A strategy to prevent auction copying?

timmbbo · Joined: 14 Jan 2008 Posts: 4

Can you copyright your text, in order to prevent your competitors from essentially copying your auction format and words?

I'm composing a new auction list that will put me the best among my immediate group of ebay competitors. I'm sure some of them will copy what I've done, as they have in the past. Say I go ahead and post the exact same format and text as a copyrighted page to my website. Then, it seems like if a competitor too closely copies what I've done, I would then have a genuine VeRO complaint.

Your thoughts?

tabberone · Joined: 09 Aug 2003 Posts: 192

Let's say you file a VeRO takedown.

They file a counternotice.

Are you prepared to go to their jurisdication and sue them for copyright infringement?

Let's say you are.

If you don't have a federally registered trademark you get no damages.

Are you going to try and file for a copyright every time you change a web page?

timmbbo · Joined: 14 Jan 2008 Posts: 4

If I understand your response, the answer is that the proposed strategy is weak, but better than nothing. Furthermore, if the copy-cat competitor likewise is weak and doesn't feel like going to court, then a VeRO claim with accurate claims of copyright infringement could indeed persuade the competitor to cease copying my text.

So, it sounds like I have nothing to loose, and possibly something to gain?

tabberone · Joined: 09 Aug 2003 Posts: 192

You could try it.

This is what I've found with almost 10 years on eBay.

I've had "stalkers" and auction copiers. The people who need to copy don't last long. If they can't do it on their own then they fail.

I've learned after years to ignore them and concentrate on what I can control and that is how I run my business.

The people who were copying me have fallen by the wayside years ago.

timmbbo · Joined: 14 Jan 2008 Posts: 4

tabberone · Joined: 09 Aug 2003 Posts: 192

They could argue the same thing the VeRO members do, it's not perjury under the DMCA, they claim that they had a good faith belief.

For example I know someone on eBay who was convinced someone had copied her guide. It was about something like salt lamps.

I plugged in key phrases from her guide and there were a lot of hits with different sites using the same wording.

A description of a useful item may not even be copyrightable. I don't know for sure but if someone copies the specifications from a box about what an item does I don't believe the manufacturer has cause to go after them.

How much of your time and energy are you devoting to this?