Pixelation

General => General Discussion => Topic started by: LarkoftheRiver on June 05, 2017, 01:52:55 pm

Title: Selling Content on Sites Like Redbubble, Society6, etc
Post by: LarkoftheRiver on June 05, 2017, 01:52:55 pm
So I've been wanting to put some of my work on sites to sell as shirts, stickers, cases, etc, but I don't know where to begin. I want to make a little bit of money, and since commissions haven't been working out like I thought they would (I maybe have about $50 worth of cms, which isn't bad, but I haven't gotten a new one in a month now so I want to look for more alternatives) (in addition if someone could give me advise for advertising commissions that would be great, but not the point of this thread so shoot me a pm)

I've kinda looked around on Redbubble and Society6. Etsy too, but it looks like with Etsy I'd have to make the product myself, and I don't trust myself to make a good quality physical product like a shirt. I'd rather put my art into the site and the company turns it into a shirt to ensure the best quality.

My main problem deciding is... who owns the art once its uploaded? Honestly, the user license agreements are so confusing to someone new to this sort of stuff, and I'm leery about uploading my work on there. Especially if my work becomes their property the moment I do so. I haven't heard anything bad about Society6 yet, but Redbubble has some people saying that the site took their work and deleted their account.

Another thing I have an issue with is... is it legal to sell fanart on those sites? People love fanart, and being able to sell some of mine on there would greatly boost my sales, I think.

Does anyone sell/has sold through these sites and can clear up these questions?
Title: Re: Selling Content on Sites Like Redbubble, Society6, etc
Post by: eishiya on June 05, 2017, 02:29:57 pm
It depends on the site, so you should give those user agreements a careful read. If it's ownership in particular you're worried about, do a search within the agreement for "copyright", there aren't likely to be more than a few sections featuring the word.

In the vast majority of cases, you still own the art. The only thing the company gets is a licence to reproduce the art on products to sell, since that's kind of the point xP Most also stipulate a licence to use your art for promotional purposes, this covers both the ability to present your products in their storefront, and to use them for advertising the site itself (usually on the site, e.g. advertising holiday-themed products).

The other thing to be mindful of is when your licence of your art to the company ends. Make sure you check the termination clause, it's usually towards the end (or search for "termination"). Ideally, it goes like this: When you remove your products from the site, the agreement is terminated. The company owes you nothing more, but also loses the licence to your art. In some sneaky cases, the agreement is written so that the licence is perpetual, so be on the lookout for that. What's nasty about that is that this perpetuity isn't mentioned in the termination clause, but somewhere higher, where it describes the initial licence. So, do a search for "perpetual" and "perpetuum" just in case.