Supplier of Extreme Drinks Stefan de Laune did not know he had broken local copyright laws by replicating a Guernsey pound. This example is reproduced with the permission of Treasury and Resources. (0581641)
A YOUNG businessman has broken copyright laws with a promotion he ran at Guernsey Live. Stefan de Laune, 25, Channel Islands distributor for Extreme Drinks, handed out vouchers which resembled Guernsey £1 notes during the two-day music festival.
These entitled the holder to 50p off an Extreme Drink, which usually costs £1.50. Mr de Laune said that just over 400 vouchers were handed out at the event but that virtually all had been returned to him.
‘The idea was that it was a £1 drinks promotion because people would hand the promotion note back to me to get the discount,’ he said. ‘They were all handed back to me and none are currently in circulation.
‘They are all in my bedroom and I will destroy them straight away,’ said Mr de Laune.
‘I was just trying to do something different,’ he said, adding that if the odd note was still in circulation, it would not be able to be passed off as a genuine £1 note.
‘They are clearly different.
‘I had no idea I was breaking any rules and I sincerely apologise for doing so.’
A spokesman for Treasury and Resources confirmed Mr de Laune had broken copyright laws.
‘The design of Guernsey pound notes is protected by copyright and this flyer appears to have breached that copyright,’ he said.
‘We would not grant permission for something like this to be done by private enterprise.
‘In this instance we note that the flyer was used only on a one-off occasion and will not be used again, and we do not intend to take any further action.’
Article posted on 24th May, 2008 - 9.29am
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