Brophy's Choose Aloha over other Options in Texture Dispute

by Rhett McMahn, Business Columnist and Investigative Reporter

Stemming from a series of postings in SurfWatch about a possible texture infringement of famous surfer and artist, Drew Brophy, a post was made by a person claiming to be Maria "Spunk" Brophy, wife and CEO of Son of the Sea, Incorporated, the marketing and licensing agency for all of Mr. Brophy's enterprises. On behalf of SurfWatch, I contacted Ms. Brophy (MB) first on Monday, July 20, 2009, with a pre-interview by phone. She could not at that time go into details of the situation but did confirm she had posted with her real name to the SurfWatch blog and that talks and negotiations were still underway. She promised SurfWatch a full exclusive interview. SurfWatch has given Ms. Brophy review and approval over the contents of this interview to assure accuracy. Today, myself and Maria Brophy sat down to complete our discussion on this topic of interest to the SL surfing community. Continue to watch SurfWatch for future updates to related topics.

SW: SurfWatch would like to confirm that Maria Brophy made the comment posting of July 6, 2009. What prompted you to comment on the SW comment postings at that time?
MB explained that more than one person from SL was contacting her about the board design question. They sent her the SW blog link. She was shocked by the anger and emotion of the bloggers. She could not believe how passionate they were, but felt that the discussions had gotten away from what she was concerned about, and that is the protection of her husband's intellectual property. She just wanted to state facts, set the record straight. She made a specific point that she didn't try to ever conceal her real identity.

SW: Was there any limited use agreement of Brophy textures made several years ago?
MB recalled that in 2006, SSi partner, Sebastian Saramago (SS) contacted them (the Brophy's) via e-mail. She didn't really understand what SS was talking about and, in her words, "kind of didn't think about it much." When asked if she ever responded, she recalls talking to him (SS) by phone but states she never explicitly gave permission to use Drew Brophy artwork. When asked to clarify whether she specifically denied the use of Brophy art, her reply was, "You know, I never said no, but never said yes." It bothered her a lot. MB says she had sleepless nights over making the right decision that would be best for everyone. And tho she had people urging her to come down hard on SSi, her gut instinct was telling her that the best thing to do was to work it out with them instead. She has a lot of respect for Sebastian and how he willingly cleaned the slate, so to speak. "SS took responsibility for his actions, made things right, and because of that integrity, Drew and I decided that he would be the right partner to bring quality surfboard to SL. I've spent hours with him on the phone. He is a very nice man." When asked if Drew Brophy was actively involved, MB explained, "I don't lay problems on Brophy until I've come to a decision on what I think we should do. Usually he agrees with what I come up with."

The board licensing and design issues in SL continued to bother her and options were brought to her by people in-world and by Drew fans. Some people were outraged. She had an option of a battle with lawyers under the Linden's DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act), against SSi and SS. She is strong in her belief that SS is a good guy and didn't mean to do wrong by her personally or Drew. MB decided it would be better for everybody to move on and figure out how to bring Brophy to SL in the correct manner so everyone can enjoy it. "And he paid his licensing. We back-charged the agreement for the last three years as to be fair and reasonable. He agreed." They made an agreement as to financial terms and had an amicable discussion. "I'm a very direct person and was direct with him. He responded to that and apologized, and we worked it out. He wired money to our account. He did everything he said he was going to do. I appreciate that. We (have) decided to let SS license Drew's art to SSi so that he can make it available on his surfboards. We're working out the details right now."

SW: Can you share with us the current status of any additional arrangements being made to allow the use of Drew Brophy designs in SL?
MB laughed and explained that they will make a presence in SL, including Brophy's other merchandise like posters, prints, gift certificates, etc. They will cross market from SL to their online and RL functions, as well.

SW: Does the Brophy organization have a representative currently in SL they will be working exclusively through who will be representing them?
MB states that they have not. They do not at this time. Slowly and carefully, with planning, they will begin by representing themselves.

SW: Does Sebastian Saramago have a licensing exclusive?
MB was clear that SS and SSi is the first. She won't do a license for another person if it negatively impacts an existing license. "Everything we do, I weigh the pros and cons. Boards, artwork, etc. will be available." She and Drew will be a presence in SL.

SW: What are your thoughts about your experience with SL and SL surfing at this time?
MB laughed again, exclaiming openly that SL makes her nervous. She does seem excited about SL. She can see the potential, and she even understands what makes our community tick. "I surfed! I can't remember where it was." Figured it out pretty much on her own, with minor help by a friendly surfer who didn't even realize he was helping the famous "Spunk" Brophy! "I can walk into a RL party and not know anyone and by the time I leave, I know half the people. In SL, I'm real shy."

SW: What does the future hold? What does Drew think of it all?
MB states, "Drew's brother told him about SL about four years ago, and that he (Brophy) really should do something with it. It didn't register at the time, but he remembers his brother's conversation, and he thinks he wants to have a presence in it. Not sure how that will go - we can't even get him to answer his cell phone half the time." Drew might do some seminars in world via telecom, etc., and when she is comfortable with making sure her hair is not stuck to her back and her surfboard will rez, MB assures SW that the entire surfing world will get the opportunity to know Maria "Spunk" Brophy, and maybe with a little prodding, the man, the legend, the artist, the really laid back non-computer guy, Drew Brophy himself.

SW: Maria, thank you for your time today and for working with SW to get the truth to our community. SW would like to give you the opportunity to have the last word for our growing and learning community. Is there any final thought you would like to leave the SW readers with?
MB states, "We want to leave people with the feeling of aloha which is being friendly, welcoming people to sharing waves, making a contribution to the surf community. People do that in different ways, the waves, scripts, whatever - making a contribution. Drew contributes by doing what he does best, creating happy, colorful art. And hopefully (by) resolving this situation, maybe we can leave a message to people that you can resolve something amicably. It doesn't have to be a big battle. I really feel that about how we ended this chapter, knowing that I didn't go to battle with a human being that might have made a little mistake. Now we are working together to do something great for the surfing community. I hope that other people get that and understand cause I think there's some people that might be disappointed. I feel good about it, that it's resolved."

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