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Deleted member 11413

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 27, 2017
22,961
lol fortnite will just remove his dance, then. this isn't about creative license, it's about money. if this weren't a popular game making $200 million a month, you think these people would even bother suing?
This isn't some sort of gotcha. It's not worth suing a random person who downloads a song illegally. It is worth suing another company using a song you own in their nationwide commercial. The reach, scope, and money made off of the infringement are all extremely relevant in legal terms.
 

Cordy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
15,351
DDP sued Jay-Z just for doing the Diamond Cutter/Roc-a-fella Diamond logo and won. We'll see what happens with this one.
 

Gold Arsene

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
30,757
You do realize they could just ask for permission, right? The secret to avoiding copyright infringement in general is to just ask for permission.

I question it being that easy but I guess there's nothing wrong with asking.

Again I doubt it'd be that easy though. I also just worry about giving copyright more power.

Jojo's Bizarre Adventure went years with nothing coming to the west because he just named characters after western songs. I guess the idea that just going "hey it's that thing from that thing" could join that makes me nervous.

Though again if the artist want credit I'm fine with that.
 
Oct 25, 2017
1,146


Here's a cool example of a video seen by nearly 35 million people that strips away all ownership of the dance creators. They just become "the fortnite dances."

Absolutely shameful and 100% on Epic.
 

McFly

Member
Nov 26, 2017
2,742
Should they pay for emotes like Shia Lebeaufs "Do It" too?
Umm yes? Someone came up with the choreography same way someone comes up with a beat or lyrics to a song. You have to seek permission or at least credit where you are getting it from rather than just stealing it and renaming it while making millions from selling it. These dance choreography become synonymous to a song that it originated from, and they get ingrained into the culture.
 
Oct 27, 2017
3,297
Lol If this was the "Floss" kid suing about the dance in Fortnite, I'd imagine we'd be getting some different posts in here. Some of y'all aren't slick at all saying he's just looking for attention or wouldn't be doing it if the game wasn't making money. Blatant.
 

Jaded Alyx

Member
Oct 25, 2017
35,378
I don't think he fully grasps what this will mean if it is allowed and he wins.

That means every dance movie will be copyrightable.

That means if he (or anyone else) sees another artist use a dance move then they themselves can be sued it they decide to dance in one of their music videos.

Also you need to prove you own it, there are plenty of dance movies that are made popular, not from the actual creator of the move, but from a celeb or someone else using it in a video or video.

Do you REALLY want people to not be able to fucking dance and use random dance moves that they see other people using? Because that is exactly where this road can lead if it's ruled in his favor.

It's one thing to put his moves in the game, but to then sell it and profit off of it? That's too far imo.
 

PhaZe 5

Member
Oct 27, 2017
4,446
Yea, it's blatant monetization of a unique intellectual property--one that took considerable luck, talent, and popularity to blow up. And the extent to which these companies are pawning off these emotes without credit or compensation is frankly disgusting.

Hope he wins and the flood gates open for everyone to go back and claim some coin back from developers who farmed out their talent/popularity to fill their own pockets.
 

XSX

Member
Oct 31, 2017
2,164
There's evidence that Epic has paid emote creators in the past so I don't know why they wouldn't lock down anything "owned" by famous people.....seems like something they would cover their bases on? I wanna see how this turns out.
 
Oct 25, 2017
1,146
lol fortnite will just remove his dance, then. this isn't about creative license, it's about money. if this weren't a popular game making $200 million a month, you think these people would even bother suing?


So? Why would it matter if it was about money? Doesn't change what they did and this argument of 'if the game wasn't popular they wouldn't care!' is tired as fuck.
 

Plum

Member
May 31, 2018
17,299

No

Individual movements or dance steps by themselves are not copyrightable, such as the basic waltz step, the hustle step, the grapevine, or the second position in classical ballet. The U.S. Copyright Office cannot register short dance routines consisting of only a few movements or steps with minor linear or spatial variations, even if a routine is novel or distinctive.

