I just noticed over the last few days as I've been scouring the net looking for office prop models that I noticed the same models being offered for free on some site also being sold on other sites. One of the latest additions in the Marketplace is a bed for $6 or $8 that I have had on my hard drive for over a month now. One site in particular almost got my money--"3-d-models.com" has an excellent set of office props that had everything I was looking for and costs $19. Guess what, I got 90% of what they were selling for free at various other sites. Whats up with that?

If they are the same models maybe they were stolen and are being given away, if you got the models and in the readme file there is a contact, maybe you should let the creator know this, maybe he doesn't know it, I know that we would sell something on our site and then give it away on another. Sharen Concerned modeller

Simply because someone is selling a model on their site doesn't mean they are the creator of it. A modeller might create models and give them away on their site for free while making money on banner advertisements that are then ripped off by someone who decides to sell them on their own site not caring whether they sell any or not because their cost basis is "zero" and even if nobody buys any they still have their own banner advertisements. In the eventuality some poor schlep who is new to this hobby purchases some of these models then thats just the frosting on the cake for the model-thief. As for the document files they can be deleted if they are even included in the folder and new ones substituted.

Actually, there have been several tmes that I've seen people turn around and sell items that were originally available for free.

Maybe at first, I know Daz offers free ones for a while and then sells them, but not at the same time. Sharen I guess I can only speak for us, we will give a model away free and only on some other sites is it available for free, and we will never give a model away and then turn around and sell it. If it is free it is free, and we send Readme's with I think all our models.

heyas; 1: they downloaded the free model and then put it up to sell. 2: they are the rightful owners of that model and have it for sale. the free ones you found are warez copies. it could go either way. :/ it could also be that you are not looking at exactly the same models. office furniture kinda looks the same, no matter who makes it. ;)

Attached Link: http://www.3-d-models.com

Well there are of course kids on the block who "buy" stuff using somebody elses personal data (we get them, Renderosity get them, DAZ get them, and everybody knows) - so then they take the models to pep up their sites - the use of such models IS illegal and all suspect cases should best be reported so they can at least be checked on and everybody else can be sure they are using legal stuff instead of maybe being an accomplice to a crime. So far, so good (or bad).

"Simply because somebody is selling a models at their site doesnt mean they are the creator of it."

Many companies sell models made by somebody else (we have a couple at Renderosity, too)
because maybe a third (!) of the models sold on the Net are in fact homespun by ambitious amateurs
as well as Pros in their off-hours, and just get sold via one or more companies.
And at very competetive pricing ! So always check our pages first before you buy elsewhere :)
You are bound to find duplicate models in collections - just compare what offer is best for you.
As long as you buy from well-known companies, dont worry overmuch, but 3d models "for free" are of course always just a teaser...
and the odd personal website just MAY be the wrong one. Compare !
Look at the Search Engines, what are they for ?
"3d models" is what you are looking for.

21st Century Solutions Ltd. (Cacheforce) only sell what they have a right to sell, and we always have that in writing -
we personally know all the artists who work with us,
so at our place, YOU NEVER NEED TO HAVE DOUBTS about a models origins.
On the other hand, it isnt hard to tell a "warez" site from that of a legal company,
lots of banners should always make you wary - and there isnt really
a great deal of original, honest "free" 3d stuff around anyway while the number
of inexpensive models for sale has greatly increased these last years.

"it could also be that you are not looking at exactly the same models.
office furniture kinda looks the same, no matter who makes it. ;)"

That is a fact, though I feel farang is talking about something else there...
the composition should make a comparison possible - ninety percent is a bit much maybe.
Really, isnt it cheap enough if we sell twenty good models at $ 19 ?
Generally, we should all try to keep fraud an exception instead of having it as a rule.
Not that we get if often, but still :

we have decided to offer anybody notifying us of illegal use of our software/models a premium.
That premium will vary from case to case, but you can expect to receive at least the legal right
to the use of the models which belong to us (but that you downloaded from or viewed at some other site),
plus a premium worth fifty dollars in models of your choice - if you notify us about the trespassers url.

We guarantee your anonymity and will of course not accuse anybody before we have
meticulously checked the data in question - it is unsurprisingly true that many models have a lot in common.
If two modelers do a Jeep Cherokee, the outcomes have every right to look a lot alike.
Waste of time maybe but it happens.

Regarding our models or look-alikes, please simply report any suspicious pages or sites
to our support team at 21st Century Solutions Ltd./Cacheforce (support@cacheforce.com) -
and dont worry, we are friendly chaps not out to sever any heads,
we just want to sort out misunderstandings. For comparison,
our 3d sites are www.cacheforce.com, www.3-d-models.com, and there will be
some more fantastic stuff soon.

If you have any questions regarding 3d models or online sales, just give us a ring.
Also, if you want to give away some models for free AT YOUR OWN SITE,
or sell your models at ours, why not contact us about it and lets see what we can do for each other.
Nobody NEED have illegal models at their sites at all - what a bloody nuisance.

Cheers,
Jeff Gaditano
21st Century Solutions Ltd.
jeff@cacheforce.com