My Experience with Copyright Law and Social Media

By: Matt Hawkins
 
BLUE BELL, PA--Have you ever had an idea that you thought would make you rich or famous? What if that idea had been stolen from you?  How would it affect you? Copyright infringement is a crime in the United States because, whether it is and idea or a product, it is stealing and taking credit for something that didn’t originally belong to the person who put into the public. 

     However, when I was a kid I ran into a similar problem with a major toy company, Mattel.  Their main products are Hot Wheels and Barbie.  When I was in fourth grade, I would buy, play and collect Hot Wheels. My favorite sets were the ones that came in the 5-pack. I came up with an idea that Mattel could make a 5-pack train set because after years of buying Hot Wheels cars, I hadn’t seen any trains.  So I drew and designed the trains on a piece of paper, giving each one a style.
 
     I then asked my mom to mail my completed drawings to Mattel to see if they would take them or not.  I didn’t here anything from them for a long while until one day I got a letter back from them.  The letter said they were glad to see I was so interested in their product.  However, they were not allowed to take any ideas from outsiders; I would have to work for them.  Despite the rejection, it didn’t stop me from buying, playing with or collecting Hot Wheels cars.
 
     Fast forward to now.  I still collect Hot Wheels cars but only the ones that are worth a lot of money.  My ideas and inspirations have changed over the years with my growing reputation on Instagram, eBay and YouTube; my ideas cannot be taken because I have made a name for myself.
 
     On Instagram, I am known for my custom painted Transformer toys and I have sold a few for $100 dollars or more.  With eBay, I have been selling for two years now and I have a 99.9 percent positive feedback rating.  As for my YouTube presence, I do stop motion videos, under the name “AznKidMatt,” with my Transformers toys and I have thousands of subscribers.
 
     On Instagram, my followers know who I am and have pointed me to people who copy me claiming they made my videos or did my custom paint jobs.  I use a digital watermark on my custom paint pictures so no one can screenshot it and claim it as their own. 
 
     As for Mattel, a about a year ago, I was at WalMart and saw some Hot Wheel cars.  To my surprise, I saw these new two packs of trains next to them and I thought to myself, “They took my idea.”  I can not confirm that, I’m just going on the belief of great minds think alike.  I was not an employee of Mattel so my idea could not be spread.  The technology was limited back when I was in fourth grade but now anyone can share their ideas and thoughts. 
 
     I have a few new ideas I can’t wait to reveal on Instagram, eBay and YouTube when the time is right.