Updated Community Guidelines

Hi Folks - please take a minute to review our updated Community Guidelines.  You'll notice some clarification specifically with regards to posting copyrighted content and recipes to the forum.  

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Help/Info--Tasteofhome-com-Community-Guidelines

POSTING RECIPES. Any Taste of Home recipe, recipe photo or recipe link may be posted within Taste of Home's Community. Recipes and recipe images from other websites, forums or blogs may not be posted in the community forums unless written permission is received from the recipe owner or source. Recipes from other websites or blogs may be posted as links without permission if the original recipe copy and image are not included in the post. Recipes posted without permission can be deleted without warning or notice.

OBTAIN PERMISSION FOR COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. Any recipes, blog posts, images, articles, news reports, or other copyrighted material included in the posts must be with the permission of the relevant copyright owners.

Ok, so say that I tried a recipe out of a cookbook and I really liked it.............can I post the recipe here if I post the name of the cookbook and it's author? 

What did I do wrong now?

Sheesh,I`m almost afraid to post anything but chit chat here anymore.

I love to chat ,but mostly I come to a recipe board to share recipes.

What few recipes I`ve posted lately are from my own collections.most are so old I don`t know where they came from.So have no idea who has copyrights etc. on them.

Susie darlin , I know you`ve been trying so hard to keep this BB interesting ,but Reiman is killing it.

I do understand the copyright thing up to a point.But mostly I`m confused by it all.

Rosie

rosiewny

Sheesh,I`m almost afraid to post anything but chit chat here anymore.

That's what I was going to say!  LOL   It appears to me that we're all going to be following links around to other bb's all day (picking up viruses as we go), or everybody's subject line is going to start out, "OT:............", and we know how well THAT went over with people on the "old" bb!  LOL 

It seems to me that the only recipes that I would dare post would be one of my own creations, which is definitely NOT going to happen.  If I HAVE created something remotely edible, it's been purely by accident because of forgetting to buy an ingredient in one of my bazillion trips to the store and having to substitute another, or because it was to be made in stages and I burnt the stuff in one stage or another and had to feed it to the dog or the phone rang and I tried cooking & talking at the same time and completely screwed the whole thing up!  If by chance something DID turn out, I'll guarantee you that I couldn't remember what I did, or in what amounts, to "fix" it, to save my soul.  It would've been one of those "one hit wonders", that's for sure!  LOL   So, maybe I'll just have to come on here and chat with YOU, Rosie!  *grin*

This sure can be frustrating, can't it!?

Even these blog people get their recipes from somewhere and even though the test kitchens of the world that stand there and create their 'own' recipes are following their taste buds, as we do~add this, don't add this~and there is always the same recipe somewhere either on the internet or a cookbook.

Now I am curious about magazine advertisers i.e. kraft, etc...they can put their recipes in magazines and then on their website post THEIR rules such as this...I am sure they are trying to get web-traffic, but honestly, not share them somewhere? If kraft, M&M, or anyone can advertise on any webpage, I would thing they would want a boosted sale, etc. My theory has always been, if noone wants to share any recipe, fine~their is another place.

http://www.kraftrecipes.com/about/UserAgreement.aspx

How do these hometown cookbooks get away with publishing recipes? I have seen TOH recipes and other magazines and even blogs with the same recipes.

I wonder~Does TOH come unglued when they fine a recipe someone else tried and it is elsewhere on the internet or in a hometown cookbook? Or are they secure in their belief that sales will continue and that tweaking and life will go on?  Know what I mean?

All kind of frustrating

I agree with all of the above!  The Board has become stagnat lately. Recipes have seriously become secondary.

Secondary to ot's  questions  and polls.  Sue and all members  I undertand that we seem to be grabbing at straws just to keep the board moving.  And I can understand that and I too have thought of throwing out some of the above as well. Just to keep things moving, but if it bores me how many others  are bored by it.

  Our membership has fallen and even gals that are in touch everyday have cut way back !  I can't remember when I last posted a Review. And Recipes are at a stand still these days.  

Many recipes contain links. 

But who wants to rely on Links to share and find new recipes.  They seem cold, non friendly and inconvient

Another attempt to keep the board moving. 

While I don't have a solution, I do appreciate All of the efforts being made. And I have particiaped in some of them.    It's still good to see many old members hanging in there.  Less active but still stopping by for a cuppa and a howdy.

I for one will be one of those members  Hanging in there for the Better~

Jani

.

I can remember when the board was fun - just like the economy it has gone DOWN the u know what.

What's going to happen to someone new who posts a recipe she enjoyed making and got the recipe out of a magazine, bb, blog or whatever....is TOH going to swoop down on her for posting???   It seems like there's a new rule everytime I come to the Toh website.

