[Back Talk]

THANKS FOR THE SPACE

I just wanted to take the time to extend my sincere appreciation for everything that PCT magazine has done and is doing for the benefit of our industry. I just received a note from Cindy Mannes and also read the PPMA quarterly column that PCT has so graciously donated to our industry.

As one of many, I want to say congratulations and thank you for the generosity and interest in our industry. Cindy is a very talented lady and has done a great job with PPMA but no one can get the job done without the beneficial help and support of people like PCT. I still think that PCT and its people are the top publication in our industry. Once again, thanks for your generosity in helping us get better.

Harvey L. Massey

President and CEO

Massey Services

Maitland, Fla.

IS YOUR WEB USE LEGAL?

I want to make PCT’s readers aware of a problem my company recently has encountered — copyright infringement, particularly regarding plagiarizing original content and stealing of images from Web sites. This is an illegal and unethical activity that needs to stop. I think that people need to be made aware that a person’s original works are automatically and immediately protected by intellectual property rights upon creation of the original work even if a copyright is not formally registered, and thus those works cannot be used without the expressed written consent of the owner.

We have encountered this problem so many times with other companies stealing our Web site content and attempting to pass off the authorship and images as their own. It is extremely frustrating to us and misleading to the public. We have actively and successfully pursued web site hosting companies to force content removal and/or full Web site removal when we discover such violations.

I recently made phone contact with one company in California regarding this issue. Their site contained several sections of text that were stolen from our site. My discussion with the other company was professional and went well, and they understood that all of the content on my site was original and not taken from any brochures or other Web sites. They apologized for the problem and informed me that they were unaware of it since they had outsourced the creation of their Web site. In other words, the web designer stole the content and mentioned nothing to them about doing so.

Now, as they begin the process to redesign their Web site, they are planning to turn to another designer and will be more alert to question the content the designer includes and find out where the designer go the information before allowing it to be published.

Claudine Madawi-Plasman

Co-Owner

Hawaii Fumigation & Pest Control

Kona, Hawaii

Readers are invited to submit letters to PCT. Send your letter to PCT Letters, 4012 Bridge Ave., Cleveland OH 44113 or send an e-mail to jdorsch@giemedia.com. Letters may be edited for space or clarity.