Thank the fictional gods! JK Rowling has won her case against Steve Vander Ark of Harry Potter Lexicon, and RDR Books, who intended to publish a printed version of her material arranged into a reference book.
Vander Ark and RDR Books claimed Fair Use, but presiding judge Robert Patterson ruled that since the reference book contained no original commentary and simply rearranged copious amounts of Rowling’s material, its publication would constitute an infringement of Rowling’s copyright.
Rowling has stated that she, herself, intended to produce a Harry Potter Universe reference work for charity purposes, and Vander Ark’s book would also have infringed on her right to create such a derivative work.
Tags: copyright infringement, derivative works, fan fiction is dangerous territory, jk rowling, jk rowling versus steve vander ark
I was reading about this today and feel it is a really positive decision. Some people have all the front in the world, don’t they? Imagine proposing to write a Potter encyclopedia and not having anything to do with J.K. Rowling? Cheeky blighters!
It is very presumptious. I think Steve Vander Ark perceived an endorsement by Rowling because she gave his website an award early on. However, a fan website is different to a published book. I do think that many authors will be very careful in the future about acknowledging or being seen to endorse fan websites – which is sad. One person always has to spoil things…