Don't Give Away Your Business!

A few years ago, I submitted an article to InternetDay, an online ezine with an advertised subscriber base of about 200,000 at that time. You've probably heard of them; you may even subscribe... I did then, and I still do. That's why I was pleasantly surprised when, without notice, the issue of InternetDay bearing my article simply showed up in my inbox. I was even more pleased by the dozens of complimentary notes from readers, the several good leads and the affiliate sales that accompanied the article.

Since I knew the value of sharing free articles with other publishers, I was excited at the prospect of submitting my work to InternetDay. I've always had an inferiority complex where my writing is concerned; however, so I didn't *really* expect them to use it. That's probably why it was only after publication that I took the time to fully read the small notation posted on the bottom of the article submission guidelines page. It reads:

Once submitted, all articles become the property of Newslinx and may NOT be used in whole or in part without prior written permission from Newslinx!

I was stunned... then it dawned on me that my article was almost a premonition. The title? Give Away Your Business! Ironically, I just had!

I was also devastated. Three different people had asked for reprint rights in the first hour after publication, and I had to refer them to InternetDay. In my over-eager, naiveté (or ignorance), I had failed to read the submission guidelines. And I'm a professional writer! Were other people aware of this clause?

To find out, I contacted a couple of writers I knew who had articles previously published in InternetDay and asked for their thoughts on the matter. They both shrugged it off saying that they let anyone who wants to reprint their articles do so, regardless, and that the editor of InternetDay had never complained.

Next, I contacted Jon Bauer, the editor of InternetDay, and told him that I was very unhappy with this editorial policy. In fact, I told him it was "downright tacky."

He stated that Newslinx spent a lot of money on promoting InternetDay and that they had worked hard to build their subscriber base. He said they felt justified in claiming full copyright for the articles they published, and they would continue to do so. I disagreed vehemently, but what could I do? I did learn a valuable lesson--one that a 40 year-old woman with an IQ of 136 should have known--Read the Agreement.

Later, as a direct result of that article, I made a large sale for one of my distributor programs. That one sale more than paid for the "loss" of my time spent writing that article. In fact, I've ghostwritten many articles for clients for a lot less money than that one commission, and then given all the rights away to the client without complaint. So, what was the big deal?

The deal was that I didn't know I was giving all rights away. Typically, when an online ezine chooses to publish an article for which they have paid nothing, they claim one- time only rights, or in the case of archived issues, indefinite, but non-exclusive, electronic rights. They don't usually presume to own the article.

A couple of months after that incident, I chose to apologize to Jon for being such a snot. I realized that the continued publicity and the commissions--from other sales, as well as my large one--had definitely made it worth my while to give away that article.

I then chose to submit another article to InternetDay--one that I had written specifically for the ezine KNOWING that I would forfeit all rights.

Why the change in heart?

Because KNOWING that I was "giving my business away," that I was relinquishing all rights to an article by allowing InternetDay to publish it, was something with which I could live. It was a conscious choice that I made to "spend" that article for promotion, just as if I had bought an ezine ad, only much more effective. The lack of knowledge on my part, and the feeling that I had been taken advantage of had been the problem, not giving away copyright to a 700-word article.

My concern is that other authors who are as eager as I was to publish with a prestigious online publication like InternetDay, will make the same mistake. They won't read the guidelines and will UNKNOWINGLY give away their business.

Or worse, they will find themselves embroiled in a legal battle over copyright. I'm not an attorney, and I don't know that the inclusion of that small phrase on the bottom of their submission page truly entitles InternetDay to full copyright of submitted articles. Perhaps if it went to court, they'd lose. Perhaps not. But they claim the copyright, nonetheless, by that simple statement on their website. And I know that in theory, by submitting articles to InternetDay, you're agreeing to that stipulation.

Which brings me to my main concern. InternetDay does NOT offer free reprint of their articles. Should you allow other ezines to publish an article after it has been published in InternetDay, you are--again, in theory--infringing upon their copyright. What would happen if they decided to pursue their legal rights? I'm not sure, but you need to be aware of the potential liability.

Now, please believe me. I'm not trying to start a legal battle! As I stated, I've chosen to publish with InternetDay fully knowing their stipulation. And I'm not complaining about that. It was my choice. But I'd just like to do what I can to ensure that other writers are aware of this unusual policy in this popular publication's editorial policy. Don't give away your business--unless you want to.

Article copyright © 2004 by Darlene Bishop. All rights reserved worldwide.

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