I think all this regulation is absolutely ridiculous.   JMO

Scarlett in FL

I cannot believe that Reiman would be sued by  big companys like Kraft, Betty Crocker,etc.Are`nt they in the business to sell their products?The more people see their recipes and those photos the more products they will sell.

I don`t know what a blog is,but don`t they want new members to join and share too?

What about  Reiman?They don`t want us to share recipes they publish with others on other sites?

Seems like that would be good busines.

I don't see this as a 'Reiman' policy but as some copyright internet act. The internet 'copyright infringement' is kind of a new territory so they have come up with this infringement something or another act.

The rules on most blogs and sites are about like Kraft, Reiman, and BLOGS that are on the internet. Everyone has a copyright something. I think this board was probably caught in the middle and to protect themselves, they had to come up with this~or maybe I don't have my thinking hat on straight.

Everyone seems to want to say this is my copyright photo, etc but if the wording belongs to someone else,then it is their copyright and they can complain.

Remember the cake dr fiasco? Wonder what she is doing now that the box sizes have changed?

I agree with all the other posters. This is kind of nonsense,since most of the time or one can nearly all the time,I have recipes in my file and I don't know,where they came from. I try them out and I post them,when I like them. I guess you had to post the restriction,because Reiman wants to cover their back. How many times do they get sued??? Oh,sure,in order to post a recipe, in case I know the origin, I would write to get permission to post it, ?I think I would forget about the recipe.

Ok, I'm going to play devil's advocate here.

1. It has ALWAYS been part of the TOS  that copyrighted material cannot be posted without permission.

2. 99% of us have ignored that rule for the last 11 years, but that doesn't mean it's right.

3. Since blogging and sites like Pioneer Woman, Bakerella and Smitten Kitchen have exploded in popularity,  copyright infringement has become a much larger issue. The owners of these sites are just like you and I. They take recipes that have been around for years, or they recently found on the web and they often add their tweaks based on taste and ingredient availability. But they take it 3 steps further. They take photos, over and over until they get it "perfect" and "professional looking". Then they take the time to type it all up, usually with some story or anecdote and then they publish it on their website. At that point, the procedure of the recipe as well as the photos become their personal property and are protected by copyright laws.

4. Recently as some of you know, TOH has been innundated with complaints from bloggers (who in my humble opinion are hoping to be the next Pioneer Woman) because their recipes and photos were posted on the TOH Community Forums without written permission. That is and always has been a violation of Taste of Home's Terms of Service Agreement.

The fact that food blogs have become so popular in recent years has just exacerbated the problem and we as members who copy and paste recipe after recipe from these food blogs (as well as from cookbooks, newspapers and websites belonging to major companies like Pillsbury and Kraft) knowing full well that we didn't ask permission first have no right to complain about Taste of Home clarifying and enforcing their Terms of Service.

5. Copyright laws aren't restricted to just recipe websites and blogs like The Food Network, Paula Deen or Baking Bites. They also apply to anything published by Taste of Home, Reader's Digest, The Washington Post, USA Today, People Magazine, and everything else published out there. Taste of Home cannot by law tell us it's not ok to post a recipe from Todd Wilbur but it's ok to post one from Kraft or The Mobile Press Register's Food Section.

It has to be across the board. If it isn't a Taste of Home/Reiman Publications recipe, story, or photo, then you have to have permission from the owner.

6. Yes, most of us have recipes that are so old, we no longer know where they came from. In most cases, we've made those recipes, added or subtracted  or substituted ingredients and amounts, fiddled with method, cooking time and temperature. In my opinion, and I'm sure Sue can check with the legal department if she's not sure of the answer, but in my opinion, that makes the recipe yours. And when you type it up in your own words, it no longer falls into the copyright infringement area.

Frankly, again, IMHO, we brought it all on ourselves. We have no one to blame but that person looking at us from our mirror.

Okay - lemme see if I can take these questions one at a time & help sort things out a little.

First - this has been a serious problem on the forum this year and there has been an ongoing discussion in the Field Editor forum with regards to this topic, here is a link to the article I posted there regarding copyright and proper sharing on June 4th.  

http://socialfresh.com/how-to-use-content-from-other-blogs-without-infringing-on-their-copyright/ 

99.9% of sites you visit have a copyright policy.  It's up to you to read it and abide by it.  Even Kraft has a copyright policy - following the link cllw just posted you find:

Kraft

1) You agree not to re-use material from www.kraftfoods.com or from any other World Wide Web site operated by Kraft Foods. In particular, you agree not to copy, distribute, republish, upload, post, or transmit anything unless you get our written consent -- first.

