Well, I may have just stepped in it.

I posted on FantheVote, and pointed out that conveying fanfic and fanart in exchange for cash donations is a violation of copyright, and could get both the recipients of the donations and the fans themselves in trouble.

I'd hate to see that happen, but I get the sense that none of these people actually thought about it before they got underway.

Hey! I'm looking for a story I remember being from anonymous_co, which was a weird but very very funny semi-RPF with PG and CKR bouncing from fanfic AU to AU trying to get back to the real world. It has some marvelous scenes, and it's meta-as-all-hell... plus, it's one of the very few RP stories that falls squarely under my squick threshold because the author makes clear that she isn't writing her PG and CKR to be 'real' at all.

It's not on DSA (if it ever was) and I can't remember where I ran across it. Oh, yeah, and I have no idea what the title is.

I was kind of thinking about recommending it for ds_flashback, but a) I have to find it again and b) I have to reread it to make sure it's as good as I remember.

I can remember discussing it in the old Due South topic we had... anybody?

Suela, it's my understanding that if the person doing the creation isn't profiting from it, copyright issues are less likely to come into play. I'm having dinner with an intellectual property law professor tonight and I'll ask her.

Discussions on the topic are popping up all over the place.

My favorites are the people who are morally outraged that people have to be "bribed" into donating. Hi, let me introduce you to humanity.

it's my understanding that if the person doing the creation isn't profiting from it, copyright issues are less likely to come into play

There's no law directly on point yet. So no court has yet said whether or not who gets the money matters.

I suspect that if someone who is not the copyright holder is getting money? The courts would care. Regardless of the relationship between the creator of the derivative work and the recipient of the cash.

Which, I expect, is what your IP friend will say. I need to see if Rivka has thoughts on this...

Just to refresh my memory -- VividCon! As in, who's going, again?

I mean, I don't need to start figuring out exactly how much food, booze, comics, and vids to pack in my car right now, but...

Just to refresh my memory -- VividCon! As in, who's going, again?

*raises hand*

Crap. I really need to get on making reservations if I want to use my frequent flier miles, don't I?

I'm kind of thinking of going

I was going to but now I don't think I could get the money together so I backed out. Although Margie indicated that if I could get the money together I'd still have a place.

Which, I expect, is what your IP friend will say.

Nope. She demurred from making any larger judgment, but when other people compared it to a standard political fundraiser, where people are given food or performances or whatever as a thanks for their contribution, she didn't object, either.