Legal battle brewing over Possum Magic $2 coins

[LooseChange]

Legal battle brewing over Possum Magic $2 coins

THERE is a legal battle over the new Australian $2 coins, with calls for hundreds of thousands of them to be destroyed.
April 20, 20181:54pm
Ben Graham

COLOURFUL new Australian $2 coins were supposed to be a touching gesture to celebrate the work of beloved children's author Mem Fox — but the fallout has become massive.
The Royal Canadian Mint, which is the official maker of the country's money, has said the commemorative Australian series, which celebrates the classic Mem Fox children's book Possum Magic, ripped off its unique process of painting colour onto metal.
A lawsuit was filed in the Australian Federal Court in December over half a million Remembrance Day $2 coins which featured red poppies. It has now been expanded to include the Possum Magic $2 coins.
The Possum Magic series was launched in August 2017 through Woolworths and featured three $2 coin designs with the colourful artworks designed with "magic dust" rings.
The Canadians are now demanding the Australian mint either destroy the hundreds of thousands of coins now in circulation, surrender its profits or pay damages.

However, the Australian government — which owns the Mint — has filed a countersuit.
It is hoped the government can overrule the patent because it did not involve enough "novelty" over previous methods.
The Mint is basically arguing that its method of colouring coins is different from the Canadian version.
The BBC reports that the Royal Australian Mint has been aware of Canada's claims since 2015, when a representative for the Canadian mint contacted them to try to resolve the issue informally, court documents show.
It is understood two parties even went so far as to meet in person at the World Money Fair in Berlin in 2016, but to no avail.
First published in 1983, the Possum Magic picture book became an iconic Aussie kids' favourite.
When the coins were released in 2017, Fox, 72, said she and the book's illustrator Julie Vivas had to approve each coin, which has been produced by the Royal Australian Mint.


The coins carry a different illustration of Hush, the main character in the book.
"We've had thousands of emails about the coins and my head is nearly blown off with excitement about this," she told News Corp Australia at the time.
"They all look like heaven."
Fox said Possum Magic is so "special" to her that she would never write a sequel to it, or turn it into a series.
"I tried once three years after it was born, but it's so special and it's unique, there's nothing else like it," she said.
"It would have wrecked it. I did try, but it was pathetic. I would have killed it. I slapped myself and didn't do it."
The Royal Australian Mint told SBS: "The Royal Australian Mint is vigorously defending its position and has subsequently filed a counterclaim in the Federal Court."

http://www.news.com.au/finance/markets/australian-dollar/legal-battle-brewing-over-possum-magic-2-coins/news-story/01c5270ab078ee20895bc3759f363a01

[Hercules]

The mint can't even get rid of a few thousand mules. What hope have they got of retrieving 40 million coloured $2 coins that are being hoarded by millions of Australians? Are they going to go round to all the schools and explain to all the kids why they have to give up their favourite coins? Even if they had a "coin buyback program" similar to Port Arthur, I doubt you'd get many takers, because these coins are just so easy to hide, and the police have more important things to worry about, like actual crime. All RCM is doing is showing its disdain for the Australian coin collecting community, which hasn't even been consulted on this matter. Even if RAM has made a mistake, why should we be punished for it? Am I going to have to buy and sell my coins on the black market just because they're patented? I think RCM deserves a very big middle finger for trying to turn ordinary coin collectors into hardened criminals just for pursuing their hobby.

[Hercules]

Here's how I came up with my estimate of 40 million coins:

2012 Red Poppy - 0.5 million

2013 Coronation - 1.0 million

2014 Remembrance - 1.9 million

2015 ANZAC Day - 1.5 million
2015 Remembrance - 2.2 million

2016 Olympics (Blue) - 2.0 million
2016 Olympics (Black) - 2.0 million
2016 Olympics (Red) - 2.0 million
2016 Olympics (Yellow) - 2.0 million
2016 Olympics (Green) - 2.0 million
2016 Paralympics - 2.0 million

2017 ANZAC Day - 2.9 million (minimum)
2017 Possum Magic #1 - 2.0 million (minimum)
2017 Possum Magic #2 - 2.0 million (minimum)
2017 Possum Magic #3 - 2.0 million (minimum)
2017 Remembrance - 3.0 million (estimate)

2018 GC2018 (Red) - 2.67 million (minimum)
2018 GC2018 (Blue) - 2.67 million (minimum)
2018 GC2018 (Green) - 2.67 million (minimum)
2018 ANZAC Day - 3.0 million (estimate)

Total: 42 million

[trout]

How can the Canadian Mint say that they own the copyright for coloured coins when RAM produced the coloured proof $1 federation coin in 2001 That's 3 years before the Canadian 25c coin with the red poppy was minted. :angel:

[Fulvio]

How can the Canadian Mint say that they own the copyright for coloured coins when RAM produced the coloured proof $1 federation coin in 2001 That's 3 years before the Canadian 25c coin with the red poppy was minted. :angel:

Because that's not what they're claiming.

Its a specific process, which was not used in 2001.

[trout]

Hmmm
The Chinese seem to get away with this sort of thing on a daily basis, Whey should RAM care :angel:

[Hercules]

Don't forget the 2000 Millennium Year Proof 50c, which also used colour. However, all these early releases were never circulated, so the colour didn't have to be as durable as on the $2 coins. RCM is only concerned about the process that makes coloured coins durable enough for circulation, not coloured coins themselves. Hence, the dispute only dates back to the red poppy coins released in 2012, not the Millennium Year coins released in 2000. Canada was the first country to circulate a coloured coin, and they think we should be paying them royalties for using similar technology. It's now up to the courts to decide just how similar that technology actually is, and whether it's an infringement of Canada's patent.

[Goldseeker]

I for one will not return or giver up any of my coloured coins for any reason.

Jail me, sue me.   I will not, ever give them back.

[Hercules]

I for one will not return or giver up any of my coloured coins for any reason.

Jail me, sue me.   I will not, ever give them back.

:i_agree::i_agree::i_agree::i_agree::i_agree::i_agree::i_agree::i_agree::i_agree::i_agree::i_agree::i_agree:

[Hercules]

BTW my understanding is that they won't be going after private collectors - this appears to be a media beat up. However, they do expect RAM to hand over all the coloured $2 coins they have in their possession, and to refrain from making any new ones.

[Hercules]

It turns out that the mintage of the 2018 ANZAC Day coin is actually 5,555,550 - almost twice as big as I expected. Obviously, RAM is getting better at making these coins en masse, which is doing them no favours with RCM.

Mintage Source: https://www.ramint.gov.au/publications/new-circulating-coin-shares-spirit-australias-anzacs

[Pedro]

Might actually see a few 2018's in change then :winkextra:

Pedro

[Hercules]

I just found this online: https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/canadian-and-australian-mints-resolve-legal-battle-over-possum-magic-remembrance-day-coins

It turns out that the Canadian and Australian mints have resolved their dispute.

[Unicorn]

Good article Herc. :good:

Glad to see that common sense seems to have prevailed and that they are working together.