Knock-off figures - general discussion

[Doug Watson]

If we informed Safari that Walmart is stocking bootlegs of their products, would they be able to do anything about it?

Since I have been on here I have been reporting knock offs directly to Safari Ltd ownership. They take it very seriously but unfortunately because these companies make their homes in countries that really can't be touched by our copyright laws they are often limited in the action they can take. Also unlike legitimate companies like Safari ltd or Battat the packaging on the knock offs does not contain actual contact information like a real company name or a physical address. If anyone does find any of that information on packaging for a knock off you can PM it to me and I will pass it on to Safari Ltd. Photos of the item and the contact information would be appreciated.
I will be sending this latest example on to Safari Ltd tomorrow.

[tyrantqueen]

Excellent

[tyrantqueen]

Oh, I forgot to mention. I own a "Century of the Dragons" bootleg set. There is an address printed on the box, I'll PM it to you.

[SBell]

If we informed Safari that Walmart is stocking bootlegs of their products, would they be able to do anything about it?

I also find it quite ironic that there are bootlegs of Geoworld products. Bootleg of a bootleg, much?

The GeoWorld Guanlong is not a bootleg, because they didn't re-cast an existing figure.

[tyrantqueen]

If we informed Safari that Walmart is stocking bootlegs of their products, would they be able to do anything about it?

I also find it quite ironic that there are bootlegs of Geoworld products. Bootleg of a bootleg, much?

The GeoWorld Guanlong is not a bootleg, because they didn't re-cast an existing figure.

I wasn't saying it was. Maybe "bootleg" was the wrong word to use. I was actually referring to the fact that they have been shown to rip off artist's art and copy figures by other companies. And now its their stuff that's getting copied. Sort of poetic justice.

[docronnie]

This is the second time I heard of bootlegging bootlegs in the toy industry. The first was on Lego products.

[SBell]

If we informed Safari that Walmart is stocking bootlegs of their products, would they be able to do anything about it?

I also find it quite ironic that there are bootlegs of Geoworld products. Bootleg of a bootleg, much?

The GeoWorld Guanlong is not a bootleg, because they didn't re-cast an existing figure.

I wasn't saying it was. Maybe "bootleg" was the wrong word to use. I was actually referring to the fact that they have been shown to rip off artist's art and copy figures by other companies. And now its their stuff that's getting copied. Sort of poetic justice.

And I was only correcting the 'bootlegging' part. The copycat irony is still there!

[Doug Watson]

Oh, I forgot to mention. I own a "Century of the Dragons" bootleg set. There is an address printed on the box, I'll PM it to you.

Thank you TQ I haved PMed you back.

[sauroid]

they look horrible

[DC]

This is a challenging topic.  The real problem as was mentioned earlier is the technology changes coupled with the difficulty in enforcing intellectual property rights outside of North America and Europe.  We have had knock offs for decades the Salvat is a good example but the effect was mitigated by these companies being too cheap to produce high quality copies.  They were obviously imitations that could not be mistaken for the real thing.  Now with a 3D printing you get an exact copy same quality design.  You would think they would at least paint them differently!  Just to pretend they are not stealing?  The production quality is often much lower so that is one give away and for some reason they are often renamed.   I get the feeling that the intent is different, with Salvat I did not think they were saying this is a Safari Ltd or Bullyland figure.  Now when I see some of the copies I often cannot tell if it is the real thing or a bootleg copy.  I think letting the retailers know I am not comfortable doing bussiness with you if I cannot tell the origin of the product I am buying is my main option.  I feel about this the same as I would about buying fossils that have no documentation.

[Takama]

Well I just went to Walgreens again, and this time they had more.    Among them were rip offs of Schelich, Papo and even CollectA.

The funny thing is, some of them are blown up in size.    I might go back for pictures tomorrow

[Hynerpeton]

I wish my job had Dino toys.

[Dinoguy2]

Here's yet another blatant JP knockoff, being advertised without comment by the admins on this very board...

[tyrantqueen]

Here's yet another blatant JP knockoff, being advertised without comment by the admins on this very board...

Where?

[tyrantqueen]

This looks suspiciously like a Papo Trike bootleg

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Discovery-Kids-Triceratops-and-baby-Triceratops-Dinosaur-/191393642913?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c8ff339a1

Got to love the unslightly weld line around the middle

[Takama]

This looks suspiciously like a Papo Trike bootleg

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Discovery-Kids-Triceratops-and-baby-Triceratops-Dinosaur-/191393642913?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c8ff339a1


Got to love the unslightly weld line around the middle

That's one of the Sets I found at Walgreens

[stargatedalek]

this knock-off JPS1 raptor is actually pretty interesting. Its not just a plain recast, its a re-sculpt, which to be honest had me thinking it might have been from another Hasbro line for a few seconds until I saw it had to makers info on it. The plastic is also very soft and malleable, reminiscent of the plastic safari ltd uses for some of their pterosaurs (IE tupandactylus(/tapejara) and ornithocheirus).

[Alexa]

Hi there!

A dear friend in Mexico spotted this set at a local Walmart and I thought you might want to see it.





I'm tempted to ask him to pick up a couple of sets for me, so I can repaint them; I don't think I can bring myself to defile an original and these would make for excellent practice subjects (each set is $22)... but then I'd be encouraging piracy, but then again I'd like to practice on good knock offs such as these before moving on to more expensive resin kits... I'm torn.

Is there a place where I can get cheap, used originals with horribly damaged paint online? I wouldn't feel as bad, then. 

Nice community you have here BTW. Very niche and full of interesting info.

Cheers!

[Pachyrhinosaurus]

Is there a place where I can get cheap, used originals with horribly damaged paint online? I wouldn't feel as bad, then. 

eBay usually has some lots, as do local flea markets sometimes. I wouldn't be afraid of buying second-hand bootlegs, either, as long as they weren't bought to sell, as this would not be supportive of bootlegging companies.

[CityRaptor]

That's some, uh "interesting" artwork on that package....