embroidery designs on ebay

[rairden]

What is the name of your state? new york

Hi, I just received a letter from the embroidery software protection coalition www.embroideryprotection.org. The letter said i bought cd with pirated designs on it. I had no idea they were pirated. this happened mar 2004, now they want 300 dollars inlieu of prosecution. This is a really expensive matter. 13.00 for a cd i thought was original, now find out it was a copy. this copy could cost 30,000 dollars for each of the 8 designs on it. the letter siad i used it...nope did not even download it. can not find it either. the funny thing is that the group is run by the same lady that runs the home sewing assn sewing.org, i registered on that site about a month ago. I wondered if this is fake or not but called their attorney carole faulkner in texas. she said i have to sign an affidavit saying i was guilty when in fact i did not know and that i used the cd but did not... so that would perj
ure me. i cant do that... so what do i do now I think i never want to see ebay again.... thanks pat

 

[divgradcurl]

What is the name of your state? new york

Hi, I just received a letter from the embroidery software protection coalition www.embroideryprotection.org. The letter said i bought cd with pirated designs on it. I had no idea they were pirated. this happened mar 2004, now they want 300 dollars inlieu of prosecution. This is a really expensive matter. 13.00 for a cd i thought was original, now find out it was a copy. this copy could cost 30,000 dollars for each of the 8 designs on it. the letter siad i used it...nope did not even download it. can not find it either. the funny thing is that the group is run by the same lady that runs the home sewing assn sewing.org, i registered on that site about a month ago. I wondered if this is fake or not but called their attorney carole faulkner in texas. she said i have to sign an affidavit saying i was guilty when in fact i did not know and that i used the cd but did not... so that would perj
ure me. i cant do that... so what do i do now I think i never want to see ebay again.... thanks pat

If all you did was buy a CD from eBay or whatever, then you don't have any liability unless they can prove that you knew, or should have known, that it was a pirated copy.

If you did more with the CD, such as selling the copy or copies yourself, then that would be a different story, and you probably would have some liability.

It's hard to advise you on what you should or should not do. If you ignore them, they might go away -- but they might not, they might try and file a lawsuit against you. Even though, based solely on what you've written, they would probably lose, it would cost you more than $300 to resolve the lawsuit. Your best bet would be to take all of your info down to a local attorney for advice.

 

[JETX]

this happened mar 2004, now they want 300 dollars inlieu of prosecution.

Tell them to pound sand.
I have looked at their site.... and it is full of errors of law.
For example, their first FAQ asks:
"Is it okay for my friends and me to copy each other's designs?"
Their answer:
"No, I'm afraid not. Stock design companies invest large portions of their earnings in design development and they deserve a fair return on their investment."

WRONG ANSWER!!
The correct answer is:
Yes, of course you and your friends can copy each other's designs. As long as each knows of the others copying (and permits it).... AND the design being copied is not from someone else.
The site creator has IMPOSED the assumption that the copied material was sourced from a 'stock design company'.... which is NOT in the question.

For example: If I write a song or book, paint a picture, etc., I can give you copies all day long. That is NOT copyright infringement.

Hell, even their own site says you're not in violation:
"Briefly, the law says "it is illegal to make or distribute copies of copyrighted material without authorization," including software. Penalties are fines up to $50,000 and jail terms up to five years."
So, as long as you were the innocent purchaser, even if the software is a pirated copy, you are NOT in violation.

Personally, I would ignore their attempt to extort money from you. However, if you insist on answering them..... I would demand the following:
1) What evidence do they have that you KNOWINGLY purchased copyright product?
2) What evidence do they have that you used any copyrighted design, knowing it was copyrighted?
and finally, the most 'interesting'...
3) To provide some legal proof that they have the authority to represent the owner of the copyright they claim you have violated.

It sounds to me like this is a scam created to try to extort money from anyone who purchases a similar product on ebay or other non-traditional sellers.

