The author who put his manga in the public domain talks about why he gave up the rights to his work
by
Bill Willingham , who is known as an artist who works on American comics such as the ' Elementals ' series and the ' Fables ' series, announced that on September 15, 2023, everything including spin-offs and characters of 'Fables' was placed in the public domain. Announced. Mr. Willingham explains on his blog why he decided to let go of the rights to the work and make it freely available to anyone.
Willingham Sends Fables Into the Public Domain
https://billwillingham.substack.com/p/willingham-sends-fables-into-the
More About Fables in the Public Domain - by Bill Willingham
https://billwillingham.substack.com/p/more-about-fables-in-the-public-domain
Regarding the rights to ``Fables,'' Willingham said, ``I still own 100% of ``Fables,'' as I always have, but now everyone in the world, regardless of age or gender, can own ``Fables.'' 'Like me, you own 100% of Fables.' Mr. Willingham describes the state in which the work is in the public domain as ``a secular miracle of the loaves and the fishes '' (a secular version of the story of Christ feeding 5,000 people, ``The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes''). 'Everyone can decide for themselves what they want to do with Fables. No matter how many people join, there's enough for everyone.'
by
Mr. Willingham gives three main reasons for why he decided to let go of the popular and consistently profitable ``Fables'' series and put it in the public domain.
Firstly, over the past 10 years or so, there have been major changes in ideas and legal systems regarding trademark law and copyright law in the United States and around the world, and Mr. Willingham's thoughts on this have also undergone fundamental changes. doing. ``Current laws are a collection of unethical backroom deals designed to keep trademarks and copyrights in the hands of large corporations,'' Willingham said, adding, ``I think the fundamental reform is , intellectual property (IP) is owned by the creator for a maximum of 20 years from the time of first publication, after which it is in the public domain.IP can only be sold to an individual or entity once during that 20-year period, and the IP IP becomes public domain after 10 years of exclusivity. Therefore, IP can be used exclusively for up to about 30 years, after which it becomes common property.'
Mr. Willingham recognizes his idea as a ``radical idea'', which is why he put ``Fables'' into the public domain because he thinks he should try it first.
Second, Fables was originally created using characters and stories that are in the public domain. So bringing Fables into the public domain is 'like the story finally coming home,' Willingham said. Mr. Willingham was planning to put his work into the public domain at the same time as his death, but due to certain events, that plan was brought forward.
The third reason is ``a specific event'' that caused Mr. Willingham to bring forward the release of his work into the public domain. 'Fables' was published by DC Comics . When it first signed its publishing deal with DC Comics, Willingham said, 'the company was run by people of integrity who interpreted the details of that deal fairly and equitably.' But over the past 20 years or so, people at the company have changed hands, and 'DC Comics and the company that owns it now chooses to interpret every aspect of us in a way that only benefits them.' ``Fables'' was in the wrong hands,'' Willingham said.
Specifically, DC Comics told Mr. Willingham that he was proceeding with new story developments, new cover illustrations, new collection formats, etc. without Mr. Willingham's confirmation, and that he underreported royalties. Every time I asked about it, the only answer I got was, ``I overlooked it,'' and there seemed to be no room for improvement. And the ultimate thing was that when planning to re-release 'Fables' for the 20th anniversary, the terms of the contract included stealing ownership of the work from Mr. Willingham.
If you bring a lawsuit against DC Comics for breach of contract or infringement of rights, the court costs will be extremely high. What Mr. Willingham adopted was to use his status as ``the sole owner of the work'' to ``separate ``Fables'' from the exclusive rights of DC Comics and present it to everyone.'' did. As a result, DC Comics still owns the publishing rights to Fables and is contractually required to pay Willingham royalties for the books it publishes, but at the same time people around the world can modify and publish Fables. You can use the work without any contract or payment.
Willingham concludes by saying, ``It has been my greatest joy to share the story of Fables with you over the past 20 years, and I look forward to seeing what you do with it.'' I’m looking forward to it.”
Related Posts:
in Note, Posted by log1e_dh