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The problem is that it’s virtually impossible to find one of those articles, Vicki, that doesn’t have such an egregious error in fact that it discounts their entire argument. When one of them actually gets everything right and addresses all the important issues, and still disagrees, that will be SO much more reputable. Do you have an article like that? An actual link to one? I’d be anxious to see it. I’ve yet to see one that includes all the basic concepts of the case accurately and still comes down on the defense’s side.

I agree that SVA has been vilified and ostracized but actually I’m not offended at that portrayal. I think the fandom is right to do that considering that most are outraged by what he is trying to do. Why should he expect support?

I was actually heartened when I read this article. It looked to me like the panel members were making good points and those points are not necessarily against the fans. They seemed pretty reasonable to me.

This is getting tiresome. JKR is not suing SVA. She only testified. If the fans are coming out in her support so vehemently it’s because the media is making her out to be a villian. No one was against SVA at first. He just kept sticking his foot in his mouth annoyed everyone.

I say blame the Lawyers – yes – even you copyright folks who have been data-mining the HP sites. They are the ones who truly started this whole thing. This lawsuit is just a petrie dish test to see how copyright laws will have to be re-created to deal with new media. It’s a complicated world out there.

It's unfortunate that the RDR and the WB decided to lead this effort and JKR & SVA got dragged into it.  It's too bad the lawyers couldn't have done this with Star Wars or Star Trek first.  However, they're probably next.

“the fan community needs to disassociate itself from anyone who goes to far in appropriating creative content for fear that their own access to that content might dry up”

That’s not why I’m doing it at all! I dislike SVA because he’s a slimy, hypocritical idiot who has tainted something great- the lexicon, and the fandom- with his greed, and has made disgusting, untrue comments about two people who I admire very much- Jo and Melissa.

Oh and yes, I have definitely “disowned” him. If I saw him in the street I’d give him a good slap.

Gosh, now we have Tim Wu in the line of those trying to “milk” the Potter phenomenon. Great, that’s just what we need. In response to your question Mr. Wu, the fandom has every right to disassociate itself from Mr. Vander Ark. What we,as fans have gone through in the course of this trial, our emotions and feelings, only we know. I know it isn’t of any legal consequence, but it makes more a difference in our personal world. Steve has been effective in hurting, and somewhat internally dividing up this fandom. Not only that, he is also responsible for breaking of ties between long-time friends. He also spoke crap against Melissa. How much more is this fandom supposed to take? Seriousely Mr. Wu, get your facts straight on this issue. As a non-Potter fan how much right do YOU have to get involved in a personal matter concerning the fandom and turning it into some kind of media circus anyway?

I’m pretty sure the “official podcast” is Pottercast. Ha ha. John, Melissa, Sue, Frak, you guys have more authority than you realise! So Melissa, if you signal “thumb down” we obedient fandom shall toss SVA to the lions. We the fandom are your loyal servants and serve the Empire of Harry Potter. Well according to a very delusional Tim Wu, thats what we are. I think he is looking for love and attention.

I will also add that being a part of a fandom, in this case Harry Potter, does not mean we have any say or right whatsoever to banish anyone from being a fan, no matter who they are. SVA may have lost favour with many fans (including me) but he has every right to go to conventions etc and if you cross path with him, have a civilised debate with him on his actions…Then shake his hand but dont release it, instead, swing it over your shoulder and perform a slam down on him then punch his face. Uh, something just skewed my train of thought, there. Scratch that last bit.

Melissa, I found many links which report the case accurately and without bias, you are just not looking hard enough and are right under your nose. The only thing is, I found them all at some site call theleakycauldron.org.

Briliant intervention, Professor! Now, seriously, all this debate seems to be the result of a huge demonstration of lack of respect on the part of Mr. Van Ark who, knowingly, is trying to make a buck out of someone else’s original idea without showing any creativity of his own. Respect has been very rare goods these times. I dare to think that JKR would kindly agree to the publication of a work such of that of Mr. G. Norman Lippert’s, for example, which is respectful of her creativity and authorship.

But it’s not like that at all!! The fans are going against SVA because he is showing absolutely no respect for our hero!

Out of interest, do we know which podcast he played? It wasn’t PotterCast The Trial, was it?

