legality

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liquid speaker

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i was just sitting here wondering exactly what the legality involved in pep mjolnir selling and purchasing was, are there royalties to bungie, microsoft, both? is it fair game. any thoughts would be great.
 
Yeah, I have a similar question. My uncle said that I should sell some armour (locally) to earn some money, but a good friend of mine said that Microsoft would "own" me.
Is there a way to not break the law and sell armour?
 
from what ive read it will be a civil suit if the big wigs decide to come a calling, intellectual propety is annoying XD, i know you can make for your own use copy ritten material if that helps at all how7zer
 
It would not be legal for you to advertise it as Halo armor or any kind of description with the use of unique words from Halo, Bungie, Microsoft or the marketing associated with it. It would not be legal for you to include any kind of 405th branding on it. If it looks anything close to what is in the game or appears in advertising, you could expect at least a cease and desist and most likely lawsuit from Microsoft. If you make any kind of profit(or even non-profit, I imagine), Microsoft is going to come down on you when they find out.

Even people making armor for themselves for costumes are not necessarily safe either since most everything is based on reference pictures from the games. However, I believe the most Microsoft would do is send you a cease and desist the public use of the outfit.

What it boils down to is: You should not be getting into this to make money, you will get burned. You should not even be on this site if you are coming into the hobby with the expectation of making money, that is not the point of the hobby or this site. The admins have made it abundantly clear they do not want that type of person here.
 
Honestly, you could get away with selling it to some friends or local peeps who approach you, and be pretty safe. The cease and desist orders don't come out often and really they only dish em out if they feel threatened in any way that you're taking away from their merchandising. If you start advertising online, you could get an order. Suing people isn't in their best interest. It's expensive and they would rather not do it. However, you are potentially playing with fire. So just be warned. :)
 
just for clarification, i personally wasn't planning on building a business or really making money at this, i was just wondering for curiosities sake, but thanks for the wanrings being posted here. it will most likely detour those who are looking to make a fat profit in this field.
 
xstatic said:
Suing people isn't in their best interest. It's expensive and they would rather not do it. However, you are potentially playing with fire. So just be warned. :)
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For a company as big as Microsoft, they can keep it up for years, bankrupt you in the process, and their expense won't even make a dent on their bottom line. They're not even concerned about the bad PR part when their IP is under threat.
 
Actually, it's not illegal. For example, If I sold my legendary edition Chief Helmet I can because it is my property and I can sell it if I want to. The same legal precedent applies to such props. the props were made by us, and are therefore ours to sell to whomever we wish. It only becomes illegal when we claim creative rights to the said props. (EXAMPLE 1) In that case, we are infringing on microsoft/bungie's conceptual/creative rights and ONLY then is it illegal. Also, the market/retail of such homemade props only serves to promote the popularity of their respective franchises (EXAMPLE 2). as long as you are not selling a product that is ALREADY on the market (and being produced by a company)(EXAMPLE 3), then they would not have any logical reason to sue you, assuming they had a legal reason. Also, the "Branding" of "405th Infantry Division" on sold props implies that the company "405th Infantry Division" is selling halo props (See example 1B). But You'd rather be safe than sued, so I'd keep prop sales to friends/Forums only. Mainly because such people are more trustworthy than the random person on EBay looking to buy a Helmet to recast the hell out of. And this IS a Hobby, so If your'e here to start a business, then go somewhere else.
  • EXAMPLE 1
    A. Claiming Creative rights: "I designed the MA5C and its my idea." ILLEGAL
    B. Starting a company to make and sell Halo Props: ILLEGAL
  • EXAMPLE 2
    Props promote popularity of franchises: The sale of prop MA5Cs gets people pumped to play more Halo and go buy toys, games, map packs, etc.
  • EXAMPLE 3
    LEGAL: You sell prop homemade and unique MA5Cs
    ILLEGAL: You sell Knockoff Nerf Recons after re-casting them at home yourself.
This is what My Research has revealed. Do not quote me in court.
 
I came here to make armor for fun and for my private viewing. That is what you should be thinking, and that is what this site is for. Its a hobby, dont take it to the selling level. Its not worth it
 
"EXAMPLE 1
Claiming Creative rights: "I designed the MA5C and its my idea." ILLEGAL
Starting a company to make and sell Halo Props ILLEGAL"
hoping this post will stand up in court... pricless
 
dude, read up. im not, i was honestly just wondering what the legality of all this was. i know nightmare completely quit adverting their armor and you have to drill em retarded to get em to say they have it. dont make me into that guy, chilax and help detour people who would take it to that level.
 
these files are created by the people here on the forum so why is there any hasle with making and selling these as long as the file maker agree's
 
adam4472 said:
these files are created by the people here on the forum so why is there any hasle with making and selling these as long as the file maker agree's
Click to expand...

Because they are essentially copying somethign that Microsoft has made, thus the IP or intellectual property. That's what the whole thing is about.
 
adam4472 said:
these files are created by the people here on the forum so why is there any hasle with making and selling these as long as the file maker agree's
Click to expand...
The problem is that they're based on an IP that doesn't belong to them. It belongs to Microsoft. That's why the 405th has a strict policy about not selling Halo stuff.
 
The 405th does not directly sell armor, The members sometimes do. The Classified provide a place to let people know you have a piece you'd like to sell and any transactions or business negotiation happens on a more private turf.
 
Sumofl said:
The 405th does not directly sell armor, The members sometimes do. The Classified provide a place to let people know you have a piece you'd like to sell and any transactions or business negotiation happens on a more private turf.
Click to expand...
So, would it be a big deal if someone asked me to build them armour for a price, or if I let someone know that I was selling (word of mouth, not advertised)? sound like 405th classifieds without the middle-man (classifieds).
 
Sithslayer78 said:
Actually, it's not illegal. [...]
This is what My Research has revealed. Do not quote me in court.
Click to expand...

Would you care to enlighten us as to where your research took place?

Because quite frankly, I think the only thing you got right is that reselling a licensed product is ok.
 
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