:

: Surely courts must have ruled on the right of
: a third-party to use photographs to
: illustrate / expose fake goods? Then the
: answer became clear: How many guys selling
: fake goods would go into court to seek to
: protect their rights to their photographs?
: Not a single one! What would they claim as
: damages -- the amount that they would have
: stolen from the innocent purchaser? This
: is absolutely the point, no seller of fake
: watches, especially one from South America,
: is going to take the time, effort or money
: to pursue this because the defending
: attorney will demand that the seller prove
: the watch is genuine and the seller can not
: stand the scrutiny that a court case would
: bring. Especially if we can call on
: depositions from Hans and Jack Heuer.

: From what I see, this means two things: 1)
: While realistically there remains a chance
: that some seller will go to the trouble to
: make waves, the chances of that happening
: are very small, as the expense and hassle of
: taking legal action is prohibitive.

: 2) There is potential for abuse. In other
: words, it's possible that one of us can make
: a mis-diagnosis and it would cost someone
: doing legitimate business money. So we all
: should be careful about what one states as
: fake, franken or phony.

: -- Chuck

:
Folks !

I think this great web site has gone to your head just a teeny tiny bit . The use of a copyrighted photograph no matter what it is of or how it is used , is infringement on that copyright .Look at the Stanford U. page , even if you are doing a doco or a critique or reading the news . If it is a fake then Hans or Jack would have to sue , not OTD ( and it would be Tag Heuer not Hans Or Jack Heuer because they probably did not design the inspirations and do not own the company or designs anymore even though Jack as been brought back into the fold ) . OTD could not sue or make charges against a franken maker because they /it does not hold the copyright . It would be no defence that the photographer / copyright holder was an AS---LE . As well if OTD were to sue on behalf Tag Heuer or if it was sued for putting a watch in the Gallery of fakes the onus would be on OTD to prove it was fake, not on the seller or Dr. Frank N. Stein ( no relation to Jeff of Course ) . Unless you can prove 100% that it is a fake ( and with frankens it’s impossible ) you could be accused of harassment ( let he without sin cast the first stone ). All this being said we all end up on the same page because no Dr. F. is going to want the bad press (Which, I think , that is the real enemy “the modern media “ internet included . Terrorists and freedom fighters in the days before instant news and streaming internet would take out train stations , ammo dumps etc.. and today it’s Russian schools and the Twin Towers . Sorry I’m having an argument with my wife about the modern press and got off topic) . Don’t get me wrong , I love you guys (I have said so in the past ) and Chuck said it so well , we must be careful .

I think it's the Same reason I love my wife , we don’t argue about the tooth paste tube or the toilet seat . We argue about the Nicaragua , Iraq , the press etc.. only the very interesting ! And it has been a pleasure debating this topic with you all . Foil , Epee or pistols at dawn next time ?
Cheers