My Final Member Words
This state of Karen doesn’t negotiate with terrorists, narcissists, wankers or greedy pricks.
I joined Medium in February this year and like so many others, was delighted to find this environment. Medium welcomes both a reading audience as well as writers. Its editing platform is fabulously simple and the various publication curation guidelines have vastly improved my writing style. For that alone, I am immensely grateful.
Alison Tennent’s article regarding the upcoming changes to their Terms of Service at Medium is an informative button pusher. The subsequent responses indicate the possibility of a mass exodus out of Medium. Personally, it turned my world upside down yesterday and left me reeling and in a panic of what to do next.
Dr Mehmet Yildiz’s response to what I can only imagine would be an explosion of his email inbox responded with a fabulous response to queries. Don’t let me sway you one way or the other. Do your own research and determine what action is right for you. But do so considering the following paragraph in the revised Terms Of Service.
“Unless otherwise agreed in writing, by submitting, posting, or displaying content on or through the Services, you grant Medium a nonexclusive, royalty-free, worldwide, fully-paid, and sublicensable license to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from, distribute, publicly perform and display your content and any name, username or likeness provided in connection with your content in all media formats and distribution methods now known or later developed without compensation to you.”
Charles Roast responded to @Alison Tennet’s article and pointed out some fundamental areas for you also consider.
“it looks like by continuing to use Medium you are now agreeing to their amended terms of service which means “your disclaimer is one-sided and doesn’t override the terms of service agreement… What they are saying is, “ You own the rights to all your work and can do whatever you want with it, but so can we and we don’t have to pay you, and we can change it.” So, if you write a great story, they can take the idea, write a novel or screenplay, and never have to pay you for the money they made.”
I really wanted to inform myself about the nitty-gritty on this one. There is so much societal distrust right now with the global pandemic that I wanted to research the facts as they pertain to me. So I read all the comments on Alison and Mehmet’s articles.
I’ve emailed all of my favourite 1% paid authors seeking their opinion. I’ve contacted all of the social media groups that I belong seeking their opinion and potential impact. I have reached out to my writing mentors. I’ve had constructive discussions.
I’m left with the strong desire to highlight this response from Your Friends @ Medium. Read it and see how it makes you feel. Then read it again, read the fine print in terms of inclusions and exclusions and potential limitations.
Mate, I am just one Australian chick who loves to write. I’m just one chick, who until several days ago loved your platform and it’s ability to reach a global audience. Yet I am left feeling bitterly disappointed with the reframe of your legal language as well as your claim that the upcoming revised Terms of Service is designed to refresh and clarify.
I might have chemo brain, but I’m not stupid. Whilst I’m no legal expert, I have enough contract experience to know when I am about to be stitched up tighter than the fat pig on the Christmas spit.
Your claim in your clarification statement that content will remain within Medium isn’t actually stated in your new clause. You’ve failed to omit that in the revised text and your address to the masses now asking questions. Why is that?
I would additionally challenge Medium that whilst I may own the content, you are proposing to own the rights AND do whatever you want with my content if I choose to continue publishing via Medium. Please clarify to ensure I have interpreted your legal speak correctly?
You are proposing to take my content without paying me. You are proposing to do with it as you please without my permission. Is this correct?
And whilst I’m standing on my soapbox in full Karen mode please tell me where you get off only giving me 14 days to consider and debate with you, these radical changes to your Terms of Service. Whatever happened to a standard contractual agreement of 30 days? Or is our gentleman’s agreement over now?
If your gloves are indeed coming off then know this. Yes, I will be deleting all content from this platform based on your changes to terms of service.
Yes, I will be cancelling my paid membership, based on your changes and lack of negotiation and dictatorship approach to ‘owning’ my intellectual property rights.
Yes, I will immediately cease my marketing whereby I drive traffic to your platform (for free I might add). Come to think of it where should I send my invoice for bringing authors to your platform?
Yes, I can’t wait to see your bottom line in a month when the top 1% writers are scratching their heads wondering how on earth they will retrieve their audience and they turn to you with a gigantic WTF!
Without this fabulous collaborative writing and reading environment, its patrons, authors and readers, what do you have? Come a month’s time, Medium you’ll have the same effect as the coronavirus — social distancing and no contact.
Mike Drop… this Karen is leaving the building.
For this and more blogs visit www.karenhumprhies.net.au/blogs/
The disclaimer below has been directly sourced from @Alison Tennet.
I do not agree to Medium’s new terms and conditions as of 18th August 2020 AEST. Explicitly I agree only to the original terms: “By posting content to Medium, you give us a nonexclusive license to publish it on Medium Services, including anything reasonably related to publishing it (like storing, displaying, reformatting, and distributing it). In consideration for Medium granting you access to and use of the Services, you agree that Medium may enable advertising on the Services, including in connection with the display of your content or other information. We may also use your content to promote Medium, including its products and content. We will never sell your content to third parties without your explicit permission.”
I do not give Medium permission to update or change the terms of service I agreed to when I joined the site. I expect the terms I agreed to when I joined the site to be upheld.
I explicitly deny Medium the rights to reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivate works from, distribute, publicly perform or display my content under any name, username or likeness provided in connection with my content in any or all media format or distribution methods now known or later developed for any reason without my explicit permission. I explicitly deny Medium the right to reproduce my work under these terms or any other terms without compensation to me. I explicitly expect to be compensated when my work is used by Medium for any reason, under any terms or conditions. I reject in full the new terms and conditions and expect my work to be published only under the terms and conditions I agreed to.
Source — Karen Humphries, Blooming From Within
Karen Humphries is a today a cranky Karen in full bitch mode. Normally her wrap up talks about being a Kinesiology Practitioner, Health & Business Coach, self-confessed laughaholic. There’s no laughing today. There’s only frustration. She taking her humorous and positive approach to life, encouraging people to ‘choose to change and bloom from within’ back to her website.