Joe Ferrara of Atlantis Fantasyworld in Santa Cruz, California saw the first hand account of the bootleg busts at Motor City Comic-Con (see 'Marcus King of Titan Games on the Motor City Con Bust') and wonders why retailers would risk their businesses for a few bucks:
I read both accounts of the
First of all I have long been upset with the fact that vendors at comic book conventions sell bootlegs. Conventions are supposed to be avenues to the general public, to get them excited about our products and maybe visit their local comic store. They are not just glorified flea markets.
Bootleging has always been with us and it always will be as long as someone out there wants to make a quick buck and they have something that someone else is willing to pay for, legal or not. I just don't think it belongs at a convention. I'll bet that most of those customers who were planning on buying the bootlegs spent their money instead on legitimate products from reputable dealers. Merchants who say they save the bootlegs until Saturday are trying to appear more intelligent than the ones who got busted but in fact are even more stupid. The ones who expressed fear and said they would never do it again sound pretty intelligent to me. Why risk your business just to make a few hundred bucks -- or even a thousand?
I had first hand experience with this during the pog craze a few years ago. One vendor was making weekly trips to all the stores in the area. On every visit he tried to sell me pogs and slammers that I knew were bootlegs. They had images of licensed characters like Power Rangers, NFL helmets and yes, Disney characters (Lion King as I recall). I politely refused those and instructed him to bring me a letter stating that he had a legal right to sell them. I never got the letter I requested but everyone who bought them from him got a letter from a lawyer hired by Disney requesting all invoices and revenues generated from the sale of the pogs. They also received hefty fines.
Let me be clear. Every comic, game, toy, or video merchant, whether you sell at cons or have a store is subject to the same law. If you sell an unlicensed product you can be prosecuted. The kicker is you and only you are responsible. Never buy something from a vendor who walks in off the street unless they have the proper documentation. Licensed product will usually have a trademark or copyright symbol on it, so check carefully and use common sense. I can still hear the words of one retailer who said to me, 'But I have to sell these Disney pogs. Everyone around me is making a killing and I'll lose customers if I don't.' He paid the biggest fine and those other merchants didn't help him out one bit.
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