Graphic Artists Guild

Graphic Artists Guild Statement Regarding IPA Petition to Withdraw Lawsuit

Click here for the Guild’s official response to a petition that is being circulated in response to a move the Guild has made in an effort to defend itself. The response speaks for itself and because it involves legal proceedings, commenting further would be inappropriate.

For background information on reprographic royalties, click here.

Settlement Announced in the Google Print Library Project

A settlement has been reached in the class action lawsuit brought by the Authors Guild against Google in 2005, otherwise known as the Google Print Library Project. (See
http://www.gag.org/activities/advocacy_materials/searchable_books.php for background information)

Briefly, in December 2004 Google (the internet search engine) entered into an agreement with 5 libraries (the libraries of Harvard, Stanford, the University of Michigan, the University of Oxford, and The New York Public Library) to digitally scan library books and make them searchable online. Google set up scanning centers to facilitate this. The books that were to be scanned are owned by the libraries, and the digital text files were to be translated by OCR (optical character recognition) software and stored on Google's servers. The libraries were not seeking permission from authors or publishers to scan the books and make them available in digital format. Needless to say, many of these books contain images (illustrations and photographs) and it was unknown if the images would heve been identified, cataloged, and referenced.

Although we haven't had a chance to talk with Paul Aiken, Executive Director of the Authors Guild, and to go over all the documents and what it will mean for the future, we thought it was important to let everyone know that a settlement had been reached.

Click here for a PDF of the message the Authors Guild President, Roy Blount, Jr., sent to the Authors Guild membership regarding the settlement.

Also, here's the link to the Authors Guild settlement resource page, http://www.authorsguild.org/advocacy/articles/settlement-resources.html.

We'll keep you posted.

Thanks.

Tricia McKiernan
Executive Director

The Senate passed S. 2913 –The Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008 - by “hotline” on Friday, September 26, 2008

Representative Berman still intends to release the mark-up of his bill, HR 5889. Either the House version of Orphan Works legislation, H.R. 5889, or the Senate version, S. 2913, will become law. There are no other possible outcomes. The Guild continues to support Rep. Berman’s House bill, H.R. 5889.

The Graphic Artists Guild is urging all members and other artists to support H.R. 5889, because the bill includes a Notice of Use provision that includes a procedural “speed bump” for potential infringers. The Guild and other visual creators' organizations have fought for inclusion of the Notice of Use and other clauses in Orphan Works legislation. The Notice of Use stipulation requires users to file their intent to use a suspected orphan work, prior to using it, in an archive maintained by the US Copyright Office or other sanctioned entity.

The Notice of Use clause is a non-negotiable and vital provision to provide artists some protection in the future. The Graphic Artists Guild will not support any legislation that does not have this key protection. The Guild urgently encourages artists to join us in our effort to ensure House lawmakers pass H.R. 5889 as it's currently drafted with the Notice of Use provision.

Members of the American Library Association are urging the House to adopt the Senate bill. We must counter their messages!

We have provided a letter for you to your Representative in the House through our Capwiz portal. Please act now!

To use this letter-writing portal, click on the “Action Alerts” box, read the release, then enter your zip code and click on "GO" for a sample letter to use. You may also personalize your own letter. The letter will automatically be emailed to the US House. We recommend you also print out the letter and mail it.

Thank you for taking action!

To learn more click here.

For background information on the Orphan Works issue,visit our Orphan Works blog at www.orphanworksnews.com.

Thanks to all who attended the May 5, 2008, Orphan Works conference call and to those who emailed in their questions. We had some really good questions and our lobbyist,Megan Gray, did a great job of making a complicated issue understandable.

For anyone who's interested in listening to the call, dial (712) 432-1284, enter access code 953763#, and the recording will playback.

We're working on getting an audio link posted, but that may take a little longer than we anticipate.

Greetings From the Guild President

July, 08 Message from President John Schmelzer. Click here.

2008-2009 UPDATE! Teleclasses

A continuing professional education series using teleclasses!

Illustrator's Representation - Great Proposal - Business Formation

Contract Negotiation - Virtual Networking - Make a Website

You Learn by Phone - which makes it easy to attend. Classes are designed to help you learn more about your industry and the best ways to promote and protect your economic interests.

To see the 2008-2009 Schedule click here .

To see and register for the October class click here.

Miss a Class? Catch the Audio!

Download the audio file of each class!

Audio files for the 2007 classes are available. For more information, email Tricia admin@gag.org.

Advocacy Issues

Your Right to Unionize

The Senate voted on H.R. S.1041 - "The Employee Free Choice Act" - on June 26th.The Bill failed to pass by nine votes, all Repulican.
Click here for details…

ALERT

Perpetuity Contracts - DO NOT SIGN contracts with Simon and Schuster granting all rights in perpituity until you... Click here for more info

Copyright Protection for Fashion Designers - S.1957

S. 1957, theDesign Piracy Prohibition Act [including Protection For Fashion Design], was introduced in the Senate on August 8, 2007. The bill proposes to protect the copyright of fashion designs for 3 years.Click for more information

Support Artists Tax Deduction for Donated Artwork

The Artist-Museum Partnership Act Reintroduced in Congress
Show Congress Your Support! Click here for details

Support Your Right to Unionize

Contact your senators
Vote Yes on H.R. 800 - "The Employee Free Choice Act"
Click here for details…

We've Moved!

