If I buy a coloring book and want to do a buttercream transfer, would I need to get permission to copy that image, or would I be okay to use the image since I bought the coloring book.  I read the info on the cake boss' site about using copy righted images, and read that if you purchase a toy/topper you can basically use said item in any way you please.  Would that same idea transfer to coloring book pages?  I just want to be sure I know the legalities of it before I am asked to make another cake with a copy righted image.

And, one other question.. what about cupcake cakes in the shapes of characters?  Would you need permission there too?  I feel like you would, but I want to be sure.  Thanks

No it's not the same as the toy.  Copyright protects the reproduction of a given piece for profit, hence the word "copy".  If it didn't, Disney and Marvel would have no rights at all.  People steal (and it is stealing) their stuff all the time, but it's still not okay no matter how much customers will try and convince you!  Then again not everything is copyrighted.

I didn't think it would be okay, since you ARE copying the image and not using a bought product, such as a toy/topper.  I just wanted to see if anyone knew for sure!  Thanks for the reply :)

This applies to all copyrighted printed material.  I owned a print music store and people would purchase a individual piece or a book of popular songs, head over to the nearest library to copy what they wanted and try to return the book.  I did work with the library, but you can't police everyone.  Churches and schools are notorious for doing this.  The Catholic church in Chicago was actually fined MILLIONS for this.

Do you mean that when they make copies of a song they have for chorus/band?  I had no idea! 

I am by trade a teacher... There are licencing options for classroom use... My area is science, but I am sure the same applies to music and other classes... I can purchase worksheets/workbooks for use in my classroom... and am allowed to make copies for that use... The cost of the licensed workbook/worksheets is higher than if you were just purchasing them for personal use... It is what is allowing for the copies to be made to distribute to your students...

There are other licensing exceptions for educational use, but they don't apply to whole copies, only snippets for classroom lessons... a portion of the document or a section of story... Those types of things... Not a whole story or document...

There are those who skirt the rules and just copy wildly though...

It is in every area where things can be copied... not just cakes...

This is another conversation in the forum on the same topic.

http://www.cakecentral.com/forum/t/795228/what-do-character-licensing-fees-actually-cost#post_7595065

Basically if you are "copying" a copyrighted image, you are infringing - unless you have received written permission.   If you purchased a coloring book with copyrighted images, the only way you could use the pages in your book legally would be to apply them to your cake.  That may or may not turn out to be interesting.  :)  I bet if you look, there will be a copyright remark somewhere in your book that specifies what you may or may not do with the images.  

Maybe thinking about the topic this way will help- Think about the guys who make knock off designer purses.  Even if they had purchased one before they started to make and sell their own copies of it, they are still making an illegal copy.

I love reading these forums!  You can find all kinds of great information in them.  So cool.

Thanks for the link!  I have read it and it was pretty helpful.  Would you happen to know about cake pans or cookie cutters in the shape of characters?  Mickey Mouse, Care Bears, and Ninja Turtles to name a few.

Cake pans and cookie cutters in the shape of characters are for home use only. The cake pans say it right on the instructions.

@ypierce82  I have honestly never been an instructions person when it comes to cake pans LOL, I'll be on the lookout with the next pan I buy.  Do you think home use would apply to making them for niece/nephews birthdays?  That's the only time I've ever used them anyway.

Lol neither have I, but it is there. As long as you aren't selling the cake, it is fine to use the pans for nieces, nephews, friends. You just can't sell using the images or likeness.

Perfect!!!  Thank you!

Wilton starting stamping it ("for home use only") in the bottom of every new pan they sell. except for the generic shapes---stars, flower, paisley, etc. I think in this case (cutters and pans), you could argue you were not making a profit (which normally is not a defense). This is why lawyers are in business--- to argue.

I wonder what the rules are on renting Wilton cake pans out. I've seen them at a cake supple store for rent. 

I would think, with the above comments, that as long as it's for personal use and not sale, it would be okay?

Sorry, my computer froze up lol. Regarding the cake pans, I found this

 http://caketalk.typepad.com/caketalk/2012/05/copyrighted-and-licensed-character-cakes.html

She states " Licensed pans cannot be rented to consumers by stores since the licensor is not earning a royalty from the transaction"

Thanks...I thought that they shouldn't be renting them but didn't know for sure and thought since they also had a strict no return policy on pans that it was odd to rent pans out. But for many other reasons I take my business else where :) 

You're welcome. Funny how that works, huh? 

It's bizarre if you ask me lol. I'm not even going to tell you where they "store" them but I will say I would never hang baking supplies of any kind from the ceiling. 

That's where they hang them from the cake supplies around here, too. Nice and dusty. Yes, I want to rent that lol

I understand working with the space you have but I'm still not going to rent one lol.  I even store my pans upside down and still wash them but I'm sort of fanatical about stuff like that and I looked down their floor register once when I was there (everyone walks right over it) and it was full of crap. I've not been back haha.