 

[divgradcurl]

After seeing JETXs post, I looked at the website link in question, and I totally agree with JETX -- if you respond at all, make them prove to you that you did something wrong. Hell, make them prove that the disk itself was pirated in the first place...

 

[degilchr]

Espc

State AZ.

We got the same letter. What have you done with this?

 

[giggles69]

State IN

I have also received one of the letters from the ESPC. I bought designs from Ebay thinking they were legal! Am considering ignoring these people, but just want to know-how do we find out if they have the authority to go after the buyers, instead of the sellers and Ebay? Can we file a class action suit against Ebay for allowing these sellers to sell illegal, pirated designs? Thanks for your help.

 

[giggles69]

State IN

In regards to the letter from the ESPC-how do we find out if the "attorney" sending the letters is actually an attorney? It has been mentioned on a few sites that she may not be. Thanks for your help.

 

[JETX]

In regards to the letter from the ESPC-how do we find out if the "attorney" sending the letters is actually an attorney? It has been mentioned on a few sites that she may not be. Thanks for your help.

Have you 'googled' her name??
Also, you can check online at http://www.martindale.com/

 

[degilchr]

Web site for Carole Faulkner

State AZ

http://dfwattorney.com/

 

[JETX]

State AZ

http://dfwattorney.com/

HUH??? You say Arizona as the state, yet the attorney you refer to is in Texas??

 

[degilchr]

TX versus AZ

State AZ.

I am in AZ and receviedthe demand for settlement from ESPC. By checking out the phone number in the letter I was able to locate the lawyer.

 

[JETX]

State AZ.

I am in AZ and receviedthe demand for settlement from ESPC. By checking out the phone number in the letter I was able to locate the lawyer.

Okay, my mistake. I should never have responded to your attempt to hijack this thread from the thread 'owner'.
If you have a problem... start your own thread. It is rude to divert attention from the thread owner to you.... and also confusing when you think a response is to you (or it is to you) and it should be to the thread owner.

 

[bjb22]

espc letter

OR
I received this letter. I called the number for Donna McCauley and had to leave a message. The call was returned and I noticed it was a different number than the one I called. I googled it and discovered it's a private residence in Texas. I contacted my state Attorney General's office and they asked me to file a formal complaint, which I gladly did. I also called the ESPC office and tried to speak with a very rude girl. I sent them a letter with a copy of my complaint. This is all very unnerving but I cannot admit guilt when what I purchased was advertised as a personal copy and eBay touts their safe trading policy.

 

[cathy1973]

Espc

CA

I got that letter today from the embroidery software protection coalition claiming i'd bought something off ebay and that to avoid a lawsuit, they want me to turn in my software, sign a letter saying i'm sorry and will never do it again, and then pay a fee to make up for my wrongful deeds... first of all i don't trust them since i've never heard of them. Secondly, they don't list specifics of what it was i allegedly bought. Thirdly it's a letter.. doesn't even look legal. Just tells me to call their legal department. I've seen posts that the phone number listed belongs to a residence in texas. The letter is from pennsylvania. What course of action can i take to find out if it is legit, what to do next, etc. Can you find out from ebay who the seller was? (The seller is no longer registered on ebay.) Also, i can't pull up the original auction to see how it was listed because it's been too long and i don't know which auction it was anyway! i'm sure it didn't advertise it as pirated.. lol....what govt agencies can i contact to complain or confirm the legitimacy of this letter?

 

[bjb22]

ESPC, what to do?

OR - Cathy - I'm in a holding pattern. I refuse to sign the "letter of guilt" I was sent - swearing I'll never purchase pirated software again (how do you know that it is???) At this point I'm waiting to see what their next move is. I have a funny feeling they're going to make our lives miserable for awhile. You can contact me directly if you want and maybe together we can figure this out. I'm in the same situation - can't get hold of the seller, unaware I shouldn't have bought the cd. Where is the education to teach us what is legal to buy and what isn't? Maybe that's where this ESPC should put their energy.