I don't know if this is the new trend or something, but the more I stay on this site, the more I realize that the art theft is only growing. I don't understand why people think it's right. Their reasoning is so FLAWED.

A couple of their lame explanations included: "Well, I didn't even said that I stole it, so therefore it's OKAY."

FYI: You might not say that you stole it, but by not voicing that it isn't yours or where you got it from still constitutes as STEALING. It's kind of like saying "I didn't lie...I just didn't tell the truth" kind of logic. Stupid.

Another outrageous claim was: "I'm HELPING the artist, because by posting it here, I'm promoting their talent and I only posted it in my gallery because I like it!"

okay. Liking something is fine, but again, if you don't say WHERE IN THE WORLD you took that picture from, or who originally drew it, you're not giving ANY information about the original artist. Promoting what? Page views for your own profile? To me, this is just a pile of bull and a poor excuse to continue stealing work.

But what really bothers me is the fact that the gallery for where you post up the pics states MY ART which implies that everything in that section is artwork that YOU YOURSELF CREATED! Therefore, posting other people's art cannot be put under "my art" because it isn't yours to begin with. How can anyone actually misinterpret this?

Also, these thieves claim to be "innocent" when people "pop" their pic and praise them on a job well done, and all they actually do is smile and say "thank you, i worked hard on it," or don't even bother to correct that person and say, "no, I didn't really draw this, so-and-so did, and you can find it here." So the whole INNOCENT thing kind of doesn't work anymore when you're still accepting the praise for yourself for someone else's hard work.

About those Pops, and Praise, and Pats on the Back...how can you accept these things for work that you didn't do? It's so empty and futile. Was it YOUR sweat and blood that you sacrificed for that little piece of beauty? Was it YOUR soul that was put into it? No, it was someone else's. And I wonder how all art thieves can live with themselves.

Think about the original artist for once. If you liked the picture, then surely it means that you have admiration for the artist, right? They work hard and are even generous enough to bare a part of their souls to the public. It's a BLESSING to be able to view their artwork. And this is how you repay them? This is how you show your appreciation for their kindness? Disgusting. How can you even call yourself a fan of their work?

Plagiarizing from another person is the lowest of the low. More importantly, it's ILLEGAL!  I myself have been a victim of plagiarism (both in my art and my writing) over twenty times now, and there will NEVER be a time when it is Okay. This is not limited to simple putting the picture in the gallery. This also includes: manipulating the images, cropping them, making "rip-off" a.k.a. Copycat images of the original, posting them up as wallpaper, avatars, etc.

UNLESS YOU ASK THE ORIGINAL ARTIST THEMSELVES AND THEY APPROVE, IT'S MOST LIKELY STEALING.

The tokyopop website is seriously lacking in it's policies for art theft. Their only way of  "reporting" such crimes is to "flag" a picture (the little red button on the top right hand corner with an X on it). Even then, this is process is completely flawed. How will the administration know that the image is stolen artwork if there is no way of leaving an explanation and proof that it's a plagiarism crime?

From what I gather, the "flag" option probably refers in general to art pieces that are either extremely sexual, racist, violent/gory, sexist, or something along those lines. Otherwise, it makes it extremely difficult for administration to decipher what's wrong with the picture if it doesn't refer to one of these offenses. Without any way of leaving an explanation or proof, most likely the "flag" would be ignored, and the art thief would get away scott free.

I have already sent a letter to the webmaster in hopes that they will listen to my suggestions on creating a new "reporting" system for the site. I would expect for Tokyopop to be a prime example of strict policies on art theft, seeing as they themselves are a publishing company.

If you would also try to help prevent art thieves on this site, please--report any stolen artwork you find and inform the original artist. Also, also try sending an e-mail to the webmaster with helpful suggestions on the problem:

webmaster@tokyopop.com

Perhaps with combined efforts, we can take a step torwards ridding this site of the growing art thefts.

IMPROTANT! - BTW, before anyone else goes off and thinks that it's okay to post up art that isn't your own and that TOKYOPOP won't catch you:

"In connection with User Submissions, you futher agree that you will not: (i) submit material that is copyrighted, protected by trade secret or otherwise subject to third owner of such rights or have permission for their rightful owner to post the material and to grant TOKYOPOP all of the license rights granted herein"

--Section 11 of the TOKYOPOP site TERMS OF SERVICE