Will I get sued if I scan and post my original 1960 AIM for the community?

[Ian G.]

I recently picked up an original 1960 AIM on eBay and bound it up in a nice binder and archival sleeves so I don't mess it up thumbing through the pages with greasy fingers. I want to get a 17" scanner and scan it for the beenfit of the community and post to the web, since the ones you buy online (like my 1959 AIM) look to be photocopies of photocopies and you can't make out the torque numbers and details. Am I gonna get sued by GM or someone else for copyright infringement if I do that? How rare are these? They were just used on the factory floor and the GM backoffice right? I've never seen another original C1 AIM like this...

[David R.]

Re: Will I get sued if I scan and post my original 1960 AIM for the community?

It is a noble idea to share. However, I would not distribute copies of those documents. PAD's , PDM's and EAM's are considered GM intellectual property. Various vendors pay royalties to GM to reproduce and distribute this type of documentation.

[Ernie F.]

Re: Will I get sued if I scan and post my original 1960 AIM for the community?

If a work published prior to 1964 was not formally renewed, it entered the public domain when the initial 28-year term expired. Your not selling it, just giving it away so I don't think you'll have any issue.

[Richard H.]

Re: Will I get sued if I scan and post my original 1960 AIM for the community?

I have bookmarked a link that has the '57 AIM on their website, so it has been done in the past- legally or otherwise.

Rich

[Loren L.]

Re: Will I get sued if I scan and post my original 1960 AIM for the community?

It's my understanding, correct or not, that Mid-America holds the rights to publish the AIMs.

[Michael H.]

Re: Will I get sued if I scan and post my original 1960 AIM for the community?

I would get some legal advice before you do anything.

Just my .02

Mike

[Ian G.]

Re: Will I get sued if I scan and post my original 1960 AIM for the community?

yeah I've seen the 57 AIM PDF on the web for years now and nothing happened to that guy... I searched the gov't copyright site using the advanced search and got no hits for any year (searching "corvette" and "assembly" or "instruction" or "1959"): http://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi. However, there are HUNDREDS of hits for service, shop and owner manuals (search "corvette" and "manual"). My 1959 hardcopy AIM has no copyright info on it. My original 1960 AIM has no copyright page either. I bet GM never copyrighted it in the first place, since it is an instrument of their bureaucracy vs something printed publicly that one could buy. hmm...

[David R.]

Re: Will I get sued if I scan and post my original 1960 AIM for the community?

I worked at GM Service Operations. Our department handled licensing of GM intellectual property . It is a source of income for the corporation and the vendors who buy the rights to publish. I retired from GM in 2008, but I know that GM policy has not changed much in regards to protecting their income stream and intellectual property.

If GM stumbles upon your "free" site, you can count on a letter or call from GM legal. More likely the vendors will tip off GM because you would be hurting their sales.

By publishing it for free, you are stepping on legitimate business people who pay for the rights to publish and make their living selling this information.

And you can bet that GM still has all things Corvette Protected.......NOT Public Domain

[Frank D.]

Re: Will I get sued if I scan and post my original 1960 AIM for the community?

I was a Director at the US Patent and Trademark Office, read up on the "Fair Use" act from the source before listening to a bunch of free legal advice....you are prob "crossing the line" by sharing the entire AIM:

https://www.copyright.gov/fair-use/more-info.html

[Wayne L.]

Re: Will I get sued if I scan and post my original 1960 AIM for the community?

Ian-
I have a 1960 Corvette AIM that was printed on 11" x 17" paper. It looks almost like it was printed, i.e., not a copy of a copy, etc. It may have been printed on a laser printer? I have had many AIM's over the years, but this is the only one I have seen that is on 11 x 17 paper. Anyway, I purchased this AIM from Mid-America in the 1980's.
FWIW, Wayne

[Ian G.]

Re: Will I get sued if I scan and post my original 1960 AIM for the community?

That's interesting, thanks wayne.

It's missing the front cover so I can't be sure if it isn't just an "early copy" or an original. It's punched for 3 hole binder, like my 59 dealership parts book. I assumed it was original based on the 17" pages being trifold down to 8 1/2" x 11" and how clear the images are - that and the yellowed pages, tape repairs, brown marks, etc. It just looks plain old. It's WELL WORN if it isn't original.

Based on all the feedback, I guess I'll keep it to myself, but if anyone needs a scan of some particular page just PM me.