Something rotten at Dunder Mifflin Infinity

So I logged on to Dunder Mifflin Infinity this morning to see what the new task was, and while the new task isn't up yet, I saw this news item which was posted last night:

Nov. 29, 10:00 PM ET
BRANCH MERCHANDISE NOW AVAILABLE!

Attention all DMI Employees:

T-shirts, mugs, posters, cards and mousepads featuring all of the official branch logos can now be purchased exclusively at the NBC Universal Store! Show your DMI pride, click here!

Dunder Mifflin Infinity, for those that don't know, is an online game where people form virtual branches and participate in various tasks each week to earn SchruteBucks which can be spent on virtual items to decorate a virtual desk. Creating a branch logo was the very first task that was assigned, about 2 months ago. For completing the task we were each paid $50 SchruteBucks for completing the task, which is a meager sum, even in SchruteBucks, which have no monetary value outside of the game. Then we voted on our favorite logo in our branch, and the logo that got the most votes became the branch's official logo. While most of the logos are OK, there are a few that are awesome (e.g. Racine, Topeka, Spokane).

The big issue here, though, is whether or not the people that designed the logos on this new merchandise that's being sold are going to be compensated with a percentage of profits from the sale of items featuring the logos they designed, or will receive some other fair form of compensation.

Shortly after seeing that items featuring the logos we created were now being sold, I emailed the NBC Universal Store with the following question:

With the new Dunder Mifflin Infinity Custom Gear being sold in the NBC Universal Store, what percentage of profits or other compensation will the creators of the branch logos that are being put on the various items being sold receive in return for their designs being used?

I have not yet received a response, but I will post as soon as I do.

If it turns out that the logo designers will be getting a % of profits or other fair compensation from the sale of items featuring their work, then that's great!

But If it turns out that the logo designers will not be getting a % of profits or any other fair compensation from the sale of items featuring their work, then this is an outrage that must be responded to.

This is the same bullshit (on a much smaller scale, obviously) that the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) tried to pull on the Writers Guild of America (WGA) regarding online use of programs without compensating the writers.

If the logo designers are not going to be fairly compensated, then I think we all must do the following:

1. Boycott the NBC Universal Store for as long as these items are being sold without fair compensation going to those who designed the logos.

2. Express our dissatisfaction with this at Dunder Mifflin Infinity, by either quitting the game until those who designed the logos get fair compensation for their work, or continue to play the game, but express our dissatisfaction with this in every way that we can (e.g. every new task, message board posts, emails to DMI) until this is resolved.