LOZ has stolen my BrickHeadz designs and are selling them

fourstud

Does anyone know if I can do anything about this?


Those who follow my Twitter know I uploaded those models months ago - I just stumbled upon these tonight. They are obviously based on my designs with a tweak or two. There are a couple more on their site that are completely stolen from another member who made Frozen designs of Anna and Elsa. I want to stop this before they steal more designs and sell them. 

Can anything be done?

willobee498

Looking at their website, they don't seem too fussed about stealing designs and licenses. So likely the most you can do is get the word out so people don't buy them. But that probably doesn't help much.

Recce

Do they have contact number or email? If so send a mail to them and see what happens. 

iso3200

I'd say next to no chance :-( Must be gutting. Also part of the problem is that they are licensed characters and not original creations so you wouldn't have any control over IP - even if you had the wallet and legal team to do something.

Jackad7

From their website

Ironic. 

Threaten legal action. Probably wont do anything but you might make for an interesting conversation. Generally I don't like to go out of my way to chew someone out on the phone but I would definitely follow up with them.

Edit: those two paragraphs are from diffefent parts of their terms and conditions not in that order. I just combined them into one image.

Mr_Cross

It's gutting but I doubt there's much you can do. I had someone steal artwork and put it on a phone case whilst I worked as a freelance illustrator. That was on Amazon, I complained to them and nothing happened for so long I stopped pursuing it.
It's not fair but unless international agreements are made and adhered to, I can't see it stopping, even then there will be pirates who get away with it.

gantarat

i don't want to say this but YOU CAN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT

1.You didn't own IP.
2.Loz is China Company.
3.Look like IP Holder (Nintendo,Toei,WB,Disney etc etc.) didn't care about Loz sell their character.

snowhitie

That's so sad. Sorry this happened to you.

FowlerBricks

You can send them annoying emails over and over again. Or call them if you can find a phone number. :)

fourstud

I emailed them during all this and they haven’t responded. 

datsunrobbie

Be glad they have not credited you with the design. If the IP holders decide to come after LOZ and you are credited as the designer, that could open you up to liability. 

FowlerBricks

CM4S said:

I emailed them during all this and they haven’t responded. 

No no no. You have to flood them with hundreds of annoying emails. ;)

AdeelZubair

So sorry to hear that, this is so unfortunate it's happening to several builders in the community.

MattPetersen

datsunrobbie said:

Be glad they have not credited you with the design. If the IP holders decide to come after LOZ and you are credited as the designer, that could open you up to liability. 

Are you sure about that? 
He gained zero monetary compensation for his work and can prove that he created these for his own amusement and just had the designs up on his website (can probably even prove when he uploaded his pics).
I don't see any violation.  

fourstud

Exactly yeah I just made these for fun. If that's the case then every person who has ever made a Zelda MOC could get in trouble..

datsunrobbie

MattPetersen said:

datsunrobbie said:

Be glad they have not credited you with the design. If the IP holders decide to come after LOZ and you are credited as the designer, that could open you up to liability. 

Are you sure about that? 
He gained zero monetary compensation for his work and can prove that he created these for his own amusement and just had the designs up on his website (can probably even prove when he uploaded his pics).
I don't see any violation.  

Agreed, with the current situation @CM4S should be in the clear. If the goal is to stop production of the LOZ items, I don't think he would have any luck at all, as he's got no claim to the character IP. But if he was credited by LOZ as having created the designs, he could get included in any action taken by the IP holders against LOZ.

Another company has been working with AFOLs and giving credit to the designers, but it is not clear that those designers have any rights to the IP the sets are based on, or that the manufacturer has secured those rights. Specific examples would be the Arvo Brothers' Alien and Kaneda Bike, now being manufactured by XingBao and crediting the Arvo Brothers as designers. I don't know if the IP owners are on board or not, but if not it would seem the Arvo Brothers could be subject to any litigation brought against XingBao over those sets.

madforLEGO

gantarat said:

i don't want to say this but YOU CAN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT

1.You didn't own IP.
2.Loz is China Company.
3.Look like IP Holder (Nintendo,Toei,WB,Disney etc etc.) didn't care about Loz sell their character.

Yeah, I'm sure that these license holders just do not care.. yeah, right.
Only #2 is the biggest, and really the main, reason why there is no litigation as the Chinese government views the IP laws around the world as non-applicable in their country, otherwise the Asian markets would not be flooded with counterfeits.

GallardoLU

despite the fact that he does not own the IP for the character his model represents he does in fact hold some IP rights to the combination of bricks used to create that character. still this is not the first time a Chinese clone company has stolen MOCs from prominent builders. and even Lego can't stop these companies from making their sets illegally.

it sucks to see your work pad someone's pockets though, wish there was a viable option to stop them, but i don't know it.

cakeinmilk

GallardoLU said:

despite the fact that he does not own the IP for the character his model represents he does in fact hold some IP rights to the combination of bricks used to create that character. 

There are no such legal IP rights

Aleydita

You could complain to PayPal who process their payments for them.

Hanzo

If you figure out how to stop them could you tell Lego the billion dollar company with a full legal team how you did it since they haven't been able to yet. 

kizkiz

@Adzbadboy looks like loz have stolen your dancing Groot. Saw it on a Facebook group

alaskaguy

Wait, you mean someone took your intellectual property and made it available to others????

ecmo47

Are you going to cause trouble in every thread? Antagonistic posters are not welcome here.

fourstud

?? Me? 

I don't know why people are even still bumping this thread