The Guild office in New York has moved to new office space.

Our phone lines are now up and running. Please note that the phone and fax numbers remains the same as well as our web site address and office email addresses. However, our extensions have changed:

ext.15 - Patricia McKiernan, Administrative Director
ext 10 - Tamara Hall, Reception
ext 11 - Tamara Hall, NY Chapter Administrator
ext 12 - Barbara Pannone, Membership

We're excited about the move and invite Guild members to come visit when in town.

As of March 1, 2007 the new address is:

Graphic Artists Guild
32 Broadway, Suite 1114
New York, NY 10004
Tel: 212-791-3400
Fax: 212-791-0333

Copyright Housekeeping

VA Copyright Registration Forms must be submitted as 2-sided on one page. When you print out the .pdf form on the Copyright Office web site, print it on both sides of one sheet of paper, not as two one-sided sheets. The Copyright Office has been rejecting VA Registration Forms printed on two sheets.

Always save at least one print, copy, or example of your work with your Copyright Registration Certificate. Keep the hard copies together in a folder.

Copyright Office Increased Registration Fee

As of July 1, 2006, the fee for copyright registration of a Visual Art form increased from $30 to $45. The last time the Copyright Office raised the registration fee was in 1999. Other statutory and filing fees will also increase. More information can be found on the U.S. Copyright Office Web site at www.copyright.gov/fedreg/2006/71fr15368.html

Great News About Access to Health Insurance!

The Guild recently affiliated with the United States Federation of Small Business which means that most Guild members will now have access to group health insurance plans. Click here for more info.

Ask Mark

We have a wonderful feature called Dear Mark, which has new dialogs posted regularly. Hosted by the fabulous Mark Monlux, you will find common questions and uncommonly helpful answers, addressing a variety of art business issues. Click here!

Yay! a Project! But now, how to price it??

Mark Monlux to the rescue
1) How to Establish Basic Estimate Guidelines
2) How to Negotiate a Contract

Volunteer!

Would you like to hang out with your creative colleagues? Learn new skills? Broaden your networking? Sharpen your business expertise? You can do all this AND be part of an essential organization, pooling our resources to improve working conditions for all artists! Just contact your local Guild chapter or contact one of the National Committees.

PEGs 12

Get your copy of the 12th edition of The Graphic Artists Guild Handbook of Pricing and Ethical Guidelines.

" The creative professions are radically changing and the Handbook is keeping pace with up-to-date advice on pricing and professional practices. This 11th edition ranks at the top of HOW's list of must-have business resources for creatives."
– Bryn Mooth, Editor, HOW Magazine

Contact sales@gag.org

(Guild members receive a complimentary copy.) Click here to read all about this indispensable reference, or to place your order.

Guild Lapel Pins Available

Everyone is proud of their Guild Lapel Pins! Show your pride. Purchase your Graphic Artists Guild Lapel Pins today for $10 (includes tax, shipping and handling). Just send a check, made out to the Graphic Artists Guild, to Mark Monlux, 7622 S. Yakima Ave. Tacoma, WA 98408-5315. Purchase a lot of 10 for the price of eight.

Committee News

Advocacy
Updates in copyright legislation, copyright issues and how they effect our business as artists. Precedent setting legal cases that protect and define our rights to our work as creators, and the publishers and businesses still challenging them. Are "art contests" and online logo graphic design "mills" unethical, and what can be done about them? Information about reprographic rights organizations and how they operate. All this and more on the Guild's Advocacy page. Contact National Advocacy Committee Chairperson Lisa Shaftel at to become involved.

Communications
Be part of the voice of the Guild! We're working on the Newsletter, the Website, various and sundry collateral, and there's always a heap of to-dos in the PEGs' In Basket. If you are an active Guild member, and interested in contributing (read: volunteer) please contact the Communications Committee:

Membership
Got fresh ideas? Want to help grow our ranks? How about just helping out at the Guild booth at upcoming tradeshows? Haydn Adams is our dynamic contact point for serving and growing our membership, and he'd love to talk to you.

More News!

Cruise over to the News page for more, well, news.

Join Now!

Make 2008 a great year for your career. Give yourself a well-deserved gift this year and become a Graphic Artists Guild Member today! [join here!]

Tools for Educational Outreach

The importance of teaching professional business standards to graphic artists beginning their careers is essential. With this goal in mind, the Northern California chapter of the Guild has created a PDF template document to assist Guild chapters in doing effective outreach. [more]

Copyright Information

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The Graphic Artists Guild website continues its journey towards a redesign. Thank you for your patience. Interested in helping speed things along? If you're a Guild member with web design experience (remember... we're a VOLUNTEER organization...) contact