Intellectual property problems, or bug again?

[Umbra75 Bigbear]

In the recent past, I had an item removed from my marketplace inventory. The reason given was that it violated the Intellectual Property Policy, but when I filed a ticket (since it was an item I, myself, created), I was told that it there was a bug in the system that caused the removal to be blamed on the IPP. It was actually removed because the item was in the wrong category (which, should have just allowed me to choose another category instead of removing it, but....).

Now, I've had another item removed and been given the same reason. How do I know whether I inadvertently violated the IPP, or if another bug has wrongly mislabeled my item? What will this do to my reputation in the eyes of my customers?

And, why is it that when I'm told an item is removed from my marketplace inventory, it's still listed there, and I have no option to remove it? Shouldn't the listing of it be removed as well, or at least be able to be deleted?

How many tickets do I need to fill out? If something is my fault, then fine. But if something is just miscategorized or there's some other equally benign priblem, why is it so complicated to get these things taken care of?

[Josh Susanto]

The reason given is sometimes not the obvious reason for removal, so I suspect that it is quite often not the real reason.

I recently had removed a Ferrari made out of meat and a collection of 3 spoofed ad images from the SLM, both for being "not as advertised".

In what way could these things not be as advertised?

The ad images, you can see just by looking at the posted photos; I was offering them for free so people wouldn't have to grab them and pay to load them.

The Meat Ferrari is a Ferrari and it is mostly made out of meat. 

How could someone be confused about that, especially with a picture of the thing?

[Cerise1488303085]

 

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Josh Susanto wrote:

The Meat Ferrari is a Ferrari and it is mostly made out of meat. 

How could someone be confused about that, especially with a picture of the thing?

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Hi, "not as advertised" can mean "wrong category". This can happen even if you have the product in the right general area, but there is a more specific subsection that could fit it better. LL won't tell you the right category unless you contact support and ask, or you can go it alone and try to make the right guess. Dakota Linden tried to explain their reasoning here. It would be really nice if they could come out and tell people what the category should be if they know it, but that's not the way they roll.

If you were flagged for "not as advertised" then maybe you are off Ferrari's radar, but even LL skipped that name for their simulator RC channels to prevent legal trouble.

[Josh Susanto]

It's a functional car and it was listed as a ground vehicle.

Had it not been textured with scanned raw pork ribs, I can't see any possible reason why it should have been flagged at all.

 

[Dakota Linden]

 

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Josh Susanto wrote:

It's a functional car and it was listed as a ground vehicle.

Had it not been textured with scanned raw pork ribs, I can't see any possible reason why it should have been flagged at all.

 

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Hello Josh,

Your product listing was unlisted because you placed it into the main Ground Vehicles category instead of placing it into the correct Cars & Trucks sub-category.

So your listing is in fact in the wrong category.

If you read the Marketplace Fees & Listings Policy page you will see that it clearly states not to place product listings into a top level category when there is a sub-category that is appropriate for your listing.

https://marketplace.secondlife.com/listing_guidelines

"Do not post items in the "Root" categories such as Apparel, Home & Garden, etc. unless you absolutely cannot find an applicable sub-category that applies"

Since the Ground Vehicles category has an appropriate sub-category called Cars & Trucks, your listing should be moved to that sub-category to bring it into compliance with the Listing Policies.

If your listing gets blocked for being in a Top Level/Root category, then it will become necessary to submit a Support Case through the Support Portal so that your listing can be unblocked so that you can correct the Marketplace Listing Policies violation.

Regards,

Dakota Linden
--
Linden Lab
SL Marketplace Customer Support
https://marketplace.secondlife.com/
http://www.secondlife.com

[Josh Susanto]

VERY clear, thanks.

I don't sell any other vehicles, so when I clicked on the appropriate category and the system acted as if I had selected it, I just assumed there were no further options.

This also happens frequently when I try to put items in sculpted prims creator tools landscaping or architectural and the system thinks I have selected a higher category. I'm aware of it because I use those categories quite often.

I have considered bothering to fix such entries, but I figure it should be easier for the people who actually care to prevent it from happening in the first place, unless they'd rather spend their time answering complaints by people whom they have continued to confuse by not fixing the system.

