Breach of copyright! - photographs

[Franek Grabowski]

Enemy Property Act which is decisive, says that anything that was created under German copyright laws in a specified period, is not protected anymore. That said any German WWII photo is copyrigt free, and in the name of the law I can copy any German photo from any of your books, but I cannot copy the whole set of photos or the book itself.
That said, it is clear that BAMA claims copyright named another name, thus disallowing use of copyright free photos, and more making use of them by individuals impossible.
I do not mention the fact, that I have heard they destroyed original negatives.

[Richard T. Eger]

Dear Fellow Researchers,

Can anyone cite instances where an author has been taken to court or legal action taken against them for a photo for which another claims ownership? This is Mikael's question and it is a good one.

If, in reality, the chances of ever being taken to court are slim to none and, in those rare cases where it is actually done, the amount of redress negligible, then the risk in violating this or that supposed copyright may be worth the taking.

Let's take it a step further. Suppose I were to publish a photo from the BA/MA without their permission nor pay them some fee for the privilege. Would the amount they might seek be but the fee they would otherwise have received or would it include significant punitive damages?

This may sound like a callous disregard for the law, but I am also looking at the situation from that of an historian who would want to utilize the best relevant photos to give the best understanding of the subject possible. The idea is to disseminate new knowledge and understandings. Frequently, that can include the use of old photos seen in a new light based on other evidence that has surfaced. To be hindered by a labyrinth of laws seems to go against the very thing desired, to share new findings and insights. I see this as a labor of love and definitely not a money making proposition.

Regards,
Richard

[edwest]

I am offering the following source as a starting point only:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image_c..._%28Germany%29



Hope this helps,
Ed

[Mikael Olrog]

Thanks Ed,

It turns out that the text is a translation from the German Wikipedia and it seems the english used is somewhat lacking.
/Mike

[Franek Grabowski]

Richard
If you are not registered in their system and will credit those photos to Hans Schmit or Johann von Doe, they will be not able to prove you anything.
BAMA behaviour deserves legal action but it is not a job for single researchers.

[Dénes Bernád]

Originally Posted by Franek Grabowski

Enemy Property Act which is decisive, says that anything that was created under German copyright laws in a specified period, is not protected anymore. That said any German WWII photo is copyrigt free...

That's exactly what I wrote earlier, Franek.
I would like to add though that the said law refers only to materials created officially by the German State, the IIIrd Reich, between 1933-1945, not private individuals, artists, photographers, etc.

Answering to Richard, BA-MA would most probably not go after you if you don't pay the so-called 'publication fee' (let me state again, they don't officially claim copyright fee!); however, they would put you on their 'black list', i.e., not allow you to do any further research in any of their facilities.

[Franek Grabowski]

Denes
EPA clearly states anything under German copyright law, which includes private individuals!

[Denniss]

Originally Posted by Franek Grabowski

Denes
EPA clearly states anything under German copyright law, which includes private individuals!

This enemy property act may only be relevant in Malta (or where ever it originates), I don't think it complies with current EU copyright regulations thus the normal 70 years pma (death of author + 70 years) copyright period applies to all other countries.

Images taken by soldiers of British forces are PD 50 years after first publication, there's a good article in the wikipedia covering this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crown_copyright

[Harri Pihl]

AFAIK the removal of the German copyrights was originally done during Nürnberg trials. The idea was that by making all records open, the war crimes and criminals are easier to find.

[Andreas Brekken]

Hi, all.

Franek - you are certain that this EPA act is relevant for everything created under german copyright law? For which timespan? 1933 - May 1945? September 1939 - May 1945? Dec 1941 - May 1945?

If this is so, I will then be able to set up my print shop and print for example novels by a german author published during the NSDAP era, and this is no problem? I kind of doubt this, taking all precautions that I very well might be wrong, and suspect that the EPA really was a law made effective for items under US control, taken from archives and persons during and after the campaign in Europe, and relevant for the eventual war criminals trials or other processes after the war.


Also - I always get confused when you refer to BA-MA or Bundesarchiv - Militärarchiv with regards to photographs - they have very few of these, the few and far between photographs usually being part of either a document such as a technical description of a kind of equipment, for example an aircraft, or as part of a Nachlass - the personal papers and or photographs of a person that have deposited these at the archive. The photographic archive is a separate entity, located in Koblenz, and it would be fair to the people at BA-MA, which in my opinion do a great job in order to get the relevant items in their collection to me at least, to discern between these units. That we all should wish for the possibility to roam the BA-MA's shelves looking for hidden treasure is an entirely other issue ;-) and you should really try to get ANYTHING out of the Norwegian National Archives, that are related to the occupational period, now that is an institution were their self-presented tasks (check their website www.riksarkivet.no and see second bullet point under the about us heading) and what really happens do not exactly match. And as far as I have been told, the captured documents that are kept by russian authorities (ex-soviet) are not exactly easy to access. In the Norwegian National Archives they do this by simply saying that the files concerning the remnants of archives of the Wehrmacht in Norway is restricted, and then you just cannot get anything...

Then there is another issue, namely the publication fee issue. What give the IWM, the BA-MA or other institutions the right to claim such fees? I do not know and this would in my opinion be a second issue for our research into these issues. There is a fact that when you sign the order form for copies of a file in the BA-MA, you agree not to publish these coipes or to pass on duplicates of these to other persons. Of course a lot of you guys out there doesn't give a damn about this.... and some of you do. But the key question is: What right does these institutions have to make you sign these documents? The answers would be interesting to know.

Well, now I have to go buy a few presents. Wish you all a merry christmas!

Regards,
Andreas B