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CBS/Paramount Sets Phasers To Kill On Star Trek Fan-Fiction With New Guidelines (audioholics.com)
Audiofan writes from a forum post on Audioholics: The Star Trek fan-fiction controversy that resulted in legal battles between CBS/Paramount and Axanar Productions concluded last week. However, CBS/Paramount have finally put forth its long-awaited guidelines intended to clarify acceptable fan-fiction so that it won't get the creative Star Trek fan sued for copyright infringement. But in doing so, it may have launched Star Trek fan-fiction's torpedo casket into space with a solemn salute. To be or not to be is the question which we ask about the future of Star Trek fan film. Some of the new guidelines for avoiding objections when making your own Star Trek movies and posting them to YouTube include: The fan production must be less than 15 minutes for a single self-contained story, or no more than 2 segments, episodes or parts, not to exceed 30 minutes total, with no additional seasons, episodes, parts, sequels or remakes. Part of the non-commercial requirements include: CBS and Paramount Pictures do not object to limited fundraising for the creation of a fan production, whether 1 or 2 segments and consistent with these guidelines, so long as the total amount does not exceed $50,000, including all platform fees, and when the $50,000 goal is reached, all fundraising must cease. The fan production cannot be distributed in a physical format such as DVD or Blu-ray. If the fan production uses commercially-available Star Trek uniforms, accessories, toys and props, these items must be official merchandise and not bootleg items or imitations of such commercially available products.
Just rewrite the dictionary and make whatever you like; If the story is good and all things being equal it will still be enjoyable.
Instead of Federation use Union, Collective, .. If Phaser is copyrighted use laser, pulse pistol.
Instead of Klingon use African American, and so on..
IMO we need new wider variety of scifi anyway.
The restrictions are just way too limiting. It's a big universe, and CBS/Paramount should "make" space for proper fan fiction, not beam-it-out in wide-dispersal mode.
I for one, will think twice before spending any money on any new Star Trek ventures going forward. Very, very disappointed.
Give a hand, not a hand-out.
Unfortunately, film and recording studios are still extremely naive about what intellectual property policy should be to maximize income. Obviously, the Star Trek fans are what has kept this franchise going for 40 years. You can count on them as an audience, which means a film is going to be a much safer investment than it would be otherwise.
To keep the fan base alive, holding intellectual property this close is simply the wrong policy. Coming to some sort of resolution with fan fiction producers would both preserve the fan base and increase profit (you can license them and allow them to make some money, as well as you).
To think, in the U.S. we just gained the right to sing "Happy Birthday" without intellectual property restrictions. That's how the non-sharing side of the ecology is going. On the sharing side, we have a very healthy Open Source community that has produced software everyone uses (even if they don't know) and that could not be built via the conventional economic paradigm because it can't necessarily be monetized directly. And we have things like Wikipedia that would just be impossible in the conventional paradigm.
Studios need to catch up. So far, they seem to be incredibly resistant to learning.
Bruce Perens.
CBS/Paramount are run by Ferengis.
Agreed, they butchered the series with that shitty JJ Abrams movie. and now they're attacking fan fiction that's actually good and actually worth watching for actual star trek fans. FUCK EM
just another franchise bastardized to make crap tacular summer action blockbusters.
and a big fuck you to the people of america for flocking to those in droves and making this happen.
The fundraising issue really bothers me. I know that Star Trek Continues had done some fundraising and was producing 45m episodes that were excellent. The production value was amazing, and they recreated parts of the set that were very convincing.
This may shut that down, without special dispensation from cbs/p.
I said it last time this topic came up, and I'll say it again now. Its no surprise to me that their rules are so draconian that they would eliminate pretty much all Star Trek fan fiction created thus far, and would make anyone think twice before bothering to create anything new. The reboot is so horrible they can't survive any real competition. Even with just a short at this point, its obvious that Axanar is going to totally blow away Star trek: Fast & Furious In Space.
I want a new quote. One that won't spill. One that don't cost too much. Or come in a pill.
Lets back up here a bit CBS/Paramount. You didn't invent Star Trek. You didn't even fund it's creation. You know who did: Lucille Ball (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucille_Ball). Yep. That woman. She sunk her company's last penny into it and sold off all her rights to her own TV show to blood suckers like you to do it, until she could not hold any longer and had to sell out completely. If she could have held out another year she would have made it, but not one of you misogynist pigs in the industry would support a woman. So you buy the rights to Star Trek out from under her for a song, and then what do you decide to do? Cancel the show! CANCEL THE SHOW! Only a massive writing campaign by fans restrain you from canceling it, to your recorded dismay, so in retribution you stuff the last season into the Friday night death slot. It wasn't for the massive rerun support of fans you would have shelved the who thing long long ago, in a closet far far forgotten.
Paramount, you have no shame and I'm not sure you deserve any of the proceeds you've made off this franchise. I wish Lucille Ball could sue you, but alas, she has a statue of limitation. Meanwhile you get to keep exploiting her and Gene's legacy endlessly.
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