WEEK 6 TUTESPARK

WHO OWNS ONLINE CONTENT?

Who owns the content you put on the internet on various sites?

As was talked about in the lecture the onset of web 2.0 has seen the average user become more active in producing a wide range of online content, including photo's, video, audio and text.

If we look at this question in the sense of the everyday world we can easily point to many different laws and regulations. These laws and regulations exist to protect the creator's rights to ownership and how they wish to profit from their creations. For example one such law that protects people who create creative media is, Copyright. Which basically means that whenever you write a poem or story or even a paper, or a drawing or other artwork, you automatically own the copyright to it. Copyright is a form of protection given to the authors or creators of "original works of authorship," including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic and other intellectual works. But then how does this differ from the rights, laws and regulations pertaining to online content? Are the rules the same or as soon as that information passes into the realms of cyberspace does that information then become available to anyone?

The laws of the web or internet are to most people very confusing because your talking about laws that govern material from around the world not just your respective country. But according to an article by Vitaly Friedman in Smashing Magazine online, titled, "Copyright Explained: I May Copy It, Right?, is that the same rules that apply to created content in the 'real' world also apply in the 'cyber' world. You are allowed to use other people's content under the proviso of 'fair use' or only use portions available under the law.

Some sites when you sign up may have a prerequisite in their terms and conditions that stipulate that all content on their site are the property and responsibility of the original owners. Also any content you upload original or not must adhere to their regulations, laws such as these come from YouTube and Google. But as like everything involving technology, laws and regulations are always changing.

REFERENCE LIST

• Copyright Explained (n.d.). Retrieved September 13, 2010 from http://www.acmi.net.au/PAML/toolbox/cr_exp.htm


• Friedman, V. (2007). Copyright Explained: I May Copy It, Right?. Retrieved September 12, 2010 from
  http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2007/07/07/copyright-explained-i-may-copy-it-right/


• Google (2007). Google Terms of Service. Retrieved September 12, 2010 from http://www.google.com.au/accounts/TOS?loc=AU


• YouTube (2010). Terms of Service. Retrieved September 12, 2010 from http://www.youtube.com/t/terms