601
UK Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: Is your Getty letter legal?
« on: June 02, 2013, 09:43:40 PM »
Nicely done and good information for those in the UK
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602
Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: Copyright in Space
« on: May 26, 2013, 09:06:46 AM »
That is a great article and story Jerry, I had not heard about that and thank you very much for sharing it.
603
Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: A note on photos that are "public domain"
« on: May 26, 2013, 09:00:50 AM »
I too also very glad you are here and find it very refreshing and enjoy reading and participating in the discussions with you. I hope you will continue to stick around for him, participate and share your viewpoints.
I also believe there needs to be changes to update the copyright law for the modern Internet age making it fair for the artists but protecting innocent and unknowing infringers from shakedown scams like Getty images. This is not to say I do not feel that an innocent infringer should not have to pay for the infringement but I truly feel what Getty, MasterFail and others like them are doing are wrong. I liken it to if you are speeding without realizing it then yes you should receive a ticket but Getty images would be the old southern town speed trap where you get pulled over and a $70 ticket (just making a number up and not complying and innocently infringed image is only worth $70 ) cost you $700 or they threatened to lock you up until you pay them.
I also believe there needs to be changes to update the copyright law for the modern Internet age making it fair for the artists but protecting innocent and unknowing infringers from shakedown scams like Getty images. This is not to say I do not feel that an innocent infringer should not have to pay for the infringement but I truly feel what Getty, MasterFail and others like them are doing are wrong. I liken it to if you are speeding without realizing it then yes you should receive a ticket but Getty images would be the old southern town speed trap where you get pulled over and a $70 ticket (just making a number up and not complying and innocently infringed image is only worth $70 ) cost you $700 or they threatened to lock you up until you pay them.
No offence taken and no, I didn't think you were an asshat; I know that we'll have slightly different perspectives on some issues but, honestly, I'm here because I'd like to put forth the viewpoint of an "average" photographer whom is trying to find a middle ground... so all discourse - even those with a bit of friction - are welcomed as opposed to being confrontationally entrenched with immutable beliefs.
We need copyrights, we need laws to protect copyrights, but we also really need some means to address how the internet has impacted creatives without us resorting to the 'nuclear option' of lawsuits laden with multiple zeroes ahead of the decimal point.
604
Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: Got A Getty Letter Today
« on: May 26, 2013, 08:43:27 AM »
Welcome to the forums TMonroe. First off you should know that just because you Google an image using the term free it does not mean the image is free. Copyright exists from the moment a picture is taken and it does not need to have a watermark or copyright notice on it to show that it is copyrighted. You may wish to reevaluate any other images on your site or sites that you have obtained this way.
Unless you take the image(s) yourself or hire a photographer with a contract that says you obtain all rights to the images you purchase you can never be completely sure nowadays. As in my case I obtained my image from a personal website where the owner of the site had several image galleries including one labeled for the public in which all the images in that gallery had his name on them along with a title he gave them. When I selected the image I felt very confident it belonged to him and he was offering it in his public gallery, so you see why I make the statement that I do.
Now having said that, yes absolutely I would request proof of Getty's claim and their exclusive rights if they have claimed them in their demand letter. I would not mention anything about the Google search or no watermark for the reasons I have stated. Read the forums and educate yourself as all the answers you need to defend yourself are contained within. Please keep us posted as to your progress.
Unless you take the image(s) yourself or hire a photographer with a contract that says you obtain all rights to the images you purchase you can never be completely sure nowadays. As in my case I obtained my image from a personal website where the owner of the site had several image galleries including one labeled for the public in which all the images in that gallery had his name on them along with a title he gave them. When I selected the image I felt very confident it belonged to him and he was offering it in his public gallery, so you see why I make the statement that I do.
Now having said that, yes absolutely I would request proof of Getty's claim and their exclusive rights if they have claimed them in their demand letter. I would not mention anything about the Google search or no watermark for the reasons I have stated. Read the forums and educate yourself as all the answers you need to defend yourself are contained within. Please keep us posted as to your progress.
605
Legal Controversies Forum / Re: Identity theft lawsuit against Prenda Law abruptly ends
« on: May 23, 2013, 10:11:50 PM »
Prenda is the definition of butthurt. 
606
Legal Controversies Forum / Re: Houston home builder for celebrities wins $1.3M copyright suit
« on: May 23, 2013, 10:07:28 PM »
There is a lot of this that happens in the building industry. Back when I worked in new construction I would go into a home and recognize it as a home built by builder A only to find out the builder B saw how well it was selling and magically came up with the exact same plan.
