Accused of having copied a description, Niantic rejects all my proposals. Why ?
SuRVoLT69-ING
Posts: 51 ✭✭✭
Good morning.
Sorry for my english, i use Google Translate.
I write this message with great anger and bitterness. I received this November 21, 2023 at 4:00 p.m. (French time) an email from Niantic, telling me that I am accused, after an internal investigation by their services, of having submitted candidates of Wayspots meeting Not to their criteria, and that following this violation, I would be sanctioned to learn from my mistakes.
As an example of a violation, the candidacy of a mini-golf is mentioned.
The context for them is that the candidacy does not meet their eligibility criteria, and that it contains a description drawn from a third-party source
Unless I am mistaken, a mini-golf is an ideal place to exercise, in addition to being outdoors for it, and to meet people (other players or just have fun with family ). My description does not come from a third source, I copied the information written on the panel at the reception of the mini-golf, being on site.
Besides, you can see the golf it right here: https://maps.app.goo.gl/mtjzhmqnsvqdurmz6
I would really like to see this survey more closely, because I received 108 refusal emails in the space of 15 minutes, for requests for candidates of Wayspots (40) and requests for changes in locations, titles, securities, and descriptions.
Because a person at Niantic decided that I had copied the description of a website without even wondering if this site had not directly copied the information on site, I become faulty.
Besides, this is what I put in description of this mini-golf and that I was blamed for having stolen: "18-hole mini golf course open to all, located on the leisure center of Culoz and du Camping Le Colombier. Adapted equipment for children (different club sizes). Possibility to play at night from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. during the summer holidays."
And for this single description, I receive a warning, 40 emails refusal of proposal voted by Niantic, and I am likely to be permanently suspended.
It's normal for you @NianticGiffard ?
In my community, I am told that it is normal, that is Niantic, that they do what they want when they want.
I do not agree, it is not normal for a person from another country, from another continent, allows himself to delete in its entirety the requests of a person because according to an investigation he has mistake.
I make my requests on the spot, and that day I had taken the photo of the golf at 4:23 pm, the time to make a good description, I only offered it via Ingress that after about thirty minutes, It was not a copy and paste of a website.
I travel between two countries for work, I have to date added more than 600 Wayspots, I always do it the same way since 2018, and today I am deleted as if I had made a serious fault.
I ask for repair.
Comments
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I too was easily able to find the website with the description, nearly verbatim. It may have been unintentional, but it is plagiarism nonetheless.
I do think it's harsh that you got everything rejected for this one issue, but they were correct that your text was clearly copied from a third party website, which is linked below. That is not something you should be doing when making submissions.
https://www.bugeysud-tourisme.fr/offres/mini-golf-du-camping-le-colombier-culoz-beon-fr-3971069/
This is literally what you will find as an description if you go to see it on site.
That a site is taken up the same indications as those provided by the campsite does not make me a fault.
This is information displayed in the campsite. It is not because the sites take this information, that I copy their text.
I stopped in front of this campsite to stretch my legs after a few hours of driving, I saw that a pumptrack had been built, a new basketball court, a new children's playground, I open Ingress and I see that nothing exists in the game, I make requests and I am accused of plagiarism.
But you still have to go on site, it's so easy to be behind a computer to accuse others..
When the FourSquare titles in India were copied from a third party (Body and Penting and all that). Niantic seemed okay with it.
The OP says the info he posted was physically present on the premises. Wouldn't that make it first-party? He doesn't necessarily know about the online version if he reads it directly from the ticket kiosk.
If you go to Disney World, and take a picture of a big welcome sign, and your title and description say literally exactly what is written on the sign, is that plagiarizing 'Welcome to the Magic Kingdom' "The Happiest Place on Earth"?
If there is an official title, We're supposed to use it. So, it's only the optional description field that cannot be supplied by whoever wrote the signboard or plaque or brochure?
It's okay for the words to appear in my photo, but not in the text boxes? How many words can I copy before it stops being okay to type them in? Is there a warning letter that comes with the first strike, or do they jump straight to discarding all submissions?
None of those have descriptions so it's just the title that are copied. Obviously with no care shown to if they are correct.
It seems extremely harsh in this case and another failure to communicate what they want while simultaneously driving away their userbase.
You literally admitted on your original post that you copied te info from somewhere. That copying from a third party. You should have changed it to make it sound like you typed it. I mean its mini golf, literally just need to sa
18 hole mini golf for the visitors to use
Done, easy pass
I said I had taken the information on the entrance panel.
Do I have to invent a description? Should I lie and invent?
He is a mini-golf, it is indicated that he is doing 18 holes, should I say that he has 25 holes? 🤨
Yes, genuinely, that's what you need to do, third party doesn't just mean from a website, it means don't copy anything. You can summarise what's on a sign, you can change wording, but you can't copy word for word. 1st party is your own words, 3rd party is copying. Instead of copying what was on the info sign, you should have just wrote
Mini golf for visitors to play on.
You didn't need to even mention 18 holes, but even if you wanted to, just say
18 hole mini golf for visitors to play on
That's it. That's all you needed
I do agree that you were unjustly punished by having everything rejected. That was unfair and @NianticAaron should have a look at this.
Just as we can’t use photos from another source, we can’t use a description from another source.
It can be tricky if you don’t have much time etc. The best solution is to make an outline submision with minimal text. Then as soon as possible go to the wayfarer site and put them hold. You can then take your time to research and write up a description in your own words.
