Anyone posting photos online should be sure they are not violating any rights. (Photo: © mavoimage/123RF.com)
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Anyone using third-party photos for their website should follow a few legal rules. Otherwise, you risk legal action, and it can be expensive. We offer practical tips.
Let's be honest, everyone's been there: The website or online shop is finished, and now you just need a picture. You find one online. But then doubts creep in: "Can I just use it like this, or do I need to ask someone first?" Copytrack presents ten misunderstandings that, according to the portal, most frequently arise when using other people's images online.
If someone alters a photo, for example, in shape or color, and then wants to use it for their own purposes, they still need to obtain the rights holder's consent in advance. Only if the use is considered "free use," meaning the original image is barely recognizable, does the original author no longer need to be consulted. However, it is difficult to generalize when free use occurs and is determined on a case-by-case basis. Copytrack therefore recommends always clarifying the legal situation before using the image, even in such cases.
To promote their product range, companies typically commission photographers to take product images and purchase a specific license for these images. These images may then not be copied from promotional material by third parties and used for other purposes. After all, the manufacturer's licenses do not automatically apply to their product distributors.
Scans, screenshots, or photos of newspaper articles often adorn websites or Facebook posts. However, even when using newspaper articles, copyright must be considered. Publishers are generally the legal owners of the text. If the article also includes an image, unauthorized use of a report risks not only a warning from the publisher for using the text, but also a warning from the image owner for image infringement.
Searching for images online is deceptively simple and productive. However, even images returned by search engines are protected by copyright. The source and copyright holder are usually not immediately apparent, yet the copyright owner must be researched and their terms and conditions for image use clarified. Otherwise, you could quickly face a costly cease-and-desist letter.
Anyone who commissions an image and purchases a license for its use may not automatically pass the image on to third parties. However, Copytrack has found that sublicenses are often granted without prior consultation with the image's creator. If the third party nevertheless uses the images they have unknowingly received without permission, they, not the original client, are liable.
Images labeled with the Creative Commons License, for example, are indeed available free of charge, much to the delight of many. However, they are still protected by copyright. Therefore, before using them, it's important to check what information needs to be provided, whether editing is permitted, and whether the photo can be used for commercial purposes.
This is a twofold misunderstanding shared by many image users: Not only professional photographers, but also amateurs own copyrights to their photos from the very beginning. Any individual use of the image must be clarified with them in advance.
Secondly, when it comes to image theft, it doesn't matter whether an image was used for private or commercial purposes. Unauthorized use can always result in a cease-and-desist letter. A major exception applies to copying for private purposes. This is permitted within narrow limits, but copies and prints may not be distributed or published on the Internet, for example.
Anyone who wants to use stock images purchases a specific license (standard or exclusive), which can look different for editorial or commercial use. If, for example, a stock image is uploaded to a company blog, this is easily confused with editorial use. However, since this is a company blog and is usually used to increase click rates, a commercial use license must be purchased. When purchasing a standard license for commercial image use, it is also important to note that stock images that are to be distributed on social media must not exceed a certain reach, depending on the provider. Copytrack recommends always carefully reading the general terms and conditions (GTC) of each individual stock image provider, as these are not always the same.
Using an image online without permission, just because others are doing so, doesn't protect you from legal action. Everyone must always clarify the usage rights for a photo for their own purposes. Otherwise, you're just repeating the mistakes of others and committing image theft—as they did before you.
Anyone who uses original product photos for private eBay auctions risks a cease-and-desist letter from the rights holder. After all, buying a product doesn't automatically grant you a license to the original product images. It's best to take a little time and create your own images.
Source: Copytrack
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