tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Wed May 21 06:32:22 1997

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Paramount

One of the things which has kept me busy lately is writing and talking 
with lawyers.  The lawyers working in Paramount's (or should that be 
Viacom's?) licensing office appear to be making a sweep again of anyone 
and anything that may, potentially, in the broadest interpretation, be 
in violation of the legally protected properties.  Despite our license, 
this may include the KLI.

Let me say that while I understand the emotional zeal behind some of the 
recent posts to this list, I believe they are exaggerated, 
inappropriate, and have the potential to do more harm than good.  By way 
of example let's look at the not too distant outcry about Paramount 
sending letters to some websites.  

Paramount has certain properties which they make a great deal of money 
from.  To ensure that they can continue to do so, they are legally 
obligated to follow up on unauthorized uses of their properties, or risk 
losing the sole right to them.  That's the pragmatic and not 
unreasonable rationale behind their "harrassment."

In the case of the websites, a few sites were offering Paramount owned 
products (e.g., making available electronic copies of scripts which 
Paramount sells), and so the big P quite rightly came down on these 
folks.  These sites appear to have become martyrs for many other Trek 
websites, and we were treated to an array of ridiculous posturings of 
"they can't make ME shut down my site" and the like, from sites that 
were never in danger of being shut down, never asked to shut down, and 
probably never would be.

I'm not saying that Paramount's reputation as a bully is undeserved, but 
just that in some instances it's not applicable.

In the current situation with Chet's book, you can see where they're 
coming from.  They're arguing that the Klingon language is their 
intellectual property and as such they have to protect it from 
unauthorized usage.  From this point of view, SECRET FIGHTING ARTS OF 
THE WARRIOR RACE is indeed unauthorized, and it's not uncommon in such 
situations for the "injured" company to demand the destruction of the 
offending product.  From their point of view they're losing money with 
every sale of the unauthorized product.

Mind you, *I* don't think that the Klingon language, or any constructed 
language, used to create original text can be claimed to be Paramount's 
property (unless it was Paramount who created the original text), but 
that's for the lawyers to decide.

Similarly, the KLI and Paramount's lawyers are in discussion over 
different perceptions and interpretations of some of the particulars in 
the license we enjoy.  My impression of dealing with lawyers is that 
they come on strong, attempting to scare you off quickly, much like many 
species do when they're playing dominance games.  It's a sound tactic, 
and when it works you get what you want very quickly with little use of 
your resources.  When your opposition holds firm you're free to move 
onto another strategy.  I'm optimistic that we'll work out our 
differences in a reasonable manner, and come to terms with Paramount; 
terms which both sides can live with.

And I certainly hope that Chet's experiences follow a similar path.

Let me end this on an optimistic note.  The last time the KLI was 
involved with Paramount with this kind of legal discussion was when they 
issued us a C&D order, demanding that we change our name and shut down.  
We responded with reasonable arguments and evidence to support our 
claims and position.  When the dust settled we had a license.  My point 
is, things *can* work out, just keep a cool head.

Lawrence




-- 
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
:: Dr Lawrence M Schoen, Director   :: The KLI is a nonprofit ::
:: The Klingon Language Institute   :: tax exempt corporation ::
:: POB 634, Flourtown, PA 19031 USA :: DaH HuchlIj'e' ghonob  ::
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
::  [email protected]  :: http://www.kli.org ::  215/836-4955  ::
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