MikeLamb
Member
Registered: 23rd Sep 03
Location: Crowthorne Drives: Veccy SRI
User status: Offline
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Right, hopefully a simple one.
Customer gets web designer to make them a site & host it for them
web designer gives crap support & charges a fortune for each small change.
Customer decides to move site
Customer moves site without telling web designer.
web designer finds out & says the site is copyright to him and he wants a link back on the site. What right does he have to ask for this? He has admitted he has nothing to prove the site is his. I have suggested a copyright in the html source, should this be acceptable?
Cheers 
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vibrio
Banned
Registered: 28th Feb 01
Location: POAH
User status: Offline
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depends on the contract and also depends if the designer copied anyone else.
the designer created it so technically its his copyright so no one else can adjust it in the basic sense
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drax
Member
Registered: 5th Feb 05
Location: Sittingbourne, Kent
User status: Offline
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If the designer created the website and has a copyright business name, and evidence of the orignial source code its his.
The client has then bougtht the rights to that website, just like any other product made by a manufacturer.
The client has to abide by what was originally stated in the contract. The client only has rights to use the web design, the designer could sell that design to another client as well.
It normally doesnt matter where its hosted unless its part of the package that the client has set up with the designer, also it depends totally on the agreed contract again!
If it was designed by that designer, and it was agreed orginially to hold a valid link on the site then it has to be there
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Ian
Site Administrator
Registered: 28th Aug 99
Location: Liverpool
User status: Offline
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Its copyright to the designer unless:
- The designers work was derived from another work.
- The copyright was explicitly sold.
I fail to see why he wants a copyright message anywhere. Possibly some credit for creation, but this is not a copyright issue, this is the guy wanting publicity.
Tell him to get some Google ads and not offer such poor service that his customers go elsewhere in future.
Check the ownership on the domain as well.
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MikeLamb
Member
Registered: 23rd Sep 03
Location: Crowthorne Drives: Veccy SRI
User status: Offline
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Cheers for the advice!
So Ian, the copyright message has nothing to do with the fact the site is copyrighted to him?
In theory there could be no link and it could still be copyright to him?
He says that the layout & php coding/database is copyright to him and the content to the customer. I didnt have ftp access to redid the php & database, so the only thing remaining is the layout. A simple table, surely it could be argued this was derived from other work.
The domain belongs to the customer. We contacted the registrar with her ID and they have changed the nameservers.
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Ian
Site Administrator
Registered: 28th Aug 99
Location: Liverpool
User status: Offline
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quote:
Originally posted by MikeLamb
there could be no link and it could still be copyright to him?
There's no could - aside from the conditions above it certainly is.
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MikeLamb
Member
Registered: 23rd Sep 03
Location: Crowthorne Drives: Veccy SRI
User status: Offline
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cheers!
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Ian
Site Administrator
Registered: 28th Aug 99
Location: Liverpool
User status: Offline
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quote:
Originally posted by MikeLamb
the layout & php coding/database is copyright to him and the content to the customer.
He's quite right.
If you're looking to simplify to disassociate this new site from the one which was originally created you really need an entirely new look and programming.
He would have a hard job claiming copyright on your data structure as assuming its not completely wacky then anyone would come up with the same proper normalised structure. User interface, assuming its intuitive, is simply adopting best practise for such things, so again he can't really lay claim for that.
You could potentially keep your data, keep everything functioning the same, re-write the code and get some new images and you should be OK.
Alternatively see how much this guy wants to be bought out under the firm understanding that he's pulling a fast one and any payment will be full and final and will surrender his rights completely.
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