Copyright Infringement

Sinful Reads asserts that its use of characters is protected under the doctrine of fair use and does not constitute copyright infringement. According to 17 U.S.C. § 107, four factors are used to determine whether a particular use of copyrighted material qualifies as fair use: (a) the purpose and character of the use, (b) the nature of the copyrighted work, (c) the amount and substantiality of the portion used, and (d) the effect of the use on the potential market for or value of the original work.

Our use of original characters is purely parodic and falls squarely within the boundaries of fair use, ensuring no infringement of the original creators’ copyrights. A thorough application of the four factors makes it clear that our work constitutes fair use of the original material.

  1. Purpose and Character of the Use:
    This factor examines the extent to which the new work is transformative and whether it merely replaces the original. A work is considered transformative if it adds something new, with a purpose or character different from the original. The U.S. Supreme Court has emphasized that the more transformative a work is, the less significant the other factors become.Our works, as artistic parodies, significantly transform the original material by placing characters in entirely unexpected and exaggerated scenarios—an essential feature of parody. By doing so, our works convey a message that is distinct from the original, which is a core aspect of transformative use. While our works may be commercially available, this does not diminish the transformative nature of the parodies.
  2. Nature of the Copyrighted Work:
    Although the original works are creative and fall under copyright protection, this factor has less weight in cases of parody. Parodies typically draw upon well-known, expressive works to critique or comment on them. As such, the nature of the original work does not significantly impact the fair use analysis in our case.
  3. Amount and Substantiality of the Portion Used:
    This factor considers how much of the original work is used and whether that amount is justified by the purpose. Sinful Reads uses only the elements necessary to achieve its parodic purposes. We do not copy the original works verbatim or use direct clips; rather, our artists create original illustrations from scratch, introducing substantial alterations that serve the parody. While the characters may resemble the originals, these similarities are essential to the parody and are infused with a new, distinct character.
  4. Effect on the Market:
    The final factor evaluates the impact of the new work on the market for the original. It is clear that our explicit, parodic content does not serve as a market substitute for the original works. Parody, by its nature, does not diminish the demand for the original but instead exists in a different market altogether.

Considering these factors, particularly the transformative nature of our work, Sinful Reads’ use of the original characters is protected by fair use and does not infringe on the copyrights of the original works.

Trademark Infringement

Sinful Reads’ use of characters is not a case of trademark infringement. Our use is (a) not causing confusion, (b) protected by the First Amendment, and (c) considered nominative fair use. Each of these defenses alone suffices to establish non-infringement, and together they make it clear that Sinful Reads does not infringe on any trademark rights in the original works.

The primary aim of trademark rights is to prevent consumer confusion by ensuring that consumers are not misled into believing they are purchasing a product endorsed by the trademark owner. In our case, there is no likelihood of confusion:

  • The art style on our website is distinct.
  • The characters are depicted in scenarios that the trademark owners would not endorse.
  • Our website features characters from various properties owned by different companies.
  • We do not use the names of the television shows or the companies that own them.

These factors collectively ensure that no reasonable consumer would be confused about the origin of the works on our site.

Our works have clear artistic relevance as parodies of the original works. Parody is a constitutionally protected form of expression, serving both as a standalone artistic endeavor and a critique of the originals. Given this artistic relevance and our transparency about the nature of the content, our works do not mislead anyone regarding their source or content.

Finally, our use of trademarks is a case of nominative fair use. We use character likenesses to evoke the originals while clearly identifying our works as parodies. Nominative fair use is determined by a three-part test:

  1. The necessity of using the trademark to identify the product:
    We use the likenesses of characters because it is essential to evoke the originals in our parodic works.
  2. The amount of the trademark used:
    We only use as much of the character likenesses as necessary, without using the names of the television shows or the companies that own them. Our artists create unique illustrations that transform the characters significantly.
  3. No suggestion of endorsement or sponsorship:
    We do not imply any sponsorship or endorsement by the original trademark holders. We avoid using the names of the shows and the companies, making it clear that our works are independent creations.

Thus, Sinful Reads’ use of character likenesses does not infringe on any trademark rights in the appearances of characters from the original works, assuming such rights exist.