Quote:
Originally Posted by HarryT
No, that's a difference between copyright and trademark law. Copyright infringement can occur whenever an image is copied without the permission of the copyright holder - eg the album cover (I'm guessing that's what it is?) you have for your avatar could conceivably be considered to be copyright infringement if you don't have the permission of the copyright holder to reproduce it (although nobody would be bothered by such usage in reality). Trademark infringement can only occur if a trademark is being used for purposes of trade. Eg, you're free to set up a web site selling Hoovers, and have pictures of Hoovers on it, but you couldn't start a company called "Hoover Repairs, Ltd", because that would be using the trademarked name "Hoover" for commercial purposes.
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I've found the story I vaguely remembered, it was Toyota. It looks like they backed down after a public outcry, so the legality of it was never really tested. Ford's banning of people printing calendars of their own cars I suppose would just about constitute commercial purposes.
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/200...55142844.shtml
I have permission for my avatar, I'm one of the administrators on their Facebook page
