[WikiEN-l] Fair use images on user pages and enforcement

Fri Jan 13 16:44:58 UTC 2006

On 1/13/06, Anthony DiPierro <wikilegal at inbox.org> wrote:
> On 1/12/06, Sam Korn <smoddy at gmail.com> wrote:
> > It's quite simple really.  Wikipedia's biggest reason for qualifying
> > for fair use is that it is a free educational resource.
>
> Everyone "qualifies" for fair use.  The fact that Wikipedia is an
> educational resource is *one factor* in whether or not its use of
> certain images in certain ways is fair use.

My phrasing was wrong, forgive me.  I meant to say that Wikipedia's
biggest asset in asserting that its use of copyright media is fair use
is that it is a free educational resource.

> > Userpages are just not educational.
>
> In general most userpages have a lessened educational purpose than
> articles.  I wouldn't go any further than that.  I certainly wouldn't
> say "userpages are just not educational".

Um, I have never seen an educational userpage.  Have you an example?

> > User pages would, if I read the situation
> > right, be very little different from a GeoCities website or the
> > equivilent.
>
> You definitely read it wrong.  Wikipedia userpages are, in general,
> very different from the average geocities website.

How?

> > Image use would not qualify as fair use there; why should it here?
>
> Image use can and often does qualify as fair use there.

On someone's personal website about themselves?  Either you Merkins
have *seriously* liberal copyright laws or we're talking at
cross-purposes.

> The only reason I can see not to use fair use images on user pages is
> that it is never necessary.  So rather than waste time arguing case by
> case with each other you just ban it completely.

At least we agree on something!

--
Sam