Examples of commonplace movements or gestures that do not qualify for registration as choreographic works or pantomimes include
• A set of movements whereby a group of people spell out letters with their arms
• Yoga positions
• A celebratory end zone dance move or athletic victory gesture
 

2shd

Member
Oct 25, 2017
7,573
I definitely think it's bogus how they rename the dances, if you're not going to pay the artist for it the least you can do is credit them.

So if they credit them, and not pay them, but make money off of it, the artist is going to be satisfied? Of couse not. It also validates the artist's claim of ownership and strengthens their case for compensation. No company is going to put themselves in that situation.
 

Weltall Zero

Game Developer
Banned
Oct 26, 2017
19,343
Madrid

In a saner world people would stop asking the same question over and over.

I don't think it's complex enough. A couple dances in the guy might rise to that level though.

Is it complex enough to be unequivocally recognized as the same dance? Is it complex enough that there's no reasonable doubt they just happened to come up with the exact same dance steps on their own? If the answer is yes to both, I don't see why a different, higher standard of complexity must be satisfied on top of that, and you would not require it of any other kind of work.
 

Gold Arsene

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
30,757
Simple guiding principle: can you find the creator? Approach them and ask them if the dance can be used, work out attribution (name of dance and/or name of creator(s)) as it should appear in game, and then draft any legal agreements concerning the royalty split.

That's fair I guess. I just worry about the implications of simple body movements become copyrightable.
 

99Luffy

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
1,344
Hahahahahahaha good luck with that, he just wants some attention.

People will try to do anything these days to get some money from Epic.

Soulja Boy stays winning
I mean Epic took someone's idea and started charging $5 for it.
I don't know how anyone can side with epic on this.
 

Mass_Pincup

The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
7,129
He won't win, and he shouldn't. I could see Epic trying to settle if the public outrage gets intense enough. It is shady on their part, but copyright goes too far too often.

He should though.

I don't see why this instance of using something a third party created to make money without that individual being compensated or even acknowledged should be ok.
 

Deleted member 9317

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 26, 2017
9,451
New York
Y'all are envious mofos. Let the man sue for what he considers his. Let the court decide what's right.

Era capitalists are weird af. Who cares if he can or cannot "copyright" dance moves. We know what Epic is doing, so pretending you don't just make you fanboys.
 

Thrill_house

Member
Oct 27, 2017
10,622
Good. Lets see what the copyright laws state and put this to bed. I see where he is coming from, but who knows how its going to work in court.
 

Bessy67

Member
Oct 29, 2017
11,584
Lol If this was the "Floss" kid suing about the dance in Fortnite, I'd imagine we'd be getting some different posts in here. Some of y'all aren't slick at all saying he's just looking for attention or wouldn't be doing it if the game wasn't making money. Blatant.
Nah, I feel like most people against it just feel like it's absurd that someone could copyright a body movement. I mean, for every body movement there was someone who was the first person to do it, are you saying that all other uses of it should result in compensation to that person? What makes a simple dance like this one, which is basically swaying back and forth and waving your arms, any different from a somersault or cartwheel or fist pump? Why should this be copyrighted but not the waltz or tango?
 

Buttonbasher

Member
Dec 4, 2017
4,054
Cool to see cultural appropriation doesn't "count" when it's video games people like.

Which is to say this is blatant and sucks, and I hope he wins. I hate seeing this continually happen to artists.
 
Last edited:

Dyle

One Winged Slayer
The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
29,945
Good luck, it'll be an uphill battle if they haven't taken steps to protect it before
 

Wereroku

Member
Oct 27, 2017
6,248
Well someone needed to be the first to do this. Will be interesting to see how the courts come down on it. Being that the SC is so corporate focused I assume this will probably come down to a win for Epic but I'm not a lawyer so who knows.
 

DragonKeeper

Member
Nov 14, 2017
1,588
I'm with Milly here. It's one thing to just include dances in your game but Epic has straight up packaged the creations of other people, stripped away their origins, slapped a price tag on them and sold them as their own product. I'd be fine with the the game's usage if the dances acknowledged their origins and were free.
 