It's just that I got into the habit of doing descriptions, until I do research in the archives, buy books on the cultural heritage of a region to document myself, and share the story of a place .
PGO players have already thanked me in my village, because my descriptions allow them to learn more about the object, while waiting for other players for a raid, it had made me extremely happy, and I always tried to make complete descriptions.
And also because I tell myself that if the medium containing the information is damaged, in the niantic games, this information will always be available.
But for a description, I saw all my requests deleted. This is the most difficult to understand..
I wonder what made Niantic look into this in the first place? It’s not like they are actively surveilling for plagiarism.
'Following a report....'
"I copied the information..."
There you have it. End of story.
Sure if you are a pedant with a penchant for schadenfreude.
If like @SuRVoLT69-ING said they copied the text on site it seems extremely harsh and you...maybe not you, I would hope the Wayfarer team have bigger fish to fry.
There may be more to it but I can only go on what has been said.
When you propose a candidacy, for example a church, do you invent its name? Are you inventing his story?
Or do you take information with the sign located at the entrance?
I am accused of plagiarizing the description of a tourism site, which themselves have taken up the information indicated on the premises.
If you propose a monument to the dead of the Second World War, what do you put in description? That it's just to look pretty to avoid writing things that a website could have written?
You say the website has copied the text, but there's no way of knowing that. The website could be done by the people who operate the facility, and thus the text on site matches the text on the website.
Either way though, when it comes to churches, they have an official title. What you type in the description is up to you though. Sure, you can use a sign to learn more about the church or whatever you're submitting, but you shouldn't copy the text from it word for word. Use a bit of creative flair.
If I'm submitting something like a heritage plaque, I don't just copy the text on the plaque, as not only is it third party, but it's literally right there on the physical object, so putting it in the description as well is somewhat redundant. Instead, I just put a short description of what or who the plaque is for, and let whoever sees it read the actual plaque if they're interested.
Simple plagiarism as the OP has done can lead to law suits and end careers in some cases. That may seem extreme but it is true.
Moral of the story, if you contribute something to an online database, always use your own words.
What's the point of being able to make descriptions if you can't describe what you see?
Please....
Niantic just took a massive sh1t on a whole country with no thought for anything beyond desperately expanding their wealth.
Ingress and OPR/Wayfarer lurch towards their deathbed while casual and more ardent reviewers leave in droves as AI replaces the need to have them anyway.
And yet... You copied some text...the rules... Guidelines!
You can describe what you see, just do it using your own words, and not someone else's.
If you're really unable to come up with your own unique description for a mini golf course, perhaps submitting isn't for you? It really doesn't require a master's degree in creative writing though.
Like I said, I do think they were harsh in rejecting everything else you'd submitted (unless those were also using third party text), but this nomination was correctly rejected.
Third party text is clearly OK if you buy it, rather than using it without permission.
I agree it seems like a massive overreaction. I mean, come on, how many descriptions are copied from the plaques they represent? Probably thousands.
I get the rules :)
Either way I apologise @Leedle95-PGO It's unwarranted to vent at you.
You say that the website could be made by the people who operate the installation, but it is a website dedicated to tourism and activities to be done in an entire region that is 69700km², and the installation is offered in a campsite that is very small (https://maps.app.goo.gl/6Su8WkqnNxGVPJ3J6).
It's not just for a specific place.
No worries. This can be frustrating stuff, especially with the inconsistency we see. I also agree the punishment was really harsh. I think an educational email about what is and is not appropriate would be a far more reasonable first step, but Niantic just doesn’t do that.
The real question is why for the love of god is Niantic systemically incapable of normal, informative, reasonable communication?
The only tool in their entire kit is the ban hammer!
That I am refused the application, I am not against it, indeed it resembles that of the website, but I find it totally unfair and disproportionate this sanction to delete all my pending applications.
I had requests from two months ago that had just been put to the vote.
It's lost time, fuel used for nothing, a player had asked me to make him the sports fields to his home I haven't told him yet that Niantic has deleted everything.
But I understood for the next time.
In title I write "golf", in description I write "golf" and in comment I write "golf". 🤡 It will be super qualitative.
But what you've done is not described what you've seen, you've copied what you've read. There's a difference.
This of it another way. If you're writing a description for a book, you don't rewrite the book word for word, you summarise it, make it vague. Same with a show you're describing to someone you dkt explain everything that happens, saying line for line every nit of dialogue you summarise but keep it vague as to what happens. So it's the same for poi descriptions, you give enough info if it's not obvious what it is, but if it is obvious, like this mini golf was, you just need to summarise what it is
This is where I agree with you, you shouldn't have been pu ished fhe way you have, unless every single one of your nominations was 3rd party copied, which I doubt it was. Hence why I tagged @NianticAaron earlier, something was clearly wrong with how you were treated and needs to be looked at
Simply put, you said you copied information on site verbatim into the description and coincidentally, it was denied for that.
Generally speaking, if I nominated something, I will make the description my own meaning I will put it in my own words. I won't copy a full description verbatim. For example, I may take a company motto and use that in quotes or a quote from a plaque but I keep it short, simple and anything else in the description would be in my own words.
In your example, using the name of the church at the waypoint title isn't plagiarism. But if you go to the church's website and copy their entire mission into your description exactly as they have written, then it is.
I do agree you received too many messages from Niantic on the matter and the nomination in general looks like a good nom. As someone else pointed out, they should have bigger fish to fry.