Is this allowable? Plz help

[bluemonkeyguy]

Lets say that I have some original DukeNukem sound files and I want to implement them into a sound board app:

A) If I sell the app, is it fair use of the implentation of the sound files or will Duke Nukem's company ask me to (remove app/maybe sue me)?

B) Then could I set the app as free in the AppStore so it can be classified as non-profit (one of the rules of the Copyright Act of 1976)?

C) If B is possible, is it legal to have ads in the app or will that break the "non-profit" title?

D) If any of the solutions above is allowable, does it matter if it on the iOS AppStore or the Mac AppStore?

Here is the Copyright Act:

"Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use."

 

[treestar]

It's not fair use. Ask for permission. A, B, C and D are illegal.

 

[bluemonkeyguy]

It's not fair use. Ask for permission. A, B, C and D are illegal.

Can you elaborate on WHY it isn't fair use.

 

[treestar]

It isn't criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. It is entertainment. Non-profit, educational or personal use, of which it is none; it is commercial. Even if it is free, it will generate a benefit to you as it will be argued it is free advertising for anything else you do. Similarly, you can't put any amount of NYT articles in a free app and put it in the iTunes store. This isn't your material to do anything with. Fair use law is not as lenient as people like to think. All of those not-for-profit, I-acknowledge-this-is-not-my-content YouTube videos are copyright infringing and they are removed by the the slightest whisper of claim-to-ownership. Whoever owns the rights to those soundbites can easily shut your project down. Just ask for permission!

 

[bluemonkeyguy]

Well what I actually wanted to do was to use sound files from a high profile game and I don't think the developers would be comfortable of me using proprietary and original quality work while benefiting off of it. At least I didn't develop this app blindly without any legal knowledge beforehand. Thanks for the help treestar.

 

[treestar]

Well what I actually wanted to do was to use sound files from a high profile game and I don't think the developers would be comfortable of me using proprietary and original quality work while benefiting off of it.

If you don't think you can make new sounds yourself, try this community: http://hitrecord.org/

It is a bunch of creative people that like to make content for others to use. You might be expected to put your app in the creative commons if they help you, but you could still sell and profit I believe.

 

[bluemonkeyguy]

All of those not-for-profit, I-acknowledge-this-is-not-my-content YouTube videos are copyright infringing and they are removed by the the slightest whisper of claim-to-ownership. Whoever owns the rights to those soundbites can easily shut your project down. Just ask for permission!

Well with youtube you can dispute the infringement complaint and if you use the "copyright act of 1976" above they will grant your audio back to your video but will place ads instead.

Here's the video I got that knowledge from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_lVVZsJNfDE&feature=channel_video_title

I just don't understand how youtube can get away with this and the music company placing their ad for the content. Can't I leave an ad for their game and call it fair? I know I can just ask but how will *cough cough* Rockstar Games approach a n00b developer that wants to use their sounds? I can see this app be successful but is it worth the legal headache?

 

[treestar]

It bothers me that you are trying to use material that was clearly a product of hard work, money, and development. Rockstar will probably say screw off and I am on their side. You are asking for valuable media. If you really want it, don't be scared to be professional and ask. They will likely say no unless you are offering compensation or a significant benefit to them, and that's if you can even get in contact with them and get a meeting. It's a tough world to break into.

----------

I'm not trying to be hard on you. I am an artist and I use photos I don't have the rights to. I work very hard and I have absolutely nothing to show for it because I don't use materials I am allowed to. I can't show my art, I can't publish it, I can't sell it. I'm OK with this.

 

[bluemonkeyguy]

It bothers me that you are trying to use material that was clearly a product of hard work, money, and development. Rockstar will probably say screw off and I am on their side. You are asking for valuable media. If you really want it, don't be scared to be professional and ask. They will likely say no unless you are offering compensation or a significant benefit to them, and that's if you can even get in contact with them and get a meeting. It's a tough world to break into.

----------

I'm not trying to be hard on you. I am an artist and I use photos I don't have the rights to. I work very hard and I have absolutely nothing to show for it because I don't use materials I am allowed to. I can't show my art, I can't publish it, I can't sell it. I'm OK with this.

I find your reply to be very oxymoronic and I also notice that you have a hypocritical art style (no offense), as you clearly state that you use other peoples content for your own unsold artwork. As an artist, you would most likely say that the art you produced would be yours, if you sold it, but that's not the case because you don't sell. This is not your fault because almost every facet of creation is inspired by someone's work, which increases the chance for copyright, as you are confused in my case, BUT...

In MY case, I AM selling but I am not claiming it as my own work because that would be saying that all of the "hard work and development" belongs to me, which is clearly not true. The same for you, exhibit your art style (for free) but give the credit to where the credit belongs and you might get noticed and start to create original content for others. And for me, I am just bringing credited entertainment in the form of an app to people. Again I am not justifying plagiarism, but in my situation I am using sound files for other people's pleasure.

----------

BTW, I found some iPhone/iPad soundboard apps such as Team Fortress 2, Half-Life, and Modern Warfare 2 that are free/paid from non-game company developers. They all had some form of disclaimer that seems to protect the developer since 2010 (one app was released since May 2010):

**Disclaimer**
This App and the App makers are not associated with content contained in this application and/or the respected owners and or licensers. All trademarks, property and copyrights belong to their respective owners. The price charged for this app covers development costs only. We encourage you to visit and support the content creators by tapping on the links.
**Disclaimer**

Thanks for insight though. And yes, I now will start to develop the app that I hoped for.