Sorry if this has already been mentioned in the comments but I don’t have time to look through them all!

Tim Wu’s audacity to even analyze the logic behind the fandom’s rejection of SVA is reprehensible. He fails to realize that the fandom can see what he can’t, that Steve Vandar Ark has treated J.K. Rowling and her works with a disrespect and arrogance and has also acted in a most atrocious manner. His recent remarks about Melissa’s behavior toward him show this, as I doubt she could hurt him that much by deciding, in a very reasonable, impartial, and objective manner, to terminate their connection through the Floo Network.

Also, Tim Wu shouldn’t say that the opinion described above represents the entire fandom. There are many I have met online and in real life, who consider themselves to be passionate Harry Potter fans, that still support Steve. Tim Wu is shoving the fandom into one group, it seems, just to implicitly disparage them.

Neither are we afraid of losing our creative capabilities. Because what Steve Vandar Ark isn’t creative, innovative, or original. It’s just repackaging for the fans who don’t already have every single word of the books stored in their heads (and I doubt there are many of those).

@Melissa and others: I did not read the article about the Conference. I did, however, go to Mr. Wu’s website. Going through the Conference’s “Speakers List”, I found Mr. Wu. I went to his sight and found an article, he had written, about the study of Law Breaking. It’s called ‘Harry Potter and The Order Of Copyright, Should Tanya Grotter Be Banned?’ I am interested to know what others think of this man, after you have read the article. He discusses how JKR has gone into other countrys and forced Copyright Infringement on them. /He discusses a book, from China, called ‘Harry Potter and Leopard-Walk-Up-Dragon’ Another, from Belarus, called ‘Porri Gotter and the Stone Philosopher’. In Russisa, ‘Tanya Grotter and The Magic Bass’. His argument is that “copy cats” have a right to their works without interference from JKR as “copyright infringment” This man graduated from a prestigeous Law School. He is on serveral boards and teaches….it’s too bad that his article, while sound in it’s context, HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE SUIT AT HAND, AGAINST SVA!!!! How sad is it that a man, of his Law Learning, cannot tell the difference between “Copy Cats” and Copyright Infringement. Outright theft of an authors work? What SVA did was not “copy cat”....he took JKR’s work, word for word, repackaged it, and claimed it as “his own work”...no changes or additions. THEFT OF ANOTHER’S WORK, OUTRIGHT! Then, proceeded to villify Melissa, as “prophet and JKR as God’ [paraphrased] and claim to be “unjustly shunned by the Potter Fandom”. I, myself, am a Harry Potter Fan. I like the books. I like the movies. I like Ms Rowlings writing style. I would like to collect some of the cool figurs and wands and such….as display items…like my son’s ‘Spawn Figures’ and McFarlane Dragons…..What SVA did was he took someone elses work [be it Dickens, Twain, Stoppard..they all have the same right.] to his own self and copied it, word for word. Decided to make a “hard copy” book out of it and sell it. THAT, I do not like. As far as I know, that is Plaigerism., at it’s finest. Are there “footnotes”? are there “reference pages”?. As someone said, in another discussion, “If I turned in an essay [especially in college], and did not have those things, I would be guilty of plaigerism. I would fail the course and possibly have to answer to some higher authority. Do they not teach this in the courses on ‘Copyright Law’Or does it not appyly ‘Muggle Queen’ has the right of it.”The fans are going against SVA because he is showing absolutely no respect for our Hero” I don’t believe she [JKR] is “our hero”. That gives the impression that “we follow her like lambs”.... as was said [bySVA] about Melissa: ”....JKR is God and Melissa, her Prophet” [again, paraphrased] No, she [JKR] has written a wonderful series, and deserves to stand up, for her rights as an author. The “hero” part is for that. I am getting long winded, here??? I’m sorry…. I invite anyone, here [Melissa included] to read this “article” and find some reference to the suit, at hand….I guarantee, you won’t!

Melissa, John, and Sue, who would have thought 3 years ago when you started Pottercast you would become the voice of Potter Nation. LoL.