Your response shows that you're actually looking at flaggings in some cases, which I'm delighted to see.

I was getting all kinds of crazy flaggings a few months ago, but something seems to have deterred the flagger or flaggers, so if it was you who stopped them, thanks again for that.

[Dakota Linden]

Hi Josh,

 

Blocking the use of the top level categories is on the backlog of issues that need to be addressed and fixed on the Marketplace.

Obviously issues that are more important and have a higher priority, like the failed delivery problems with the Magic Boxes, will be addressed ahead of issues like category options.

Regards,

Dakota Linden
--
Linden Lab
SL Marketplace Customer Support
https://marketplace.secondlife.com/
http://www.secondlife.com

[Josh Susanto]

I'm glad to hear that.

For what it's worth, though, you have my support in principle for not making it a top priority.

When people seem to complain, I may tend to jump on the bandwagon, but I think I've been clear elsewhere about which I think are serious problems and which are not.

[Kuda Oh]

So today I decide to mess around with neons I made out of boredom. In one I find a notecard stating an Intellectual Property Complaint. No idea who made the complaint as I did not see any email for it. So I look up on market place, Bacardi neon; and I see 2 listings with a Bacardi neon. Being sold by 2 different people, one just by itself and the other with a Budwieser Chinese dragon neon and a non brand double mug neon. Think one of the two would have filed a complaint on the other right there. Neon I made for myself is the Bacardi bat but in red with out the label on the bat's chest, very plain. Quite a difference there right? Besides I didn't know someone else had made a bacardi bat neon as it was although different in look/style.

So I don't know who filed the complaint, was it Bacardi or was it the one of the two who have the same neon listed in marketplace. That is to be seen when ever I get an email response from Linden Lab. 

[Madeliefste Oh]

 

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Kuda Oh wrote:

So today I decide to mess around with neons I made out of boredom. In one I find a notecard stating an Intellectual Property Complaint. No idea who made the complaint as I did not see any email for it. So I look up on market place, Bacardi neon; and I see 2 listings with a Bacardi neon. Being sold by 2 different people, one just by itself and the other with a Budwieser Chinese dragon neon and a non brand double mug neon. Think one of the two would have filed a complaint on the other right there. Neon I made for myself is the Bacardi bat but in red with out the label on the bat's chest, very plain. Quite a difference there right? Besides I didn't know someone else had made a bacardi bat neon as it was although different in look/style.

So I don't know who filed the complaint, was it Bacardi or was it the one of the two who have the same neon listed in marketplace. That is to be seen when ever I get an email response from Linden Lab. 

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Unless you had made a deal with Bacardi that you can use their logo in SL, you are simply not allowed to sell the neon. It is against TOS to upload copyrighted content, unless you have permission from the IP right holder. Same counts for the other two sellers.

 

[Kuda Oh]

The thing is I never even listed it for sale unlike the 2 listed ones. I may have gave a copy to someone for use in thier club, I don't really remember. Otherwise the only other one sat at a private hangout I made for a friend, that one was never out all the time tho. So I am curous who filed the complaint and how they would even know if it isn't someone I know or friends know. If it was Bacardi themselves I can understand specially if I was selling it for "finacial gain at thier expense". That said, how would the other 2 who are selling similar neons even know I had also made my version? That is if no one I know even knows the sellers, that is if one of them filed a complaint.

If it was either of the 2 sellers then they really have no claim to intellectual property, only Bacardi does imo.

[CLEOPATRA Xigalia]

Okay, so let me get this right, We get our things put in " intellectual property violation category: when we have really just put our items in the wrong category. So, the option of you telling us clearly, put it in the right category is not an option. And somehow this is supposed to make sense ?? Why am I so confused.

 

We are supposed to just know when you say we have an IPP violation its really a mis placed category. ??   Well done you.

 

[Madeliefste Oh]

In April this year it was like I said. They might have repaired the bug in the meanwhile. I don't know. 

Best is to contact Dakota to get a clear answer. You can reach her by ticket.