Hello,
I am currently selling copied audio cd-r's through ebay. I started roughly two weeks ago, and have been selling about two or three a day. These CD's always sell for less then 1/3 of the normal price, and I make sure to say they are CD-R's in the auction description so bidders know what they are getting. I received an email from one of my first customers today,. He was upset that they were copies and was requesting that I IMMEDIATLY refund his money for the CD-R set, and claimed that he already threw the copies away.
I have been a member of ebay for a long time now, but am unsure as to what I should do. If I refund his money I will undoubtably lose out greatly, and i highly doubt that he "threw away" the CDs like he claimed. I replied and told him that if he "finds them" and sends them back to me, I will refund every penny, EVEN SHIPPING/HANDLING. I figured this was a more than generous offer, but he has still not replied. Does anyone have any idea's as to what my next move should be?
Is there possible legal reprocussions for these aucion sales? I havent made much money from these...and figured if the person did report me to ebay for selling copyrighted material, little action would be taken against me. What is my worst case scenario...account suspension? Or could it be something more drastic?
Thanks in advance for taking the time to read this and providing me with any information you have. I really appreciate it.
- AW
goWholesale Forums » Wholesale Buyers » General Chat » Auctions, eBay, Closeouts/Surplus
Ebay Copyright infringing items. Need advice?
22 posts
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Chances are that the first time around you will only get a warning,
personally I don't think it's a very good idea selling these cdr's you're obviously infringing copyright and asking for more hassle than it's worth.
As for the upset customer probably the worst you'll get from them is a negative you're probably better refunding and cutting your losses IMO.
Sorry if it's a bit negative, I too sell on ebay and I'm basing my judgement on past experiences. -
what your selling...bootlegs will get you in trouble. Might not be now, might be tomorrow but ebay will look at all your auctions and see what you been selling. IF they warn you then you might be looking at a 250k charge.... Selling bootlegs isn't the way to go. This is a wholesale forum why not buy a product you can actually sell without having to worry every morning if your going to court or not.
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i appreciate your insight.
if possible, could you (or anyone) describe the process of reporting/dealing with a member who has sold copyright infringing items.
Also, is a warning really all that I will get?
Thanks again! -
you better refund the money and stop selling CD-R audio stuff.
You are not allowed selling those copyright CDs.
A friend of mine has his own quite small music label. If some selling CD-R from his released CDs he is giving the ebay name to his lawyer. Thats an expensive way to learn, what copyright means.
The worst scenario is:
- losing ebay Account
- getting an expensive dissuasion
- bring out buyers name and adress for evidences
- refund the money to buyers
- court procedure with lawyer and a remit a fine -
sorry for my bad engl. I hope it readable.
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I could see ebay shutting down my account, but legal reprocussions seem a little far-fetched. I've made less then $500 selling these, which is much less then the cost of a lawyer's fees.
I could only see the complaining party taking legal action if there was a high volume of the infringed works sold and i had made a lot of profit.
i would assume that if my account is suspended and i can not sell any more of the cd's then the person would be satisfied. Does that sound right to everyone else?? -
How soon we forget about the beloved napster, and the lovely recording industry's lawyers. It's not about money, it's about them shutting out any copyright violations. They will nail you to the cross for the fun of it. You could always have a sense of humor about it like the press of napster the day he showed up in court wearing a metalica shirt (now that is priceless!) Yeah buddy your in for it, trust me. Ebay, vero, and the recording industry assoction are all sleeping together and making some crazy physco inbreed child in the process.
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ebaywoodman
500 or 50
The point is that you are
copying and selling CD's you dont own copyright toIllegally
Stop it now or you could be in serving time. -
Yes but unfortunately (or fortunately for some), the courts dont have the time or the resources to prosecute every offender. Because of this, they have to pick and choose their cases, and i think someone making $2,000 a week selling copied goods is a little more important then someone making $2,000 a year.
I have been in contact with the disgruntled customer, and we have reached an agreement. I will be paying for the return S/H, and will be refunding his entire purchase.
I can honestly say that I never really understood how illegal my actions were. It seems like copyright infringement runs rampant on ebay, and i didnt think my contribution would make much of a difference. I have learned a great deal from this experience, and will ultimately cease all ebay auctions that contain illegal goods.
Thank you all for your time and help with this matter.
-AW -
It's OK to be a little crook, but not a big one, huh?
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You are missing the point. It is ILLEGAL. Creepyjohn said they will nail you to the post for the fun of it. That is a fact. You don't seem to believe it. How many kids were busted? -and they were not selling anything.
Do a search on this site about selling fake Oakleys. Different merchandise, but almost the same concept.
If you are only "small time" do you think you have a chance against this industry. Hell, if you were a major player you would'nt have a chance. You admitted to wrongdoing.
Maybe you should be legit and not worry about these things.
Good luck.
And thanks Pete for thoughts, it is no wonder why this inductry is so jacked. -
By the way, I hope they nail your A$$
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There was a little mom and pop gas station out in the midwest somewhere that decided to copy music CDs on CD-Rrs and sell them. Someone ratted on them and they got busted big time. I can remember how much thy owe, but they owe in the thundreds of thousands of dollars in fines and royalties.
Believe me, the music industry is not !@#$ -ing around, and for good reason.
Perhaps what you need to get some common sese is to be contacted by the RIAA's team of lawyers. That'll knock some common sense into your silly a$$. Please, unless you know what you are doing, stay away from playing business man, it doesn't work out unless you know what you're doing and if you have no common sense, it will never work, as you are slowly finding out. -
think of it this way. Your buyers can complain and complain and you can never defend yourself no matter how much info u gave in your auction. They can report you and your in jail...
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SG - your crazy
He is only a small time thief -
sensa35 wrote:SG - your crazy
He is only a small time thief
Oh and your a big time? Your comment was wonderful.. honestly it was... -
A very recent Uk case:
LONDON - A bootlegger who made a fortune selling counterfeit concert CDs featuring some of the biggest artists was jailed for 3 1/2 years yesterday.
And yes he sold on ebay too. -
Ever see monty python and the search for the holy grail. Ok picture this the RIAA is the killer rabbit and your one of the knights.
Too bad you don't have a holy hand grenade handy to blow them up, I'm sure we would all love to see that!
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sg - sorry
poor joke, it is my sad sense of humer -
Willful copyright infringement is punishable by actual damages (which would be little in this case) and punitive damages ($150000 PER offense).
Good luck.
eBay will just suspend you, but if a record label sees the auction, they WILL sue. -
How about his buyers, aren't they involved as much as he is? After all, he DOES state the cd's are copied, but the buyers still place bids. Now they could state they haven't seen the text, but than again it is up to them to read it or not.
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