Hello

I was going to purchase some 3d models from Turbosquid for a considerable amount of money(abt 500 usd)
For safety sake I e-mailed also the artist, asking if I can use his models for a commercial game
I was surprised to learn that I am not allowed to use them even for a shareware game
The Turbosquid licencee agreement , available on the site, is rather generic
I would like to know the opinion of someone with a real experience in copyright issues
Not just an answer based on "commom sense" otherwise the position of the artist is absurd, in my opinion.
In any case I dont want to take a risk
Thanks in advance

Well it's pretty simple: if the author says you can't use it for even shareware, than that's that. The TurboSquid license, being vague, wouldn't help you any.

Therefore if you plan on making anything remotely commercial, don't buy their models.

well it is not so simple in my opinion
You should realize that a lot of people may lose a lot of money or even have legal troubles even though they are in good faith
If the artist accept to sell his artworks via Turbosquid or other resellers he should accept the general resellers sales condition or at least the reseller should warn the client to check the artist's sales condition before buying

If the TurboSquid agreement under which the work is being sold specifically says you can use it for commercial works but the Author says you can't, then you may or may not be able to use it. You could argue that you are following the TS rules but the author may sue or ask TS to revoke it in which case you would have to cease using their works even if you are ready to release. You could then turn around and sue the artist for the hassle, but as you can see this is probably more trouble than you want to get into.

And you yourself said the TS agreement was vague which means that most likely the Author has final say.

Bottom line: if you are in any way unsure as to the licensing validity of a work, then contact the author to validate it. If you can't contact the author, simply don't use it. As you have already taken option a, then you shouldn't use their works if you plan any commercial venture. Simple as that.

(PS: could you post or link the specific TS agreement so that we can all see what it says?)

Ok I agree
I mean , artists are very often complaining about their copyrights infrigments, which is right of course , but also clients should have some kind of protection

This copyright law is very messy

I can not use a free downloadable model being implicit that the artist still hold his copyrights even though it is not clearly mentioned, in the attached readme file
Why should I not assume it is a donation ?
Never mind , I accept it
However if I pay for a model It should also be implicit that I can use it as I want
these models have been dislayed on turbosquid web site for years
The artist should have reacted immediatly.

Hi I am a moderator for turbosquid in the max forums, its only voluntary so
Im nothing to do with them.....

Have you thought of posting a request on the jobs board?
Often, if you say you have only $50 or whatever and want to use it in a game, you get a whole list of people who want to do this for you......

They must live in countries with very low costs of living, one offered to do something for $10, mind you other people were not too impressed with that low ball price!

the only protection you have is your own common sense

My common sense cliams :
If I pay for something I can use it as I want, within the limits of the law , without asking any further permission

What about your common sense?

Hi there-
http://www.turbosquid.com/Forum/Index.cfm
Dont know if that thread was made with anything to do with your actions.
My opinion is JamesAbell....

To be honest, I think that if someone is selling a model for personal purposes only, it is ridiculous as there is no point in buying it as you could use a mesh from a commercial game engine etc if what you are doing is for personal use.