Copyright Ownership of Posts
 

I was just wondering what the copyright status of posts on a message board are?

Do they belong to the site owner or the poster?

The reason I ask is I inherited an entire community that was kicked out of its board after the admin threw a mard. The oppurtunity recently came about for me to get one of the threads from the old board and I could post it - for nostalgia and reminiscing purposes.

If I was to get permission from the original posters could I repost them or does the site owner control the copyright?

I think it depends on what you agreed to when you joined. Many sites T&C's include a section saying you transfer ownership of the post contents to the site.

As paul says it's really all down to the T&C that people agree to when they join the forum.

I'm 99% sure that the default disclaimer/agreement was used and so the copyright would lie with the poster.

As most of the posters are still around all I need to do is get permission of them individually to report them.

Many thanks everyone.

I bet they dont, if they do that and take resposibility for things posted they leave themselves open to law suits..........

Mine says although the copyright remains with the poster the mere act of posting it grants me certain rights with it the main one being i can keep/edit or delete it as i see fit but i do not have copyright.........

Ashiro, your board looks promising. Hope you don't mind, but can I ask you where you got the Wiki program from? I found a script before, but it included all content, not just the content my forum would provide. I run a field-specific forum, so I would like to know if that's possible.

And I believe all content to be the sole property of the owner. They thought up the message, they posted it. If it is not a message worthy of being part of the discussion, that does not lie with the owners of the forum. That lies squarely with the idiot who posted it. If you point this out in your Rules, you will be able to quote them when needed.

Interesting subject. :)

Not everyone is based in "sue em all" America ;)

This isn't more of a copyright issue but a contracual one..

If you had something like that in your T&C, yes those posts are yours but it does not mean by a long shot that they are copyrighted. You'd have to take further steps than that. The only legal right you have is that if those posts are used elsewhere without your permission, then you'd be able to sue for breach of contract. So don't get the two mixed up. ;) There are different processes for both and definitely a lot of ways out being binded by a contract. But the way vBulletin do it - it would work in the legal world.

(Don't hold my word on this though, but I think I've got it right)

As a joke on my forum for years in my signature I had certain phrases that ended with ©. Of course it didn't hold water.