Questions and Answers About Copyright
Questions and answers about copyright and logos and changing clip art for use in a commercial project.
Question:I own a small business named (Deleted for Privacy Purposes). I have attached the logo in question with this email. I would like to use this logo on stickers and clothing that I plan to sell on my website. I have heard that if you change the logo by 20%, one can use it legally...is this true?? Will I be able to use this logo as part of my business?? What type of legal trouble could I get myself into if I was to use this logo?? Any answers to these questions or any additional information would be greatly appreciated.
Answer:
I have also heard that if you change one line of an art painting you can call it a new art painting and sell it as an original painting. This is NOT true. The original artist MAY have the right to change one line or 20 percent of a painting and call it a new painting but no one else has that right. All rules that apply to copyright also apply to any content (clip art, music, books, etc.) on the Internet. I am not an attorney nor do I know copyright law but I would venture to say that the 20 percent rule that you heard was NOT on a site about copyright law.
I have never seen a logo like the one you sent so I have no idea of how it has been changed from the original and I could not tell you if you could use it legally and without any copyright consequences. I would suggest that you read up on copyright law before changing and using a copyrighted logo. You might also think about asking the owner of the copyrighted logo if the changed form of the logo would be an infringment on their copyrighted image.
I have some links to copyright resources and to articles about Copyright Issues that you might want to browse.
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