Custom liveries & law

  • Thread starter GTbernie
  • 4 comments
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GTbernie

GTbernie

2
Germany
Bavaria
Hello community,

thats my first post, please be not to strict to my post :)

I have some questions/concerns using brand logos of existing brands on cars that are public shown e.g. on my website.

It feels not legal to use trademark logos, logos of real companies to create liveries that are publicly shown in the internet. Maybe a company doesn't want to be in the context of motorsports or to be shown on a car with other brands they don't want to be related to.

So it feels a bit not legal to create without permission of the brands to use their logos and publish the cars in the internet in galleries to show everybody or also to publish them in the game.

Never heard there were any discussions about that.

So... whats your opinion on that?

Lovely greetings,
GTbernie
 
GTbernie
It feels not legal to use trademark logos, logos of real companies to create liveries that are publicly shown in the internet.
Click to expand...
It's entirely legal, under Fair Use.
 
GTbernie
as far as i know.. that exists only in the U.S.
Click to expand...
That precise term does, but there is equivalent legislation across the EU (and the UK) too. It's a little more awkward in Europe, thanks to the Copyright Directive (and recent changes to it) but in a situation like this one the onus still falls on the publisher (SIE) rather than the user either way.

It's a simplification, but the upshot is that if you are not profiting from it, you can use even the most copyrighted of copyrighted materials. If there is profit in it - such as editorially (like writing GTPlanet's articles), or for promotion (such as using a livery to sell a game) - you need to use materials that have either more open copyright or to which you have been granted specific rights of use.

A dude making a livery in the game isn't that. A dude making a livery for a promotion or contest (like the Toyota and Mazda competitions) is, which is why these contests have specific restrictions on what third-party imagery you can use (none).
 
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