Hello DigitalPoint member, I am writing this post because I feel that the contests section of this forum needs some work, in order to ensure that the contests are what 99designs calls 'healthy', and designers or any entrants recieve the rewards that they should be. Let me start by saying what a great oppertunity this section is, for those who have not already seen it, for developing skills in design. I first found the contests forum about 2 years ago, and was a totally new to designing. I quickly found the ropes and the unwritten rules of design contests, and entered contest after contest. As my skills improved, the conversion of enter/win increased and I saw what a valuable section this was. Although my activity has dipped there recently, I have over my time done about 1,000 designs in contests or directly resulting from contests. But all this time, you would see contest holders neglecting the designers need for feedback, or even abandoning the contest entirely - sometimes stealing the artwork. Yet despite these clear violations of the law, and despite clear evidence being left on the forum, these users remained on these forums, free to repeat their actions again. And not even the designers are entirely innocent - occasionally people try to rip-off designs from around the web and claim this as their own. Not only would the contest holder get into legal complications further down the line, but when many of these cases are exposed then the prospective contest holders will notice a poor reputation for the section - yet nothing is being done about this. What the contests section needs is at least a stickied thread (which I would be more than happy to author), detailing a guide for contest holders and entrants, and the "Do's and Dont's" of participating in contests. It would also be a good idea to have a moderator to settle disputes inside the contests, and deal with non-paying or abandoned contests. I think that with these actions, the activity in the contests section would increase, it's reputation would be bettered, and the quality of designs and the money made would be boosted. Thank you for reading this far, I hope you take on board my suggestions
First of all... not giving feedback wouldn't fall under a violation of the law. They don't have to. We can't force them to any more than we can force someone to leave iTrader or a review in a deal thread. It's a business transaction. It's up to the OP how they want to deal with things like that. Beyond that... 1. If you find someone using your work without paying for it, A) leave them negative iTrader, B) send them a cease and desist, and C) report them to appropriate authorities (whether you choose to sue or not is up to you, but you can also report copyright violations via DMCA notices to their host, search engines, etc. 2. If you win a contest according to the details laid out by the OP, but they desert the contest and don't pay the winner, leave them a negative iTrader (ONLY if you're the winner, as once you win based on their terms you've technically entered into a deal). Also, moderators do not get involved in disputes between members... in any section of BST. DP is simply a platform where people can choose to engage in a free marketplace. But they do so at their own risk.