Dear ,
I wanted to let you know about the great importance of protecting authors rights
— as with Sony Pictures recently. There are many unsuspecting writers who are falling victim to Internet piracy, and as several of these unscrupulous companies are located overseas, they are hard to track down.
As Publicist of the Year, I would really appreciate your reading the following press release. I am available for interview.
Many thanks,
Rhonda Rees
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The Book Publicists of Southern California Names Their Publicist of the Year — Woman Who Leads Fight Against Internet Piracy Issues
December 16, 2014, Tarzana, CA—The Book Publicists of Southern California has recently honored PR expert and author, Rhonda Rees with their Publicist of the Year Award for 2014. She was recognized on behalf of her award-winning book, Profit and Prosper with Public Relations®: Insider Secrets to Make You a Success, published by Aseity Press.
Presenting her with this high accolade was distinguished veteran game show host Wink Martindale, who served as the master of ceremonies. See the YouTube video.
The organization’s 2014 Irwin Awards (Industry Recognition of Writers in the News), and named for club founder Irwin Zucker, is a one-of-a-kind event, that was held over at the landmark Sportsmen’s Lodge hotel in Studio City, California, where such Hollywood luminaries as Clark Gable, Bette Davis, Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Spencer Tracy and Kathryn Hepburn used to hang out.
The important recognition and its special distinction were marred only by an issue that has been making the news lately – that of the Internet piracy and copyright infringement of books, a little-known situation that is affecting countless unsuspecting authors. Unfortunately, Rees found out about this the hard way. Her book was being offered as a free download online without her knowledge or permission.
The KNBC TV Channel 4 News in Los Angeles recently interviewed Rees, and alerted viewers to these issues. The timely piece brought out a greater need for stronger intellectual property protection. After the airing, the feature garnered notices both nationally and internationally, from around the world.
One website had offered nearly 600 copies of this copyrighted, trademarked and registered book, and another one gave away 1,500 copies – all unauthorized. Eventually, she was able to find the web hosting companies, and send them a DMCA takedown notice. Subsequently, her information was removed; however the identity of the culprits was still left hidden and protected.
“Periodically I run Google searches, to see how my PR book is doing. That’s when I discovered that it was being offered for free without my knowledge or permission,” states Rees. “This is the type of crime that doesn’t leave any fingerprints, as there is no way for me to find out who these people are, or who has done this. It is all very frustrating.”
Rees is certainly not the only one that this has happened to, and she’s likely not to be the last. Hundreds, if not thousands of others have been caught off-guard by Internet piracy. These unsuspecting authors have often put their hearts and souls into their projects – only to have all of their hard work stolen with a click of a button.
As an example, The Global Intellectual Property Center (GIPC), an affiliate of the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington DC, has seen cases like this happen before. They are working tirelessly in order to help protect the intellectual property (IP) rights of businesses worldwide, and provide safety tips for consumers to avoid purchasing these dangerous fakes, which can be found at the website: www.DangerousFakes.com.
In our technological age, and with the proliferation of so many advances in communication, devices, social media, and global expansion, these types of crimes are skyrocketing.
In addition, the counterfeiting of goods is also a widespread issue, where most consumers are left unaware. Craig Crosby is the publisher of The Counterfeit Report®, http://thecounterfeitreport.com/ a consumer website helping individuals identify counterfeit products. He states, “Counterfeiting is a bigger problem than most, if not all consumers recognize. Manufacturers are devastated. It is the number one criminal enterprise in the world – exceeding illegal drugs, and with little consequence.”
Wink Martindale
presenting Irwin Award
to Rhonda Rees
Rhonda Rees
Most people are aware of rip-offs that have happened in the music industry where famous artists have been cheated out of money – but in cases like with Rees’ independently published award-winning PR book, this is a situation where Internet piracy is most definitely affecting the average person in a very big way.
Legal copies of Profit and Prosper with Public Relations®: Insider Secrets to Make you a Success are available from Amazon.com as a printed book for $25.95 (CD included), and as a Kindle e-Book (with download) for $9.99. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the nonprofit Sarcoma Alliance.
ASEITY PRESS:
Jean Hadlow
18375 Ventura Boulevard, Suite # 372
Tarzana, CA 91356
Contact: jeanhadlow@aseitypress.com
818-325-2089
Author Email: rhondarees@aseitypress.com
Aseity Press Website
Rhonda Rees Blog
Facebook Page for Profit and Prosper with Public Relations
NOTE TO MEDIA:
Rhonda Rees is available for interviews.
Call Jean Hadlow at 818-325-2089 to make the arrangements.