Diabetic Cat Care

Don't be a cat burglar!     Intellectual Property Policy

At DCC, we are very conscious when it comes to creative efforts undertaken to share subject knowledge with others.  The world-wide web has opened  doors to a wealth of information resulting in the protection of intellectual property rights becoming a very important legal issue. Virtually everything that's on the web globally-whether the copyright symbol accompanies the work or not-is legally protected under the intellectual property rights umbrella. This communication shares DCC's position as it pertains to our Intellectual Property Rights (which is the umbrella Copyright Infringement falls under).   

Since DCC's launch in 2009, DCC's intellectual property has been protected by international law.  Anything created by, at or for DCC which is stored on our server is copyright protected unless otherwise specified; including but not limited to our website, images, forums and posts, knowledge base, databases and member list, statistical information and communications within DCC's internal message system.  Only authorized representatives of Diabetic Cat Care have the legal right to republish, modify, distribute, sell, use or assign our copyrighted works. 

DCC is a not-for-profit organization and as such prohibits the use of our copyrighted materials for any financial gain or personal benefit without prior consent.  Examples are using DCC's images or knowledge material on a vet clinic's business website, publishing books, etc. for profit, or obviously on competing websites and/or forums. 

Diabetic cat owners wishing to copy and save DCC's proprietary materials to benefit from the experiential knowledge amassed at DCC, are able to save our intellectual property from our server to their own personal devices, and/or are able to share this information freely with friends and associates as long as the creative works are attributed to DCC.  

Attribution is key when it comes to ensuring copyright infringement does not take place.  What that means is that DCC gets due credit for our creative works if, when and where they might be used.  For example, if DCC's proprietary materials are posted on another website, forum or other social media - whether in whole or in part; to avoid copyright infringement the material should not be altered in any way and in addition, attribution must be accredited to DCC either by way of a direct hyperlink, or a statement clarifying "this material has been copied from Diabetic Cat Care.   Attribution means that the creator of the original works gets the credit due for their hard work. 

Creative Commons is yet another tool available on the world wide web and DCC is no different than most when it comes to utilizing resources available; many images we've used at DCC are photographs available under Creative Commons as just one example. While ideas are not typically considered to fall under the umbrella of copyright infringement, reproduction of the original presentation of the idea is.  The bottom line when it comes to DCC's position is this; we work hard to do the research, find the resources and compile information into OUR knowledge base, for OUR members.  If it's believed that the subject matter is relevant and desirable material for your website or blog - please don't simply take our hard work, put some new lipstick and mascara on it and claim it as your own creative endeavor; without attribution, the result is no less than copyright infringement, which is prosecutable by law internationally.

Most websites, bloggers, forums and newsletter publishers have no issues with their works being shared on the internet (or elsewhere) as long as doing so isn't for financial gain, and more importantly, that attribution is clear.  It's how they get the word out, and in addition, is a great way to build backlinks for their websites.  It's no different at DCC - we want to share our message too - but we want the credit due for the hard work we've done!  

DCC takes great care to ensure intellectual property rights are respected when it comes to sharing other's creative work - this is abundantly clear on our website and forum where many links are directed off our site to original images, intact articles and websites.   This is what is required in return, that DCC's intellectual property rights are respected by attribution - whether that's a direct link to DCC, or the statement "this material is copied from Diabetic Cat Care".

Violations of international intellectual property laws can have many repercussions - some very serious depending on how and where in the world copyright infringement occurs.  In most cases, when caught infringing copyright, a request is made to either attribute the materials to the creative source, request payment for the use of the infringed materials, or to demand copyright protected works that have been infringed on are removed from the public eye entirely.  In cases were intellectual property rights have been violated, further legal action by way of Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) can result in websites being shut down temporarily as the case is investigated, or permanently depending on the depth of the infringement.  There is a lot of information available online when it comes to understanding what Copyright Infringement is, and how to make certain global intellectual property infringement laws are not broken.  

Please take a minute to check the terms & conditions posted at websites you wish to link to or copy from to determine what their individual policies are when it comes to copying or sharing their information, and when in doubt, contact them directly to discuss what it is you wish to copy, where you want to copy it, and the reason why. Many websites, including DCC are very happy to share their intellectual property when it is done in a professional, law-abiding, upfront manner so the reality is, when being upfront and honest, there's no justifiably ethical reason for being a cat burglar!

Diabetic Cat Care has made a point of outlining to our members how to avoid and rectify copyright infringement as best we possibly can; however, DCC and its representatives assume no liability for members when it comes to posting copyrighted material without permission or attribution.

For more information about DCC's Intellectual Property Rights, or to request permission to use our copyrighted materials in situations of financial gain, a competitive nature or for personal benefit, please make contact with an authorized representative at DCC.  There are no fees to join our forum.