Deleted member 9317

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 26, 2017
9,451
New York
Nah, I feel like most people against it just feel like it's absurd that someone could copyright a body movement. I mean, for every body movement there was someone who was the first person to do it, are you saying that all other uses of it should result in compensation to that person? What makes a simple dance like this one, which is basically swaying back and forth and waving your arms, any different from a somersault or cartwheel or fist pump? Why should this be copyrighted but not the waltz or tango?
100 fucking percent if they can prove it. Everyone has the right to attempt suing the shit out of a big corporation. Don't ever deny someone that right.

Fuck Epic for giving zero credit. They know if they give credit then they'll have to pay.

And don't you pretend you don't know the origin of these dance moves, this aint the 15th century folk moves lol.
 

gerg

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,346
What is different between a dance and a song? How does "it's a body movement" inform the situation any more than "it's a series of vocalizations" do the same for songs?

I think the question is over the level of complexity involved. Songs can be copyrighted and protected, but notes can't be. By the same token, you may wish to protect entire choreographies, but not the movements themselves that make up that choreography.
 

Pyro

God help us the mods are making weekend threads
Member
Jul 30, 2018
14,505
United States
This could set a precedent for choreography copyright, if he were to win. But he didn't copyright the dance so that's a point against him.
 

Whompa

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
4,254
Morgan_Freeman_Good_Luck.gif

It's a transformative creative adaptation of work. You won't get shit for that.
 

Bhonar

Banned
Oct 31, 2017
6,066
There is no 'complete legal win' at this point because they didnt avoid legal action. Being sued at all by an artist is bad for them.
I mean the final outcome by the judge & jury.

Not sure why being sued at all is bad. Every big volume company in the world, even the best ones, get randomly sued all the time.
 

Deleted member 11413

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 27, 2017
22,961
What is different between a dance and a song? How does "it's a body movement" inform the situation any more than "it's a series of vocalizations" do the same for songs?
The complexity and length of the dance matters because the law directly says those aspects matter. It's based on how the law is written.
I question it being that easy but I guess there's nothing wrong with asking.

Again I doubt it'd be that easy though. I also just worry about giving copyright more power.

Jojo's Bizarre Adventure went years with nothing coming to the west because he just named characters after western songs. I guess the idea that just going "hey it's that thing from that thing" could join that makes me nervous.

Though again if the artist want credit I'm fine with that.
No it literally is that easy. If you get permission from the copyright holder you can then use the copyrighted material freely.
 

Lukas Taves

Banned
Oct 28, 2017
5,713
Brazil
Honestly, having the basic decency to acknowledge the origins of the dances would be enough.

For me its not that they are copying popular dance moves and selling them, its the fact they are renaming them and pretending they invented them. Thats the white washing here.
Why would they credit the dances to a single person? The only thing I see that achieving is they opening themselves up for a big sue when they refuse to pay the guy they credited.
 

Parthenios

The Fallen
Oct 28, 2017
13,613
How long are the Fortnite dance emotes? My (brief, cursory) understanding is that you can copyright a "choreography" (an entire dance) but not "dance moves" in the same way you can copyright books but not words.
 

Flame Lord

Member
Oct 26, 2017
2,796
So if they credit them, and not pay them, but make money off of it, the artist is going to be satisfied? Of couse not. It also validates the artist's claim of ownership and strengthens their case for compensation. No company is going to put themselves in that situation.

I was saying it's the LEAST they could do, but I do think they should pay them, too. Why not? It's their creation.
 

Deleted member 9317

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 26, 2017
9,451
New York
How long are the Fortnite dance emotes? My (brief, cursory) understanding is that you can copyright a "choreography" (an entire dance) but not "dance moves" in the same way you can copyright books but not words.
Right. But this is about the fact that Epic gives zero credit.

This ain't about copyright. This is about charging for something and not giving credit. I doubt 2 Milly wants to copyright dance moves.