Coin Circle Anbo Box? NFT group publicly reposts messages from a paid group, sparking copyright controversy

The cryptocurrency industry is vast and complex, and finding the most efficient way to absorb information with limited attention is a necessary skill for everyone in the industry. In addition to public communities, there are many professional research teams that provide exclusive information on a "paid" basis: price analysis, research reports, NFT information, various robot usage permissions, etc. Recently, a group called Infinity iRobot is set to release NFTs that provide holders with cryptocurrency information and tools. However, they have sparked controversy by unauthorized reposting of information from other paid groups, leading to protests from the rightful owners. Infinity iRobot has responded to these allegations.

Unauthorized Reposting of Private Group's Paid Information

Taiwanese cryptocurrency influencer Benson Sun posted on the 9th, stating that the Infinity iRobot Discord group reposted without authorization his and other private group's paid content in its original form. Since these contents are all included in the NFT rights soon to be released by Infinity iRobot at a price of 0.8 ETH each, Sun believes that this act is equivalent to bundling and reselling the intellectual property of himself and others, thus infringing on their rights.

Reposts of external paid channels by a robot - Sang Coin Index, and indicating that services will be provided in private groups after the NFTs are sold, excerpted from Infinity iRobot Discord, the channel has currently been closed:

Reposts of external paid content by a robot - Pan God escapes the peak index, and indicating that services will be provided in private groups after the NFTs are sold, excerpted from Infinity iRobot Discord, the channel has currently been closed:

The Q&A collection in Infinity iRobot Discord also indicates that the project is collecting information from various major private groups, and due to concerns, the team cannot disclose their real identities:

After Benson Sun's public post, the team initially stated that they would rearrange the reposted content from private groups through a program; however, they were still questioned about slightly modifying the content to avoid suspicion, which would still constitute copyright infringement.

Finally, the team reissued a statement, stating that some chat content was maliciously tarnished, and the reposted content in the discussions was only for testing purposes and research, and not applicable to copyright law. However, to prevent malicious defamation, it has been temporarily removed.

What Does Copyright Law Regulate?

According to the Copyright Act, Article 92 states: "Anyone who infringes upon the copyright property rights of others by publicly reciting, publicly broadcasting, publicly showing, publicly performing, publicly transmitting, publicly displaying, adapting, editing, or renting without permission shall be punished by imprisonment for up to three years, detention, or a fine of up to NT$750,000." Peng Shaofu, Deputy Director of the Taiwan Virtual Currency Anti-Money Laundering Association, stated that the actions in this incident would infringe on copyright.

In addition, Infinity iRobot claims that the Copyright Act does not apply to research purposes and that not all information is made public. Article 52 of the Copyright Act states: "For reporting, commenting, teaching, research, or other legitimate purposes, it is necessary to quote published works within a reasonable range." However, the premise is "quoting a published work," so the aforementioned exposure of private paid group content does not meet this requirement.

Peng Shaofu further added that "quoting" is based on one's own work and is necessary for legitimate purposes such as writing, and within a reasonable range, one can quote a published work for their own reference, annotation, etc., and must indicate the source (including the author) in a reasonable manner according to Article 64 of this law.

Benson Sun's Opinion: Obtain Authorization for Content Production

Sun Binsheng stated that he did not intend to overturn all the efforts of Infinity iRobot, as it still provides services such as information aggregation and robots. He just hopes to provide some services in a more legitimate manner. If one truly wishes to provide content from private paid groups, they should follow the authorization cooperation of the content producers to achieve mutual benefits for the group. Otherwise, non-original intellectual property should not be arbitrarily misappropriated.

In addition, Sang Coin Index, one of the parties involved, also issued a statement, threatening legal action if the infringement continues. The high value of cryptocurrency information has raised people's awareness of intellectual property rights, as shown in the following image: