Replica - Oh dear
Discussion
So: They crush a replica to protect IP, yet they cared so much for the heritage of this automotive icon that when requested,they didn't have the factory tools to make a wheel...
A rather nice chap i believe was charged something £outrageous.00 per rim to make new ones... One of my guys fitted the tyres to those rims - no pressure whatsoever!
A rather nice chap i believe was charged something £outrageous.00 per rim to make new ones... One of my guys fitted the tyres to those rims - no pressure whatsoever!
Like it or not all replicas, whatever their badge, only exist due to the good grace, lethargy or ignorance of the manufacturer they are copying.
Technically they all infringe on copyright and intellectual property legislation.
It may seem like overkill but a manufacturer does not want to be represented in the public domain by something which was not actually manufactured by them.
Technically they all infringe on copyright and intellectual property legislation.
It may seem like overkill but a manufacturer does not want to be represented in the public domain by something which was not actually manufactured by them.
gtmdriver said:
It may seem like overkill but a manufacturer does not want to be represented in the public domain by something which was not actually manufactured by them.
Unfortunately these days that's exactly what they've done to themselves. Most manufacturers (inc. Bentley) have issued recalls for parts they've had made cheaply "off-shore". Funny that when it could save money on the current range it's OK to be "represented in the public domain by something which was not actually manufactured by them", but when it's something they have no financial interest in, they won't allow it, because there's a perception their image might be affected.But the law is the law. Much like the extreme end of health & safety legislation, the IP rights issue will stifle all industry sooner or later (perhaps when some archaeologist discovers the wheel was invented by a bloke from one of British Leyland's ancestor companies & sues EVERYONE.
S47 said:
Personally don't like replica's but what about all the Lotus 7 reps out there there's gazillions of 'em??
There have been court cases! (Several, I believe.)Most notably against Westfield whose car, back in the eighties, was much closer to being a replica of the Lotus/Catherham. Westfield were forced to modify their design to differentiate it from the original.
I think part of the issue with the 7 design is that it is fairly generic and it's pretty easy to change some of the details to make it different enough to avoid litigation.
Some people are experts and can spot whether a car is a Caterham, an MK or a Formula 27 at 100 paces.
Not me though!!
Frankthered said:
S47 said:
Personally don't like replica's but what about all the Lotus 7 reps out there there's gazillions of 'em??
There have been court cases! (Several, I believe.)Most notably against Westfield whose car, back in the eighties, was much closer to being a replica of the Lotus/Catherham. Westfield were forced to modify their design to differentiate it from the original.
I think part of the issue with the 7 design is that it is fairly generic and it's pretty easy to change some of the details to make it different enough to avoid litigation.
Some people are experts and can spot whether a car is a Caterham, an MK or a Formula 27 at 100 paces.
Not me though!!
http://www.saflii.org/za/cases/ZASCA/1998/44.html
From that point Caterham really had no basis to continue these actions. The shape of a car is virtually not capable of being copyrighted. Too many common elements is all car designs. The brand itself can be protected and possible specific elements of the design. But this case really showed that Westfield were never really in much trouble. Chris Smith was a very very canny man and chose to minimise his risk. But Caterham really have no provenance over the seven shape.
Now we have literally dozens of sevenesque cars some of which are not bad. Still only one Super Seven. The Lotus.
Gassing Station | Kit Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff