In the last year it seems like they've embraced the "niche", or rather, the territory that everyone else has the scruples not to inhabit.
My speculation based on how they're sold these is that everyone at GDS and RDG knows it's theft, but that they will cease and desist if asked. You can sell a lot of stolen property before you're asked to stop, so that's the business model. And it's primarily third party vendors that they're hanging out to dry if the lawyers come running... it wasn't us selling the Star Wars stamps, it was some dealer. But no legitimate operation would run these things in the first place, it's become a bootleg shop. I consider it a criminal enterprise with the amount of bootlegs they produce. (on sweet plastic, nonetheless)
I like some GDS stuff and I think there's a place for them in the world, so I haven't taken any action. But I was the person who notified Marvel of Dynamic's rampant infringement of their property, and look where that went -- legitimacy! It's awesome that kids can discover DG because of these far more legit (using good artwork from Marvel) licensed prints. Of course DD still prints a ton of stolen property to great applause from buyers who don't know better, but they at least went legitimate with one thing and it's been great.
It's expensive to do this legitimately, and when GDS and Jamie take the free immoral route, it hampers others' ability to license and sell at the necessary markup. I've said before I know someone who secured an expensive exclusive license to print a certain property on golf discs -- Gateway stole that same property. This is a license that has a price; Gateway used it without paying, it is therefore stolen property.
You'd think if new minds came into the operation, they'd say "hey let's not bankrupt ourselves by stealing Disney property". I hope that happens, that someone sees the value in being on the up and up.
I had to write a policy to keep this St Louis Stolen stuff off the Michigan overmolds. My bosses don't want that legal liability anywhere near their plastic. And I wrote it with RDG and GDS in mind. Took a week before Fringe ran a 20th Century Fox property and got the first and only warning before their supply is cut.
At DN we had to blur out and list as 2nds some of the stolen Gateway stuff, again because my boss didn't want the legal liability. He'd caught the brunt of a copyright infringement case before I came on board, and knew the expense of it.
Now I've run afoul of a copyright in the past by mistake, due to a state law being ~3 years longer than the national norm, and the property holder shut it down. That was a failure of my due diligence, and honestly I'm more schooled in transformation/ownership in fine art than its commercial side. Mistakes happen and you learn from them, but this pattern of thievery is a business plan, and I'm inviting Jamie/RDG and GDS to consider stopping it. And calling their thievery for what it is, rampant theft.
Just make really good discs, it's a great plan.
