In protest of Toyota's demand that Desktop Nexus remove all wallpaper files containing images of Toyota vehicles: Slashdot | Toyota Demands Removal of Fan Wallpapers I have removed my avatar from this website. Stupid Lawyers!
Well I'm leaving mine. Toyota and Disney can shove it. This is a really bad PR move on Toyota's part. How is fan created pictures cutting into Toyota's profit? Does Toyota sell "Desktop Wallpaper" on the side? I can see the point of a take down notice if you use a pic someone else took, modified it, and started selling it as your own. But this is fan generated art. I believe fair use is in play here.
I don't really see the point of Toyota doing this, but I'm not protesting anything. They have a right and a responsibility to protect their copyright.
Just plain silly. I remember reading that Disney made a day care center paint over the characters they had painted on the walls.
They don't hold a copyright on other people's photographs. They might have a trademark claim, but unless the photos were taken by Toyota, they don't have a copyright claim. (I am not a lawyer. This is not legal advice. If you need legal advice, you are looking in the wrong place.)
Hey Priuschat members. The recent request Toyota made to have certain photos of Toyota vehicles removed from the public wallpaper site, DesktopNexus, was the result of an internal miscommunication. To protect the legal rights and agreements we have with the photographers we hire, we ask that the photographs not be used for direct consumer advertising, sales brochures and the like. If people wish to post their own photos of one of their own vehicles, that's their right. In fact, we're pleased that people would want to show their Toyota vehicles to the world. So have at it. Consider the wallpapers on DesktopNexus to be fair game for personal use. Please let your members know that we offer a sincere apology to the DesktopNexus site and its users for any inconvenience or disruption this miscommunication may have caused. Thanks for your understanding, Scott DeYager Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. Corporate Communications
I sure like this direct form of communication from Toyota. It's great to see a large corporation working this way with its customers. A lot of other companies could learn from the example. Thanks Toyota. We appreciate it. Tom