Suggestion for Contest Forum rules

[Egor]

I've noticed the rules do not include anything about the issue of designers using their entries in portfolios.

Check my post in this thread to see what I mean.

Are the designers supposed to guess that a message such as...

As regards the copyright, all copyright will pass to my client when I receive the winning file but the designer can still use it in their portfolio with text along the lines of: 'sub-contracted by AKA Design Solutions to produce ...'.

...needs to be included in their portfolio if they win the contest? Should we have to ask questions like my one in every contest (I don't know anyone that does, or even thinks about it), or simply have a rule stating the contest holder should include that information as part of the brief?

[Sarah]

Egor - its an interesting thoughts actually and I am not sure many people have thought about it.

I am in two minds about it all actually as I think that you should be able to display your work in a portfolio without prior request...

I am going to ask the other guys what they think and get back to you

[Egor]

Thanks Sarah. Another little issue I wanted to bring up is contest holders asking for fonts to be provided in contests such as logo and template designs. Some of the fonts designers use are commercial and can't be redistributed. Whether the designer themself downloaded these commercial fonts for free is another question, but either way, isn't that concidered piracy?

I brang that up in a contest a while ago, but all of the designers disagreed with me.

[Shyflower]

Thanks Sarah. Another little issue I wanted to bring up is contest holders asking for fonts to be provided in contests such as logo and template designs. Some of the fonts designers use are commercial and can't be redistributed. Whether the designer themself downloaded these commercial fonts for free is another question, but either way, isn't that concidered piracy?

I brang that up in a contest a while ago, but all of the designers disagreed with me.

As I see it, a big problem here at Site Point is that a lot of the designers are just getting started and don't know the legal issues involved in copyright for fonts, clipart use, and photographs. Designers need to read terms of use before they resell, use, or distribute anything in design for a client, but this is often overlooked in the contests. While the guidelines indicate that "Google Images" are not a design resource, the true reason is because "Google Images" don't belong to Google. They belong to the people who created them. Still, even in a Google search you can see several sites that host the same image and claim copyright privileges.

In most terms of use, whether it's for fonts or images, there are caveats about reselling or redistribution of the components, whether it's in a design program or a reseller like Getty or I-stock or a font-seller. Many times the terms also specify that the image, font, etc. can't even be manipulated or changed and then resold.

While this is not a big issue for those who are reselling the works, it is a big issue for the buyers. Copyright law makes no provision for the excuse "The designer told me that he had license to resell the work".

[phacker]

For what these contests usually pay.... I ask the contest owner at the time of transfer of files if I can use the design in my portfolio. No one has had a problem. I've never been ask to add a "subcontracted" statement, that may have been an oversight on the part of the contest holders at the time. As to the font question...that's still up in the air.

If my design doesn't sell...it's my concept and design, I've never transferred ownership, so if you have a problem take me to court.

[Egor]

For what these contests usually pay.... I ask the contest owner at the time of transfer of files if I can use the design in my portfolio. No one has had a problem. I've never been ask to add a "subcontracted" statement, that may have been an oversight on the part of the contest holders at the time.

That's the thing Pat, I'm sure some of us that have been around for a while ask, but what about the new members? If I ever enter contests, it's mainly to add something to my folio; not the money. If the contest holder posted his/her terms on this up-front, it would make things a lot easier.

[biggdesign]

Egor - its an interesting thoughts actually and I am not sure many people have thought about it.

I am in two minds about it all actually as I think that you should be able to display your work in a portfolio without prior request...

I am going to ask the other guys what they think and get back to you

Great! I think posting revisions of the design all over and over and over again is a waste of precious time. IMHO that is. It would be great if a Client chooses a designer through viewing of portfolio collective and work with the designer there and then. Get my drift right?

*cross fingers*

[ses5909]

Great! I think posting revisions of the design all over and over and over again is a waste of precious time. IMHO that is. It would be great if a Client chooses a designer through viewing of portfolio collective and work with the designer there and then. Get my drift right?

*cross fingers*

I agree that it seems silly to ask the designers to make tiny little changes, like, " Change the e to an s" when basically the outcome looks the same except for the letter e. Things like that can be worked out after the contest is over.

On the other hand, for someone to just pick the designer based on their portfolio would defeat the purpose of having a contest.

[Ainslie X11]

Alot of contest holders are submitting the designs for client appraisal, so they'd look pretty silly submitting something that has a typo, or, is not of the color scheme which might have been mentioned in the brief.

Where it gets nasty, is when a contest holder tells contestant A to use an attribute of contestant B's design - that's just simply unfair on contestant B, and may put contestant A in an ethical dilemma... which, shouldn't come as any surprise.

[phacker]

Alot of contest holders are submitting the designs for client appraisal, so they'd look pretty silly submitting something that has a typo, or, is not of the color scheme which might have been mentioned in the brief.

Where it gets nasty, is when a contest holder tells contestant A to use an attribute of contestant B's design - that's just simply unfair on contestant B, and may put contestant A in an ethical dilemma... which, shouldn't come as any surprise.

If a color scheme was mentioned in the brief it should be passed on in the original post by the contest holder so everyone is on the same page.

The last part of your comment I've run up against, but refused to go there. I won one contest even having refused.

Pat

[phacker]

It can also get "nasty" or really not "nasty", but can change the outcome of a contest when idle chit chat and pats on the back happen:

And I could have sworn I saw you taking part in that. I don't think anything has changed.

Lovely to see you back malbar - firehous holds great contests

If you don't think these kind of comments have weight watch for a while. Favorites quickly drop down to not being considered. Not on the weight of the graphic design, but the positives that are posted. And who wouldn't want their design crafted by the favorite, but it kind of makes the efforts of the others nil.

You can always contact these people by pm, but then it's not quite as public and doesn't have the reciprocal power to it.