New for 2010

My first update for 2010! I’ll be uploading a lot more this year as I put a new focus on my design and music development. For now here is a quick sketch I did of everyone’s favorite Bounty Hunter!

HipHopRobot and CafePress…

So, I’ve had a CafePress account along with my wife (www.muthatung.com)for about 5 years. We’ve got seperate stores setup for various artwork, and today the HipHopRobot store suddenly disappeared. Called support to find out what happened, forwarded to an answer machine, left a message. Finally got a call after 3 hours, and was told ” your artwork was pulled because it resembled Transformers.” I explained it wasn’t a transformer, and was not based on any transformer’s likeness, that I owned the copyright and could forward it to them to resolve the problem. I was told that regardless of what I said or could provide, it looked like a transformer and it and other images I had on the site would be removed.

So, here’s my point. There are hundrends of humanoid, anime styled robots in media, including Robotech, Macross, Escaflowne, Votoms, Voltron, Gundam, Big O, Bubble Gum Crisis, and the list goes on. So in their argument, the companies that represent these properties could not sell product on CafePress, since they look like transformers.

After a bit of heated discussion with my wife and a CafePress staffer, my store was re-establised. However, in this day and age of media and large corporations, how can small businesses and copyright owners compete in the market place when the powers that be overly protech the large corporations. CafePress didn’t even recieve a cease and desist notice, they took this action on their own!

So, if you get a chance, took a look and if you like what what you see, buy something, because the powers that be may decide to take it down again. I’ll keep you updated…

HipHopRobot on CafePress

Welcome to the new blog

More to come…