The Not So Good:
While I think RBL do most things really well and I have been a customer for a number of years, I am worried about the leeway that 'designers' get with copyright images. I have had a look for just one thread on the issue of copyright infringement that is occurring on RBL and which, I believe, drives a lot of customers to shop there because of cheaper priced yet nearly comparable quality product to licensed outlets. I couldn't find any obvious discussion going back to early 2019, other than the dismissed Hells Angels case. I can't now find any Hells Angels rockers or patches or death's heads of any description. I personally would have pulled any Hell's Angels branded product that I was selling regardless of the outcome of the court decision. There are still plenty of bike logos though, Harley, Indian etc.
If this has been discussed, and more importantly explained, then please just point me to the thread. There are a lot of general questions about this if you google. Plenty of people asking how RBL (and also Etsy) get away with it. Someone mentioned that RBL may have some deals with certain franchises but, if true, that would seem to be an unsustainable policy.
Whole franchises seem to not be bothered that their trademark is heavily plagiarised (take a look at the range of Adventure Time products or any well-known movie or band). Just about every popular record cover ever made is available as a teeshirt. Manga and Anime. The Mandalorian'. Original designs by copyright holders are typically 50% to 100% more expensive in the licensed stores, of which quite a few are still bricks and mortar, but I don't see that changes anything litigation-wise. I know that this stuff pulls a lot of traffic to RedBubble. The copyright owners of many of the perhaps lesser-known design targets may simply be happy that more people are wearing merch that subsequently advertises them, but we all should know that most bands, even the biggest, only profit from tours by selling posters and tee-shirts. Many RBL designers are sensible enough to make slight background changes, perspective changes, or to include a different font with a directly photocopied image, but what happens if a class action was to be pursued at some stage? What do people think? I worry that when RBL starts raking in profits it could go through a plateau period where momentum could be lost for a while and momentum is a key to growth as we all know.
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