Cupcake storm: SPH reiterates copyright claims

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In response to the complaints made by former-radio presenter Daniel Ong over Facebook on Thursday, media company Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) yesterday expressed over Facebook that it "does not object to the use of our articles for personal use (subject to limits prescribed by law) or in relation to other allowed exceptions under the law".

The dispute started when Mr Ong claimed he was charged "about S$3,000" by SPH, for reproducing SPH magazine and newspaper articles about his actress wife Jamie Teo, and their cupcake bakery Twelve Cupcakes, on their social media accounts and their company's website.

Mr Ong believed their actions had helped promote the articles and the SPH publications they were in, so he was upset that SPH would take them to task for reproducing the articles.

"We help spread the word about the article... they get more readers and readership... Everyone happy... no? SPH then writes us to say we need to pay!!!" said an irate Mr Ong in a Facebook post.

Mr Ong said he later agreed to take down the reproduced articles from their social media accounts and the company's website, but got what he described as "a super cold reply" that he no longer needed the pay the S$535 per article, though he still had to pay a S$214 "investigation fee".

SPH said it "wrote to Mr Ong to request that he remove the articles or pay a licensing fee for the continued use of the said articles."

It denied that Ong had been charged "about S$3,000" as he had claimed, and reiterated that SPH held the copyright to the articles - under copyright law, it is the author, not the interviewee who is the copyright owner of a piece of work.

"In Mr Daniel Ong's case, he and his wife granted interviews to Singapore Press Holdings' newspapers and magazines.

"After the articles were published, he reproduced the articles from 'Shin Min Daily News' and 'Simply Her' on his business website - www.twelvecupcakes.com," said SPH, in a short response to a commenter on its Facebook page.

However, SPH pointed out that hawker stalls and cafes can cut out and display the actual articles from its publications; though making copies would be an infringement of copyright.