Cease and Desist? Please help

[martay]

A guy claiming to be Marco Tempest (a magician out of NYC) has threatened to send a cease and desist letter to Apple because he claims I'm infringing on his work with my magic coin app for the iphone.
(See the brief conversation here: http://www.yityat.com/magic)

Does anybody know what Apple will do with a cease and desist letter? Will they drop my app immediately?

Even better, does anybody know if this guy has any legal grounds?

 

[MCRunning]

Tell him to **** off.

 

[Jeremy1026]

A guy claiming to be Marco Tempest (a magician out of NYC) has threatened to send a cease and desist letter to Apple because he claims I'm infringing on his work with my magic coin app for the iphone.
(See the brief conversation here: http://www.yityat.com/magic)

Does anybody know what Apple will do with a cease and desist letter? Will they drop my app immediately?

Even better, does anybody know if this guy has any legal grounds?

Might as well continue whatever you are doing. What he is asking you to do is to C&D. If he is for real, let him spend the money getting a lawyer to draft the paper work. You don't have to worry about being sued unless you ignore a formal (and offical) C&D.

 

[martay]

Thanks for the advice. So you dont expect apple will just take the app down in a knee-jerk fashion? I wouldn't expect they would, but I'm not sure.

 

[mkrishnan]

Thanks for the advice. So you dont expect apple will just take the app down in a knee-jerk fashion? I wouldn't expect they would, but I'm not sure.

They must have someone doing some kind of prima facie validity test on these C&D letters, because I suspect they receive a rather high volume of them. They're less likely to protect you as a small developer (who presumably doesn't have a standing legal team that interfaces with Apple on a regular basis). But I don't think they just pull an app every time some two bit magician sends them a letter.

 

[bradl]

Thanks for the advice. So you dont expect apple will just take the app down in a knee-jerk fashion? I wouldn't expect they would, but I'm not sure.

I don't think Apple would do that, but I might be wrong. Logically, this guy is going about it the wrong way. He should be sending YOU the C&D order, not Apple. Apple isn't developing the application, so the C&D is going to the wrong people. You don't sue the people providing the platform to do the work, if the person doing the work is infringing on you; you sue that person.

Legally, IMHO, you're in the clear, but IANAL.

BL.

 

[Sun Baked]

Should be interesting.

If you aren't a member of the Magician societies, you can always pull the app.

And come back with a very similar one, that exposes the trick.

 

[jlake02]

This app is great.. I'm doing a video review on it later today.

Just tell the guy to jump off a bridge.

 

[smokestack]

someone got it right, get him to have the lawyer draft up a real C&D letter. make him spend the money.
his claim is certainly against you, and not apple.

IP rights in magic tricks are a controversial area, look it up.
as long as you didn't copy his code, you aren't violating copyright.
trade secrets, other claims, i have no idea.

 

[MCRunning]

C&D letters, what a joke.

First off, you don't tell someone I'm going to send you a C&D letter. Secondly, people who send a C&D don't have the balls to do anything. Lastly, if they had the balls they would just pull the trigger and sue you. I've gotten so many C&D letters on my websites, have yet to see action. It's all an attempt to scare you into caving in. And if he does draft a C&D letter and sends it to you, tell him to **** off again.

 

[synth3tik]

I have never heard of people threatening with a C&D. Usually the threats come IN the C&D.

 

[ucfgrad93]

I would ignore him until you receive a C&D letter.

 

[eplchamps0304]

Search the us copyright database,

 

[Ding.Dong]

I think Marco Tempest is the guy who did that "iPhone Magic" video that came out when the original iPhone was released:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcB8CKa73B0​

In the video, he does a trick where a coin falls out of the iPhone. That's probably what he's basing his copyright claim on.

 

[severe]

C&D letters, what a joke.

First off, you don't tell someone I'm going to send you a C&D letter. Secondly, people who send a C&D don't have the balls to do anything. Lastly, if they had the balls they would just pull the trigger and sue you. I've gotten so many C&D letters on my websites, have yet to see action. It's all an attempt to scare you into caving in. And if he does draft a C&D letter and sends it to you, tell him to **** off again.

I beg to differ. Although there is something strange about warning someone you may send them a C&D, to think that they would just impulsively sue you without following through with a C&D could be a mistake.

I've sent a few C&D's due to copyright infringement in my time and believe me, they were sent with very serious intent. Some of which lead to lawsuits.

If you believe the issuer has a claim, it should be taken seriously.

 

[razorianfly]

I beg to differ. Although there is something strange about warning someone you may send them a C&D, to think that they would just impulsively sue you without following through with a C&D could be a mistake.

I've sent a few C&D's due to copyright infringement in my time and believe me, they were sent with very serious intent. Some of which lead to lawsuits.

If you believe the issuer has a claim, it should be taken seriously.

I agree, no offensive but this guy sounds pretty damn huge.
Take it seriously, or prepare for the legal consequences.

R-Fly

 

[TonyHoyle]

Difficult to see how you can be guilty of copying a guy you claim to have never heard of up to that point.. unless he's claiming to have a patent - then it's a whole other ball game (I doubt you could patent a disappearing coin trick anyway - adding 'with a phone' doesn't make it unique - but then again anything's possible).

Personally I'd wait to see if he has the balls to issue an actual C&D and see what he's actually claiming you've done. You don't even know this guy was who he says he was - could have been any douchebag saying that. At the moment all you've got to go on is a couple of messages on a website.

 

[Pring]

You need to contact a lawyer. You'll get well intended advice from people here but you really need a proper legal opinion. It may eat into your profits a bit but it'll be worth it for peace of mind.

But yes, I agree... wait until you get the actual Cease and Desist letter.

 

[superstrikertwo]

This is the nature of magic tricks. Someone has an amazing trick and then people reverse engineer it and then the whole world has the trick. That's the magic business. You did nothing wrong he has no claim to the trick besides the fact that he made it famous. If someone has figured out the "trick" it's time for him to quit being lazy and come up with something new.

 

[MCRunning]

[2008-11-07 12:20] magicman: making a coin move by gravity inside a mobile phone and then shaking it to get it out is my trick... there is no patent, however my magic concepts are not up for grabs...

This defense I'm sure is going to hold up.

It's like everything in the world today, you are just taking someone's idea and making it better.

 

[ntrigue]

I'd call his bluff but speak to a lawyer. He can't sue everyone that's made a coin appear.

 

[arrow201]

Martay, tell this guy to take a hike, let him spend all the money
on lawyers if he wants too like others have said here. Does microsoft
make the only word processor ? Does Ford make the only car engine ?
Google gov't copyright laws ...he cannot copyright an idea / concept !!!!

..take a look here:

http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-protect.html#what_protect

"Copyright does not protect ideas, concepts, systems, or methods of doing something. You may express your ideas in writing or drawings and claim copyright in your description, but be aware that copyright will not protect the idea itself as revealed in your written or artistic work."

 

[Pring]

This article may be of interest to you. BBC feature on Can you copyright a magic trick?

 

[Daremo]

If the Masked Magician on TV can get away with revealing everyones magic tricks, I doubt this nobody has any ground to stand on. Ignore him, and deal with it if the actual C&D comes. THEN, Private Message me. I have an entertainment lawyer who will help you out.

 

[wako]

he claims I'm infringing on his work with my magic coin app for the iphone.

until he has proof it is his work AND he somehow protected it, im pretty sure you are in the clear. you cant just go around claiming things are your work without some sort of legal claim to it, which I doubt.

If anything you have a claim in your work and you should send him a C&D since you probably do have a copyright on your app.