Copyright of generic knowledge/ public domain?

[Ro74]

hello folks, hows things?

I trust your well.

Just a quick query of I may?

I am just making an educational phone APP - containing outdoor games, activities and ideas.

A lot are my ideas but it also contains alot of initiatives, generic readings & so forth are sourced from general knowledge. e.g. they are so common & in so many books, that I've been advised that they are like public domain & it is okay to use them for a commercial APP.

Would that be correct?

Cheers for any thoughts...

Ro

 

[FlyingRon]

You can't copyright ideas, knowledge (basic or otherwise), or facts, only the original expression of them. It's not "public domain" it's just that copyright can't be applied to them.

You do need to be sure that what you're embodying in your work isn't the regurgitation of copyrighted information. For example, how to play bridge isn't copyrightable, but you can't just lift sections of Goren's books.

 

[Ro74]

Cheers for reply Ron - much appreciated.

OK - just to clarify - I havent directly copied anything. All I've done is consider various and common ideas/games from various copyrighted books & reproduced it in my own way - no pasting etc....that is I've expressed them in my own way...

So that should be OK shouldnt it?

Cheers again for any thoughts...

Ro

 

[FlyingRon]

OK - just to clarify - I havent directly copied anything. All I've done is consider various and common ideas/games from various copyrighted books & reproduced it in my own way - no pasting etc....that is I've expressed them in my own way...
)

Still not enough information. ideas are one thing. Renditions of the game are another. Even if you "recreated" them, if they were designed from existing games. You walk a thin line. An example would be Words With Friends being careful not to infringe on Scabble.

In addition to copyright issues, you may run afoul of trademark issues.

 

[quincy]

hello folks, hows things?

... I am just making an educational phone APP - containing outdoor games, activities and ideas.

A lot are my ideas but it also contains alot of initiatives, generic readings & so forth are sourced from general knowledge. e.g. they are so common & in so many books, that I've been advised that they are like public domain & it is okay to use them for a commercial APP. ...

I agree with FlyingRon that there is not enough information to say anything definitively. One important fact missing is the name of your country. If you are not in the US, the laws that apply to you and your phone app will be different than the laws that govern those residing in the US.

I also agree with FlyingRon that there can be a fine line between using someone else's IDEA (which is okay), and infringing on that person's EXPRESSION of the idea (which is not okay).

If you could post back with the name of your state and if you could provide an example of the type of material you are thinking of using (not the REAL material, but something similar), that could help us advise you. I am a bit curious about what you consider "generic readings," for example.

Thanks.

 

[FlyingRon]

Again you seem to be hung up with the idea that you have to "cut and paste" or make literal copies to infringe.
This again is not true. You're going to have to give an better example.

 

[quincy]

Again you seem to be hung up with the idea that you have to "cut and paste" or make literal copies to infringe.
This again is not true. You're going to have to give an better example.

Huh?

Did Ro74 return with an example?

Or are you referring back to his earlier post where he said he "considered" various games from copyrighted sources and reproduced/expressed them in his own way? That may or may not be okay. It is hard to say from the little Ro wrote.

Ro74, if you ARE returning to give us some examples, please provide the name of your state/country. If you are in a different country, the laws of your country will apply to you, not US laws.

 

[FlyingRon]

Huh?

Did Ro74 return with an example?

Yes, the post seems to have been deleted. He posted a message which mentioned cut and paste specifically after you posted yours.

 

[quincy]

Yes, the post seems to have been deleted. He posted a message which mentioned cut and paste specifically after you posted yours.

Ah. I thought I might have missed something. I don't suppose he included the name of his state, did he?

Ro74, if you are interested in gathering together several games for an app, but you do not want to invest the time and the creative energy necessary to create your own new and original games based only on the rules of play, you might want to think of having a "collective" work.

A collective work assembles into one work an assortment of similar works (e.g., word games) but the similar works have been created by others and are still copyright-protected.

The challenge for you would be in getting permission from all of the copyright holders to use their works in your collection. And you would NEED this permission if the works have not already passed into the public domain (and most have not).

Although the separate components of the collective work are all separately copyrighted, the collection too can have copyright protection if there is enough creativity involved in the assembling and arranging of the games.

If you have not included your state name, please post back. And, again, including examples of what you want to do would help us help you.