Emergency tuesday podcast !!! Emergency tuesday podcast !!!

 

As far as unofficial third party figures go...
The easy answer is that yes, these toys do infringe on Hasbro and TT's intellectual property. That is, whether you enjoy the toys or not, a statement of fact. Many of these companies would have been shut down a long time ago if they weren't protected by China's lax intellectual property laws.
I've got a few third party toys on my shelf right now. Toys I really enjoy. Toys I don't regret paying a premium for. And I have no plans to stop buying unofficial third party figures should I see one that catches my eye. All that being said? It's intellectual property theft. Whether anyone chooses to let that influence how they see the toys in question is up to that individual. Still, it's a reality that those of us who choose to partake in the market need to keep in mind.

Specifically because there are legal consequences. Not for us as consumers, but for the market as a whole. Any number of things could happen to fundamentally alter how that market works. Maybe a change in the way China does business results in more stringent intellectual property laws that allows Hasbro and TT to go after these companies from a legal standpoint. Maybe Hasbro chooses to go after online retailers who sell unofficial product. Maybe the ban at BotCon comes back with a vengeance.

Any number of things could happen that could lead to Hasbro and TT taking action against companies that, enjoyment of their work aside, are stealing intellectual property. And that's what I mean when I say it's a fact that needs to be kept in mind. As much as I enjoy unofficial third party figures I couldn't justify getting angry if Hasbro and TT found ways to bring the hammer down on those unofficial companies. Yeah, it would be disappointing from a collector's stand point, but Hasbro and TT would be well within their rights to do so.

As for public domain? Transformers as a franchise hasn't been around long enough for it to even be an issue, so it's mute point.

EDIT-
As far as the market itself goes...well the moral side of that depends entirely on the figure. City Commander, the FansProject Bruticus, and the multiple trailer add ons for the various figures all require the purchase of official Hasbro or TT product. If you feel sleazy about buying unofficial stuff (and I don't, but I could understand how some might) then this kind of stuff seems to skirt that moral argument by acting as supplements to officially produced product.
The unofficial standalone stuff is where things can get dicey. If someone says "I can't morally support that Perfect Effects Reflector" then I can't argue against that sentiment. It's not one I share, and I'll continue to enjoy my PE Reflector, but I do see where the other side is coming from.
Really, the conversation would be much better off if got away from the "everyone who supports third parties is an IP stealing malcontent"/"everyone who doesn't support third parties is just a Hasbro/TT sheep" binary. There's a lot of ambiguity at play here, and most people find themselves in the middle because they just want cool toys.

 

Did anyone else get a "DEAR PRINCESS CELESTIA" moment playing in their head when Seth brought up having Bumblebee report in to Optimus at the end of each episode?

 

Unique Internet names are a dying thing, keepin it real Vangelus!

 

It is Jurassic Park. All the sounds we've heard in the various clips are Jurassic Park roars.

 

I could see Optimus Prime in the new RiD cartoon being like Jaga from Thundercats. Drop some knowledge here and there and clean up the messes Bee can't clean on his own before returning to the Well of All Sparks or wherever

O. Prime - Jaga
Decepticon Hierarchy - Grune

 

I could see Prime coming back as sort of an end of the series finale. Which would probably be the best way to do it.

Either way, I'm amusing myself with the possibilities.

End of Predacons Rising: "The age of Primes is over. You're all worthy of being a Prime, and it's time you chose leaders based on merit and not old talismans and traditions."

After his resurrection in RiD: "So remember when I said there was no more need for Primes, and that you were all worthy of leadership? Well it appears I was wrong."

Sort of a mild take on the Broadway show Urintown where the idealistic good guys screw everything up after winning and it turns out the greedy draconian bad guys were actually doing a pretty good job given the circumstances. Feel good =/= what works  

 

Seth & Vangelus, I know this response isn’t exactly timely to when you released the Podcast, but I hope you’ll at least listen to what I’ve got to say.

Generally, when you two address the issue of 3rd parties, you act like it’s a slam dunk case waiting to happen. I question this, since in our society we’ve got so much copyright infringement that it doesn’t seem to be so cut & dry to me.

Take for instance knock off cereals. When I go to the supermarket, I can find fake coco puffs, fake rice crispies, fake lucky charms, and etc. They run under different names, but even the shapes are exactly the same. Other foods are similarly copied.

And let’s consider the Lego aspect for a second. Just consider how many companies are out there with compatible bricks. Sure, it isn’t like a judge would say Lego has full proprietary on a brick building system, but you’d think they’d be able to make a case of specific interlocking brick peg sizes or something along those lines.

Then there’s the case of Games Workshop Vs Chapterhouse. I can’t say that I’ve been following the case that closely, but apparently Chapterhouse was making miniatures that were specifically made to be compatible with Games Workshop’s stuff. GW, tried to get a Cease & Desist, but the end result is that the courts sided with Chapterhouse.

And there’s also the question of whether a homage can be legally prosecuted. I know Lindsay Lohan is trying to sue Rockstar for stealing her likeness, but it isn’t the first time I’ve seen a video game do something like that. Likewise, Cartoons & comics will reproduce likeness without authorization.

Am I trying to say that Hasbro doesn’t have any kind of case or grievance? Of course not, but I think it is possible that the issue has enough wiggle room, that it could backfire on HasTak. Then, instead of finding 3rd party stuff exclusively online, it could start ending up in stores.
Which would be Hastak’s worse nightmare.

I mean, if 3rd party was really in danger of HasTak, you’d think that Aaron Archer wouldn’t be jumping on the bandwagon.

Chapterhouse Vs Games Workshop link.
Lindsay Lohan link.

 

Joe Kyde was talking about 3rd party toys a little while ago at the Allspark.
He was not very kind. Very much not a fan, and it wasn't related to the business practices.

So maybe it's not really safe to make assumptions about what the actual pros think about this stuff.

(Even as someone who is somewhat morally opposed to IP infringing stuff I didn't agree with all of his points, but some of it was taste-related.)

 

Ahhh 40k... Maybe I should dust off my Blood Angels i haven't played since the end of 5th ed. I do remember when all that was going down it was huge.