copyright notice on the sticker sheet should tell you that it's protected property, but like I say, if it's just for you alone then I wouldn't worry. No. It is 100% legal, as long as it's for personal use. You own the product and the law gives you the ability to protect your use of it for now and the future, and that includes making copis of the sticker. And I'm an entertainment/copyright lawyer by profession. I assure you it's legal. So is making copies of the instructions using a scanner or Xerox. Edited October 23, 2011 by MAH4546 Quote
legocanuck Posted October 26, 2011 Posted October 26, 2011 Didn't want to start a whole new thread about this, thought I'd ask here... What paper do you sticker paper to you guys recommend and is there a place to find the stickers online with the right size? Basically I'm rebuilding my sheriff's lockup but I lost the SHERIFF sticker a long time ago :( What would be the best way to remake it? Cheers Quote
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