Softside IP Flagging & Takedown Process
Last updated: October 1, 2024
Please note: our IP Flagging & Takedown Process page does not constitute legal advice. We recommend you consult with an attorney if you have questions about your copyrights or intellectual property in general. We may update this page from time to time.
Purpose of this page
Softside Merch Inc. (“Softside,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) promotes creative collaboration through official licensing, which means that we are fierce advocates of respecting and protecting our community’s intellectual property (“IP”). As such, we have rules and systems in place to ensure our users & visitors can enjoy their platform experience and flag any content they believe to be in violation of our Terms of Service, including reports of copyright infringement.
The IP Flagging & Takedown Process page herein (“Takedown Process”) contains instructions and requirements for submitting (“flagging”) reports of copyright infringement, in compliance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”), so that we can review and remove (“take down”) such content. We have included instructions and requirements for DMCA counter notices for US-based copyright infringement reports, as well as withdrawal notices.
The Takedown Process forms a part of Softside’s Terms of Service (“Terms”). Therefore, anyone who is found to violate the Takedown Process is also in violation of our Terms of Services. We may choose to restrict, terminate, or ban any users or visitors from accessing Softside’s services if we reasonably believe they are in violation of our Terms.
Expectations
It is important our community reads, accepts, and respects our Terms of Service prior to creating an account, which includes information regarding how IP licensing works in our platform. We also have other resources within our platform that explains how Softside works, such as our FAQ page. We encourage our users & visitors to email us via our Contact page if they have additional questions they cannot find answers to so that they fully understand how to engage with our Services.
As a U.S. based platform, we expect our users & visitors to comply with the copyright laws of the United States of America, and beyond that, follow general best practices to respect the rights of others. This includes not using, selling, reproducing, copying, or otherwise violating or infringing on anyone else’s intellectual property.
Notice requirements
If you believe in good faith that any content within Softside contains infringed copyright, you may submit a notice by sending an email to legal@softsidemerch.com containing all of the information listed below, with a subject line that reads: “DMCA NOTICE: [Your Name], [Date in MM/DD/YYYY format].” It is very important you include all of the below to ensure your notice is considered DMCA-compliant and valid for us to assess and take action. Missing information may prevent or delay us from reviewing your notice or taking action.
The full name and signature of the copyright holder or person authorized to act on behalf of the intellectual property owner whose copyright has been allegedly infringed upon. Signature may be written or provided electronically by typing your name.
Identification of the copyrighted content allegedly infringed upon. Please provide as much detail as you can.
Identification of the content on the Softside platform that contains allegedly infringing material, including information that can help us locate the content on our website (such as a URL link(s) to the content that allegedly contains infringing material and/or an image or screenshot).
The full name of the intellectual property owner and contact information for the party submitting the notice (the “notifier”), including full name, complete address, telephone number, and email address.
A statement that the notifier has a good faith belief that the content is not authorized by the intellectual property owner, its agent, or the law (including the law of fair use) to be displayed, sold, or otherwise used on our platform.
A statement that the information provided within the notice is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the notifier is authorized to submit the complaint on behalf of the copyright owner.
Softside will make best efforts to move swiftly to review and disable or remove any flagged content. Users will be notified if their respective content has been removed. Additional information may be requested before action is taken. Softside may reject a violation flagging if it concludes such flagging is incomplete, false, fraudulent, or otherwise submitted in bad faith.
Submitting a DMCA Notice is a serious matter and something we do not take lightly. If you misrepresent that content is infringing, you may be liable for damages, including attorney’s fees. We reserve the right to restrict or terminate an account and/or pursue legal action for fraudulent or abuse of notices. If you are unsure whether or not content contains infringing material, we encourage you to get in touch with a copyright attorney before submitting a notice to Softside.
Flagging Inappropriate Content
If you believe in good faith that any content within Softside violates our Terms of Service in other ways outside of a copyright infringement, such as inappropriate content, you may flag the content by sending an email to legal@softsidemerch.com so that we can assess your concern. Please make sure your email contains detailed information, including the reason of your concern and the URL link(s) to the content you are flagging. Any further action shall be made at the discretion of Softside.
Content may be considered inappropriate if it is deemed to contain material that is offensive, harmful, derogatory, profane, indecent, obscene, hateful, tortuous, defamatory, violent, slanderous and/or libelous, depicts and/or promotes crimes, illegal or otherwise harmful activities, the use of firearms and/or weapons, cruelty to people, animals and/or Earth, any illegal drugs, prostitution, pornography, nudity, the taking up of arms and/or seeking to overthrow any person/government/organization, and/or terrorism, contain or reference material that promotes or depicts bigotry, racism, or discrimination based on race, gender, age, ethnicity, religion or spiritual alignment, nationality, disability, sexual orientation, political orientation, ancestry, and/or citizenship/residence status.
Counter Notice Requirements
If you have a good faith belief that content removed or disabled as a result of a copyright infringement notification involved a misidentification or mistake, you may send a counter notice via email to legal@softside.com containing the subject line “DMCA COUNTER NOTICE: [Your Name], [Date in MM/DD/YYYY format].” It is very important you include all of the below to ensure your counter notice is considered DMCA-compliant and valid for us to assess and take action. Missing information may prevent or delay us from reviewing your counter notice.
The signature of the creator or person authorized to act on behalf of the creator whose content has been disabled or removed. Signature may be written or provided electronically by typing your name.
Your full name, complete address, telephone number, and email address.
Identification of the content that has been disabled or removed. For product listing(s), include URL link(s) to each item before it was disabled or removed. If possible, you may also include image(s) or screenshot(s) that can help us identify the content.
A statement made under penalty of perjury that you have a good faith belief that the content disabled or removed was the result of mistake or misidentification of the content.
A statement that you consent to the jurisdiction of the U.S. Federal Court for the judicial district in which you are located, or if your address is located outside the U.S, for any judicial district in which Softside is physically located.
When Softside receives a DMCA counter notice, we shall provide a copy of the counter notice to the reporting party and the removed content may be replaced or restored ten (10) business days after the counter notice is processed, unless the copyright owner files an action seeking a court order restraining the allegedly infringing party from relisting the items or a qualifying action with the Copyright Claims Board (CCB), and informs Softside of this action.
If we receive no notice that an action has been filed, then we may, but are not legally obligated to, replace and cease disabling access to the removed content.
Submitting a DMCA Counter Notice is a serious matter and something we do not take lightly. If you misrepresent that content is not infringing, you may be liable for damages, including attorney’s fees. We reserve the right to restrict or terminate an account and/or pursue legal action for fraudulent or abuse of counter notices. If you are unsure whether or not content contains infringing material, we encourage you to get in touch with a copyright attorney before submitting a counter notice to Softside.
Notice Withdrawal
You may submit a Notice Withdrawal to Softside by sending an email to legal@softsidemerch.com.
Within your email, you must explicitly state that you are formally withdrawing your DMCA Takedown Notice or DMCA Counter Notice and provide the identifying information of the DMCA Takedown Notice or Counter Notice that is being withdrawn. You must include detailed information to identify the content relating to the notice or counter notice, such as URL link(s) to the listing(s) and/or image(s) or screenshot(s) of the content, as well as explicitly state whether or not the content has already been disabled or removed. Further review and action shall be made at the sole discretion of Softside. We shall notify both involved parties of the withdrawal notice as well as the final decision.
Softside’s DMCA Designated Agent to Receive Notifications
Softside Merch, Inc.
Attn: Legal
275 South 1st Street, Suite 4R
Brooklyn, New York 11211
United States of America
legal@softsidemerch.com
