Go Social

[socialbuzz]

Hi guys - this has gone on for too long.

Instead of waiting for the courts to come to their sense of this criminal activity of Gettyimages we could be doing so much more on the social scene.

Here's what you can do...

Twitter about it... retweet posts that people make about it.

twitter.com/gettyimages refer to @gettyimages and use tags like #extortion

Facebook it. Where's the gettyimages extortion fan club? I couldn't find it.

Youtube vids?

Making a mockery of gettyimages is a start. I found a guy posting about it today. And somebody on twitter mentioned it 6 days ago.

In my opinion, gettyimages literally push these images and are centering themselves as the primary provider of images on planet earth. Its like a company coming along and saying they own all the trees and birds in the world. They do very little to stop people getting these images and placing them on other sites and like what happened to me, I took the images from another site that had no copyright notices on it and appeared to be GPL. Now my client is being sued. So wrong.

Bullies. How do we deal with bullies? We gather together and we make it a theme. We bring it to the spotlight. We make gettyimages so uncool you wouldn't want to be  associated with it as a photographer or a designer.

Social media guys. You can make links from this page which is like one click and the visitor is posting a link to their twitter that is informing the world of the malpractice being performed by this mega company who seeks to dominate the media world.

e.g click this to spread the word about the extortion tactics of Getty Images

Gettyimages need to be brought down the same way the KKK was brought down. With their immaturity being brought to the spotlight and into the public eye.

[socialbuzz]

p.s. does extortionletterinfo have a twitter account? or facebook fan page or anything??

[Matthew Chan]

Thanks for writing to us.

I can honestly say that Oscar and I have not even thought about using Twitter for this issue. However, I may seriously consider this.  Give me a couple days to think about this.  Twitter is such an active platform, I do not know if Oscar or I could devote the time necessary to it.  Yes, we can launch an "official" ELI twitter account.  But who is going to keep updating it and what would we post beyond the material we have on this website?  I am open to suggestions but remember, this is nowhere close to being my line of business and I am reluctant to give anymore time than I already do to support this website and forum.

Regarding Facebook, it was suggested one time but I didn't think it would go far because most people are not willing to reveal their true identities which is required on Facebook.  IN any case, same issue with time.

Regarding Youtube, there is an "official" ELI channel. I just havent done a good job announcing it.  It is  http://youtube.com/extortionletterinfo.  Oscar Michelen also has an official Youtube channel.  It is http://youtube.com/oscarmichelen.


There is also no shortage of people criticizing Getty Images and their ilk for their strategy.  However, what Oscar and I do not want to get into is a name-calling or attack fest.  Stating positions and making a case or points are fine but credibility is diminished when people start behaving inappropriately. Hence, we have this website and discussion forum.

Anyhow, I have laid out my concerns to move into taking this issue into Social networking.  If someone wants to take up the mantle, we are open to it.  Whether we could "officially" endorse it, we would have to see how it looked.  However, if you feel strongly enough, you can just do it without our "endorsement".  But my suggestion is to operate it with credibility in mind, or it will not be taken seriously.

Feel free to chime in.  I want to hear some thoughts on this subject.  Thanks.

MatthewC

[Oscar Michelen]

As usual I agree with Matt on this issue. We are two of the few folks willing to put our names, faces and reputations behind this issue. As I have stated before, the nominal fee we charge for a letter and representation is not a profit center for my firm, I do it to give people an ability to respond to these demand letters.  Please remember that I am also the managing partner of litigation boutique in NYC with a very active caseload. I am in court 95% of weekday mornings.  As you can see from this forum and from searching the web, the ELI site is very active, regularly updated and certainly the most thorough on the issue. I would not be able to manage a Twitter account on the topic.  While I would gladly administer a facebook page on the issue, I agree with Matt that chances are only him, me and perhaps a dozen people would join.  So in the meantime, I think we should just keep trucking along on this forum.  Thanks for the suggestion and we are open to anyone who can think of a way to get this message to be heard to  a broader audience.

[Matthew Chan]

For the moment, I have reserved a Twitter account for us to use.  It is http://twitter.com/extortionletter.  Pass the word along and let's see how many followers are truly interested in this in the Twitter world.

It will probably be used for announcements or to draw attention to special articles and posts, not for daily postings.

MatthewC

[socialbuzz]

Awesome!

I don't think you need to make daily posts but a presence is great. Every now and then when there are changes or break-throughs and a link to some new information or a news post you just think should go viral is great.

Thanks. And I respect your diplomatic approach.

addition: I think it could help just to put a little link somewhere next to the donate button perhaps... i mean there are so many people being harassed... you don't even have to say anything on twitter but the amount of people visiting this site I'm sure is huge. Power in numbers etc. I'm sure there are 1000's of innocent people and from that, a non defamatory viral campaign can begin and put getty in their place.

[Matthew Chan]

SocialBuzz,

You are full of good ideas!  I think you will like some of our initial posts.  They will show up in the twitter and google searches.

You are actually right about using numbers in you favor.  I do agree with you they will be more reasonable if there is an uprising.  Anytime someone seeks Getty Images or Masterfile on Twitter, there is our twitter account right behind them tagging along.

This website would not have been possible without the support of people like you providing information and feedback.  Everytime Oscar and I decide to wander off, we get pulled back because the Internet community continues to demand it.

Please be patient as it takes time to implement even the best suggestions. We will make the Twitter Account and YouTube account much more visible on the front page..... soon.

Keep the feedback coming. Oscar and I continue to keep a pulse on the situation.

Personally, I wish they would stop so I can shut down this website. Although this website creates some goodwill, I am not sure it actually enhances my professional image.  But that is a moot point now since Getty Images appears to be relentless.