By using Kraft foods you agree not to post anything from their site without written consent, doing so violates their copyright policy and if you copy it here - it leaves Taste of Home open to some pretty hefty fines.  Copyright infringement is serious business.

Paulette:  I believe as long as you properly source the cookbook, you should be fine to post. This is a great article about sourcing recipes.
http://foodblogalliance.com/a/recipe-attribution/

Rosie - you've done nothing wrong, this isn't about you personally.  It's about Taste of Home enforcing rules that have always been in place.  Bloggers work so hard at taking great pictures and writing great posts, they don't want someone to just come along & take what's theirs without asking.  They all have different policies - some say, "take the picture or the recipe, but not both" - some say, "take nothing, period - don't even link to me!"  Many of them are nice and if you contact them, they'll let you share.  

Just because the big guys don't snoop & complain, doesn't make the practice right.  Wrong is wrong, whether you get caught or not.

cllw: I agree - the bloggers do get their recipes somewhere but they take their own photographs and they write their own copy.  Technically - the ingredient list is not covered by copyright but the method and the images are 100%.  You'll find a copyright policy in the front of almost every book and magazine around.  You just have to start looking and you'll see them.

And no - I don't believe Taste of Home comes unglued when someone is using their recipes. As far as I know no one scans the net looking for inappropriate use.   

Janie: The board was stagnent but it has picked up lately.  I've approved a ton of new people in the last couple weeks. Times change and we have to be able to adapt to the changes.  Face it - today's internet is not what it was 10 years ago when I joined this forum.  You say that links are cold & non-friendly.  What's friendly about a copy & pasted recipe from Kraft.com on Taste of Home.com with no chit chat?  Nothing.  Now - take that same Kraft recipe and tell me that you made it and that you changed this or that and that you liked it or you didn't....that's friendly.  It's not the recipe that made it friendly - the person posting it makes it friendly.  

Scarlett: This board is what you make it.  I still have an awful lot of fun here.  As far as posting a recipe you've made....why can't you still post your review and link to the recipe?  If you made the recipe and changed ingredients, it's no longer really the same recipe - it's now an adaption of the original.  As long as you don't copy it word for word and take someone else's image - you're fine.  It's your recipe now.  Just give a nod to whoever you adapted the original from and note that you changed it.  You may think the regulation is ridiculous but I'm here to tell you that the potential $150,000 fine is serious.

Rosie again...You may not believe that they would sue but in this economy where every business is fighting for a penny, I wouldn't bet on it.  It makes sense to you and I that they would want to generate traffic to their site but surprisingly - that isn't always the case.  Blogs are online journals, Barbara Bakes is and example of a blog.

Sauregurke - I've had more Cease and Desists in the last 6 months for recipes posted on this site than I have seen in my entire life!  You'd be surprised at how nasty folks can get.

Footsie - Thanks for getting it! 

There's no doubt in my mind that this reaffirmation of the existing policy will cause some growing pains but if we, as posters, make up our mind to continue the conversations.  I will double check with our legal department with regards to recipes you have tucked away in your files and from books just to be sure.  There are 48,000 recipes on THIS site.  I know I haven't seen them all - I'm guessing you haven't seen them all either.  You all came here because you love Taste of Home recipes - share some of them!

Copyright isn't just about text but also applies to graphics that people use in their signatures. I've been told that some have been fined for using Disney graphics. There are various graphic sites that require permission before using their files, things like Barbie & other popular dolls/animals etc that we are familiar with. Many siggie creating sites require a copyright permission before they put a siggie together. Definitely something to be aware of.

Ame that's a very valid point!  Thank you.

Holy Moly, I didn't realize the Woman's Day pic of the ice cream recipe I posted and reviewed would be so problematic.  I always thought that Internet postings were no longer one's own  once posted.  My feelings are, if you want it private, take it private.  But, I guess it doesn't work that way. 

The funny thing about this recipe is (Easy Vanilla Ice Cream), Woman's Day snatched it from Eagle Brand Condensed Milk!!!  They're "no better" than those of us that then take it, make it and comment on it. 

Pfft.  Who wants to waste the brain time it takes to figure out if we're violating a stinkin' copyright law anymore?  I understand that Reiman is in the trick bag if someone comes back at them and says "take off the picture, or the recipe," but I think this whole thing has become crazy.  I've seen recipes I tweaked and posted wind up on other's boards or what not, and didn't have a hissy fit over it.  There's more pressing issues, and I've had a few of them, to work out;  trying to figure out if I've teed off some entity or some individual over a stupid recipe is not on my hot list.

No wonder the recipes on here have dwindled so much.  It's not a fun place to come to anymore, sorry to say....

Happy cooking all.  Arlene