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Subject: Re: Contract vs. Commission

Author: Slater Wold

Date: 22:58:59 05/03/02

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On May 04, 2002 at 01:38:55, Jeremiah Penery wrote:

>On May 03, 2002 at 23:54:15, Slater Wold wrote:
>
>>On May 03, 2002 at 23:45:22, Jeremiah Penery wrote:
>>
>>>This seems to be an issue of contracting a work vs. commissioning a work.  In
>>>general, an author under contract to write "one or more books" without
>>>guidelines retains copyright on those books, while an author who is commissioned
>>>to write a specific book, with some guidelines, does not retain copyright.  I'm
>>>sure this can be altered by the specific contract between the two parties.
>>>
>>>Unfortunately, it can be difficult to define "commissioned work" accurately.
>>>Textbooks and reference books are mostly commissioned works, most other books
>>>aren't.  Is the Rebel book a commissioned work, or simply a contracted one?
>>>Maybe that's the important question here.
>>
>>Let me reinterate:
>>
>>"Although the general rule is that the person who creates the work is its
>>author, there is an exception to that principle; the exception is a work made
>>for hire, which is a work prepared by an employee within the scope of his or her
>>employment; or a work specially ordered or commissioned in certain specified
>>circumstances. When a work qualifies as a work made for hire, the employer or
>>commissioning party is considered to be the author."
>>
>>The key being "..or a work specially ordered or commissioned.."
>
>IMO, the key words are "in certain specified circumstances", and "When a work
>qualifies".  What are the "certain specified circumstances" mentioned?  And does
>the Rebel book qualify?
>
>>Specially ordered work is contract work.
>
>Specially ordered work is commissioned work, not contract work.
>
>I can have a contract that says I will write 3 more books over the next 5 years,
>for X sum of money.  Those books are contracted works, but they are not
>specially ordered, and they are not commissioned.  The author still retains
>copyright.
>
>>Commissioned work is commissioned work.
>>
>>Bottom line, if Ed and Christophe approached Noomen and asked for a book, in
>>return for money, the book belongs to them.
>
>This is my point of contention - I think your statement is false.  Whatever the
>circumstances here, I'm not convinced the book should be considered a
>"commissioned work".  And if it is, its copyright status could depend on the
>contract made between Ed and Jeroen.
>
>>While I am not 100% certain they
>>did, my guess would be this is what happened.  I am 100% certain Noomen HAS been
>>compensated for his work.
>
>Yes, of course he has.
>
>>Besides, I was just making the point, it is a VERY real possibility that the
>>book doesn't even belong to Noomen.
>
>It is a possibility, I agree.  I just don't think it's the correct one.  In
>addition, we're both applying US copyright law to this, which may or may not
>hold 100% true in the Netherlands.

Do to the following documents, the SAME EXACT copyright laws exsist in The
Netherlands:

Bilateral Nov. 20, 1899
Berne Nov. 1, 1912 (Paris) 2
UCC Geneva June 22, 1967
UCC Paris Nov. 30, 1985
Phonogram Oct. 12, 1993
WTO Jan. 1, 1995



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