Acting Illegally?

[Quizmonster]

It seems that the font used for the advert on the Home Office’s vans in London recently, telling illegal immigrants to “Go home”, was itself used illegally! As an individual, anyone may download and use it, but it requires a licence and specific permission for any sort of ‘commercial’ use apparently. Set a crook to catch a crook, eh, Theresa?
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/home-office-rapped-for-illegal-use-of-font-in-go-home-ad-vans-8812646.html

[naomi24]

It hasn't been used for personal reasons, but I'm not sure this can be considered 'commercial use' either. It wasn't a money-making venture, so it's a bit of a grey area.

[Tilly2]

Oh, I was looking for a baptismal font on the picture. All I can see is something that looks like a toilet seat.

[Gromit]

The poster has been 'designed' albeit badly and someone has taken money for that, so it is clearly not personal use and did require a license.

I know exactly how this has happened. I am a designer and I buy fonts to use when I create a poster. When I send it to the printers I include a copy of the font (because printers do not have every font). If I didn't, the printer couldn't print it. The printer will keep the font in case anyone else sends artwork in the same font and forgets to include it. Printers often give their font libraries to regular clients, or a designer might ask them "do you have any rubber stamp effect fonts" and the printer will oblige.

In short, the Government have been unlucky here. A contractor they have used has made this error and they probably didn't know they had broken its lecensing terms.

[Gromit]

Plane Crash Font
http://www.dafont.com/plane-crash.font

[LazyGun]

It was a font protected by copyright - no problem with personal use, but if you wish to use it in any kind of public facing corporate exercise, the originator should be compensated.I doubt that "commercial use" could be confined to exclusively direct money-making ventures.

Bit of a sideshow to the central point about the value or need or desirability of adopting and promoting such a campaign in the first place, but interesting and somewhat amusing, nonetheless.

After all, the Home Office - that majestic Office of State grandly responsible for upholding the law and punishing lawbreakers- appears to have broken a law themselves. That's a source of ironic amusement, I feel.

[naomi24]

//someone has taken money for that//

Good point Gromit.

[Gromit]

The Home Office have contracted to purchase goods (artwork) and have accepted the goods it received in good faith. They weren't to know that a third party (the Designer) had used a font that they shouldn't have.

The poster is more of a car crash than a plan crash in terms of its design. I hope they didn't pay much for it.

[Quizmonster]

Yes, LG, the fact that it was "interesting and somewhat (ironically) amusing" was the whole point of my post.
As regards the element of "they weren't to know", Gromit, I'm sure - if FredPuli happens along - he'll be happy to confirm the Latin proverb, "ignorantia juris non excusat"...ignorance of the law is no excuse, in effect.

[Gromit]

I am the first to get on the Coalitions case if they drop a clanger, but I believe this was out of their control.

A similar 'crime' would be to order a Courier and then the van delivering you parcel gets stopped for having a bald tyre.

[Svejk]

Surely,my muesli-munching friends, you can find better things to criticise the Government for.

[Svejk]

Like Caroline Lucas on Question Time, last night. :-)))

[jno]

if immigrants started stealing fonts there would be an outcry in the Mail and the government would pass kneejerk laws banning it.

I assume contractors have to sign indemnities covering any such offences, but I don't know why the government, once notified of it, didn't sort it out promptly - as the designer said, they shut up about it until they realised the Home Office was ignoring them. So no sympathy for the government from me.

[LazyGun]

@Svejk -I am not criticising them, I am laughing at them. But, just because there might be "more important" issues around does not mean that they are immune to criticisms in other areas - I can multi-task, and focus on more than a single issue at a time as I am sure you can :)

[Gromit]

I agree with jno.
The Government should have been Bold and not made Light of this. Their behaviour has been Grotesque.

[LazyGun]

very droll, Gromit :)

[Quizmonster]

Now that's the kind if answer I had expected from you, Gromit. But bear in mind, the Government consists largely of a bunch of Wingdings!

[jno]

they should call the serif. The designers have been waiting too flong for an answer

[Svejk]

Its hardly a capital offence.

[jno]

there's nothing comic about this, it calls for an extended sentence, possibly a century.

[ludwig]

Oh dear, this could go on for a while. There are thousands of different font names.