Once you get permission, is there an expiry date on it or can you keep it forever?

Okay I am pretty new to the cake decorating but would like to one day do cakes for money so I am very glad to have come along this post. So you can't sell a cake with spongebob or spiderman...? If you do it has to be one of the cakes made with the little kits of plastic figures purchased from the company?

It's crazy that Disney would go through such great lengths to prosecute people for copyright infringement. The Little Mermaid is based off a story by Hans Christen Anderson. There are allot of others that I cannot recall at the moment.

i had no idea... thanks indydebi!

Copyrights, from what I understand are only good for 50 years unless they are renewed by the person who did the original or their families--thus, the Little Mermaid and a lot of other stories and older movies no longer have copyrights.

Not to take away from the serious nature of copyright violations, but have you seen Cake Wrecks today?? http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/2009/10/comic-issues.html

Yes, Indy, that's the way I understand it too (from page one of this thread) that the cake has to be decorated the way it is decorated in DecoPac's catalog in order to use the licensed character properly.

The thing about Hans Christian Anderson's Little Mermaid or The Brothers' Grimm Cinderella is that the characters we now associate with the story are copyrighted.

We could do any mermaid but not the Disney Ariel. Disney renews their copyrights. That's actually what help fuel all this-Disney renewing Mickey stuff--that's what I 've read anyhow.

I mean close your eyes and picture Snow White & the Seven Dwarves--nope can't do those ones. You can do a pretty chick in a long dress & seven random very short curmudgeons...

And I see it both ways as nutso crazy and also how people make a living.

But dang ain't the world fulla tight asses anymore.

Okay Peeps, I am going to type for you a word for word replica of the paper sent to me from Wilton after I placed my first commercial order thru them 2 years ago. This has been super helpful in explaining to people WHY we can't draw characters. (when I put things in all caps, it's because it was bolded in the original letter.)


LICENSING GUIDELINES ON PRODUCT USE

All licensed character shaped pans, candy molds and cookie cutters are for CONSUMER HOME USE ONLY. Stores/shops CANNOT make cakes, cookies or candies from our licensed products and sell them to consumers. These "mold making items" are strictly prohibited for any type of commercial use since the licensor has neither the method to control the quality of the reproduction of the character nor the ability to earn royalties on sales of the "finished" product. This applies to both baked and craft-type products.

Free-hand or copied character designs cannot be drawn or iced on top of a cake, cupcakes or cookies and sold for any type of commercial purpose. Once again, the licensor cannot control the quality and is not earning a royalty on the product created around their characters.

Licensed pans CANNOT be rented to consumers by stores since the licensor is not earning a royalty from the transaction.

Generally, creating any type of image that looks like a licensed character THAT IS SOLD FOR COMMERCIAL PURPOSES is prohibited unless there is a specific licensing agreement with the licensor for that product and royalties are paid each time the product is sold.

And that's all folks! I hope this helps!!

thanks so much for that Butterbupmama....i am going to save this in case i need it one day.

This thread is being saved for future reference. I'm sure it will be quoted and referenced many times in the future!

My dad was the print shop manager for a private college and he was constantly turning done tenured professors for making copies from books and other publications because they didn't want to get permission.

If my dad made the prints HE was responsible.

As far as I know you CAN make all the scooby doo cakes you want as long as you dont except a PENNY for it.

You can't make a profit of someone else, but you can (like i said as far as I know) do it for friends and family for free.

It hasn't come to it, but I don't plan on doing licensed cakes. Though, I like the idea that I could make the customer do the leg work... or charge them X to have me do it, with no guarantee I will be given the rights.

Or give them the "You can sign this paper saying you are responsible xxxx" and see if they are willing.

I worked at a popular cake shop in FL and the owner would copyright ANYTHING.. I mean we are 20 miles from Disney... anyway. He would then tell a customer, if someone asked where they got it, to say Publix (the local supermarket).

That I know of, he never has had issues. I would say 80% of the cakes he sells is copyrighted.

Cops don't get every speeder, but they get a lot.

When I look at the cakes in the galleries, I wonder what else is in violation of copyright laws.

Following the above guidelines from Wilton, it seems that cakes with the Burberry plaid or Coach or Gucci or other designer logos must violate copyright laws also.

And cakes with sports teams logos, NASCAR logos, beer logos, candy bar names, college mascots and emblems, Girl and Boy Scouts symbols--virtually anything with brand recognition.

Try this might be what your looking for

http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-583531-gumpastetrademarks.html+copyrights

I just read that other thread on copyrights, trademarks, etc. Very interesting...and confusing. I guess that's why lawyers get the big bucks.

If someone makes a hamburger cake...no problem.
If someone makes a hamburger cake and calls it--in print--a Big Mac or Whopper...problem.

Two women--somewhere in the USA--bought the rights (or whatever the proper legal term is) to the "Happy Birthday" song. So, everytime that song is sung in a movie or on TV, they receive royalties (or whatever the proper term is). And I have noticed that I don't hear it sung all that often these days.

So, what about reproduction of designer purses and logos on cakes? Violation or not?