The other side of copyright

[Minstrel]

Hello,

How does one go about obtaining permission/lisencing from large corporations to use there copyrighted materials? Protocol-wise, how does one find out who to contact? What are the proper channels to go through? Strategy-wise, how does one "sell" in a way that makes clear it would be valuable to the corporation to grant permission?

I have a unique idea that combines two unrelated fields/products to create something of value. However, there is know doubt that I am building on the work of others. The juxtaposition is original and unique, and an enormous amount of my time and energy has gone into it. I think I can sell it--I know my market. But I want to do so ethically and legally. At this point, unless I can sell it, I no longer have the motivation to complete the project. It isn't worth it to me just for my own use.

Is anyone familiar with this process?

Minstrel

[gberardi]

There is currently no standard registry that says who has or doesn't have the copyright on a work. What this means is that it is entirely possible for someone to believe that he/she has the rights to a work that has actually been transferred to another entity.

Basically, you have your work cut out for you. For more info about the difficulties of copyright, you can read Lawrence Lessig's Free Culture, which I believe talks about the problem someone had when trying to get the rights to show a few seconds of the Simpsons that happened to be on the TV in a shot in a documentary he was making.