Getty Email and Getty PDF Extortion Letter found!

[Greg Troy (KeepFighting)]

I have finally seen something new from Getty, a settlement demand letter that was handled completely electronically. The settlement demand letter was attached to the email as a PDF. While the demand letter was pretty much standard it did contain an offer to receive a code for 5 free images from thinstock.com once the demand was paid. I had heard of this from other letter recipients before but had not actually seen it yet.

Getty may have been doing this for a while but this is the first instance of it I have seen. I would imagine with the number of these letters that are sent out on a daily basis the money saved in postage would add up very quickly provided the email addresses are readily available.

Thank you to Matthew for forwarding copies of the emails and demand letter to review. I am not posting the letter as apart from the offer for 5 free image that is the standard Getty demand letter.

[Matthew Chan]

These new digital Getty extortion letters are follow-ups to the hard copy versions being sent out.  The idea is to make the communication process easier by compelling the recipient to step out and email back. 

That would be DUMB!  If someone receives a digital extortion letter, don't respond.  There is no benefit for doing so. 

They accompanying Getty email that contains the Getty PDF extortion letter reads something like this:

From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: February-XX-14 5:XX PM
To:  [email protected]
Subject: blah blah blah | Getty Images Copyright Infringement Issue **ACTION REQUIRED**

Legal Department
XXXXXXXXXXX
[email protected]

Dear xxxxx
Case Id: xxxxxx

This email is a follow up to the attached letters that were previously mailed to your company on xxxxx and again on xxxxx. According to our records, we have not received a response to our prior correspondence. Unauthorized use of our imagery constitutes copyright infringement.

While Getty Images remains willing to work with your company to resolve this matter amicably, failure to either remit payment or to provide proof that a valid license was properly obtained within the next 7 business days will result in this matter being flagged for escalation to our outside representatives for further pursuit. This is your final opportunity to resolve this matter directly with Getty Images.

Please reply to this email or contact us at 1-800-972-4170 to discuss this matter. If you have any questions or concerns, please advise as well. Getty Images expressly reserves all rights and remedies available under copyright law. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Best Regards,

Getty Images License Compliance

Getty Images Headquarters
605 5th Ave S, Ste 400
Seattle, WA 98104
United States
[email protected]

This email was sent to [email protected] which is shown in our records as relating to the subject matter of this communication.
Attached Getty_xxxxxxx.pdf
(Please note: If no attachment was received, it may have been removed by your ISP.)

[Greg Troy (KeepFighting)]

Matthew,

Thank you for the clarification that these were follow-up emails. I was under the impression that this was the only communication the letter recipient received.