First of all, I think there is some truth to this article. 1) Steve has been ostracized(but he did it to himself). 2) Part of the reason he has been ostracized is because we’re unclear what will happen to the fandom in the outcome of this trial (which is what Wu means by “Fear”). I think that’s true, and I also think it’s a legitimate reason. If RDR wins based on implied liscense, this fandom, and others like it, could be in trouble. It ’s like one of our own turned his back on us. Et tu Brute?

Now, I don’t think “fear” is the only reason why many potter fans are angry with Steve. We’ve read several of his comments which have been very hypocritical over the past few months. Those more than anything, have hurt his credibility with the majority of the fandom.

Here is my problem with Wu: he’s entitled to his opinion, like we all are, but he’s getting involved in a fandom which he doesn’t participate in or even respect. He doesn’t have a clue how much this fandom means to so many of us, and he’s using it as a way to push his own agenda. Like others have said, he is seeing it from his own perspective (that of an IP lawyer), not from ours, so sadly he may never fully understand why so many of us have turned our back on Steve.

“It takes a great deal of courage to stand up to one’s enemies but even more to stand up to one’s friends.”—Dumbledore

The original question posed to the panel was “Why are fans disowning SVA?” No one seems to be hitting the heart of this – it ALL BOILS DOWN TO LOYALTY AND APPRECIATION. We, as true fans, are grateful to Jo for providing this world in which we revel. It is an endless sorce of entertainment, wonder and inspiration for me. Anyone who hurts her, or the world she has created, is no one I would associate with. THE MATTER IS NOT THAT MY “OWN ACCESS MAY DRY UP”!! This is not about what we can get out of Jo – it is entirely about what Jo has given to the world – let’s be grateful, kind, appreciative receivers of her miraculous gift – not vulchers.

Please forgive my long winded post, from earlier. I agree, with Mollywobble, that Mr Wu is trying to “push his own agenda”...trouble is, his “agenda” is tainted by his obvious lack of knowledge. It is a sad state of affairs, when a proclaimed Copyright scholar, isn’t even arguing the proper context of a suit he is discussing. By the way, thank you TLC, for reporting EVERYTHING, as best you can, with the utmost taste and with both sides represented..[I think that’s called ‘unbiased reporting’???]

Thank you, Dawn, for that! You have hit the whole discussion, on the head. “Our own access may dry up”! We have the books…the movies…and anything else that’s already out. We have access to everything that is Harry Potter. There is no need to “steal” from the author.

Um, if you listen, the intro to the podacst forever has been the line “the OFFICIAL podcast of the Leaky Cauldron”.

They use the word “official” and it’s a Potter site and podcast. There you go. I thought that was pretty straight forward—I don’t see why everyone is screaming about it, personally.

The guy is a professor who was conducting a panel at a conference. I think the answer the panel came up with is a valid one—I, personally, will hold Steve Vander Ark responsible if the Lexicon gets printed and Jo decides not to write the “Scottish Book”. She has already said she doesn’t think she will write it if RDR wins. In that way, yes, the panel is correct. I would rather the fandom shut out Steve and beg her to write the book for US, and hope the bitter feelings go away so I can get my hands on another Potter work from the source. Call me selfish, but I would disassociate myself from anyone who jeopordizes that.

I don’t think SVA should be banned.

I don’t think he should win the case, but since there’s the case to take care of that particular problem, what other problem would I have with him? He’s just as big a fan!

This whole thing is absolutely asinine. I don’t argue JKR’s right to take SVA to court and fight about this thing, but I hope you all realize that the only reason up until maybe when he insulted Melissa yesterday that anyone even cared at all was because JKR told us to and because of her threats to not release her own encyclopedia if the Lexicon got published. We’ve been blackmailed into hating somebody that probably had no malicious intent to begin with and definitely isn’t worth all this attention in any case. As much as I enjoy her writing, I think JKR has overstepped the boundaries of what she should be doing with her fan support.

@ Heather

JK isn’t suing a ‘fan’ though, she’s suing ‘someone who wants to publish on her back’ sort of. There’s a difference. It’s the fan’s ‘fault’ (sort of speak, I’m exaggerating here- I’m a fan as well!!) that it got so nasty on the internet for SVA. That’s not Jo’s fault. And what is said within the court is between her, the judge and the other party. Don’t get me wrong, I have strong opinions too, but in the end we only make it all worse outside the court.