607
Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: Spoke to another meet up group
« on: May 23, 2013, 09:57:13 PM »
That is awesome Jerry! Thank you for what you do to help spread the word about the trolls and their schemes.
608
Legal Controversies Forum / Re: Prenda blows sanctions deadline, ordered to pay an extra $1,000 per day
« on: May 22, 2013, 09:22:03 PM »
Awesome, The courts have been getting tougher and tougher and these trolls. I see why Getty doesn't like to sue, it could all unravel very quickly if they go after the wrong person who will fight back and show what is going on.
I have a lot of stuff I would give to the legal team if such a person (innocent infringer) were sued.
I have a lot of stuff I would give to the legal team if such a person (innocent infringer) were sued.
609
Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: FINAL WARNING LETTER
« on: May 21, 2013, 12:11:28 AM »
Could you share this letter with us so we could see it? I am not aware of a Getty letter that cited cases where millions were won over a single image.
Did this come from Getty or McCormack?
If you don't want to post it publicly could you email it to me at [email protected] and I will look at it and respond to you.
Thanks
Did this come from Getty or McCormack?
If you don't want to post it publicly could you email it to me at [email protected] and I will look at it and respond to you.
Thanks
610
Legal Controversies Forum / Re: Taking the whole damn cake, eating it, then threatening to defecate on everyone
« on: May 16, 2013, 09:19:50 PM »
Many of us have been following the Prenda Law, AF Holding et al for quite a while now. Judge Wright is throwing everything at then. Fines, recommendation for disbarment, recommendations to be investigated by the FBI fraud dept, IRS and more.
Karma baby.....
Karma baby.....
611
Legal Controversies Forum / Re: CANIPRE - Copyright violators (and hypocrites)
« on: May 16, 2013, 09:16:25 PM »
Let's not forget about Rock Photo either. Anyone have an update on that case?
612
Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: Getty letter received - No clue what to do...
« on: May 15, 2013, 11:41:16 PM »
Just because the images show up in Google on other pages doesn't mean that they were not licensed by those pages. You will want screen captures of the image being offered for free on the free wallpaper sites you mentioned.
Here is a link to my thread and at the bottom of the very first message are links to my letters to and from Getty. It will give you an idea of what to ask for and how the process will go.
http://www.extortionletterinfo.com/forum/getty-images-letter-forum/an-experiment-against-getty/
I did not pay Getty a penny because they refused the reasonable request of providing me with proof of claim. I let them know I was willing to negotiate but they had to provide proof, when they threaten to escalate to their legal dept. I sent out many complaint letters. After that I have not heard a word from them for a year now.
Do not copy my letters, only use them as guides. Getty knows my letters and they will call you out on it if they are copied.
Here is a link to my thread and at the bottom of the very first message are links to my letters to and from Getty. It will give you an idea of what to ask for and how the process will go.
http://www.extortionletterinfo.com/forum/getty-images-letter-forum/an-experiment-against-getty/
I did not pay Getty a penny because they refused the reasonable request of providing me with proof of claim. I let them know I was willing to negotiate but they had to provide proof, when they threaten to escalate to their legal dept. I sent out many complaint letters. After that I have not heard a word from them for a year now.
Do not copy my letters, only use them as guides. Getty knows my letters and they will call you out on it if they are copied.
Thanks guys.
Greg - I just dragged the image into Google image search, and there are over 25,000 instances of the image... a quick scan of which shows almost all of them (I only got through about 20 pages of results before stopping) on small sites, pet blogs, wallpaper sites, etc.
Even $200 is a bit out of my ballpark... my business really makes little to nothing. I've attempted reading to get an understanding, but either I'm not bright enough, not savvy enough to get the forum format, or not reading the right posts. I'm getting that it doesn't matter that there are no watermarks, and that the copyright is potentially legitimate. I guess I'm just not getting what my next best step is. It seems a lot of people say to ignore it, and others say to write a letter... those seem to be my two best approaches other than paying. I'm scared to ignore it... my business is all I have. And, is there a form letter or something to assist with the letter approach? Everything I read seems to say "write your own letter, each case is different". Which is fine, but I'm no attorney. Is there somewhere that tells me what I'm supposed to include in said letter? Do I just send them a letter saying "please provide proof of your claim"?
Any help is greatly appreciated...
613
Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: Getty letter received - No clue what to do...
« on: May 15, 2013, 08:13:05 PM »
Images are not required to have a watermark on them and copyright exists from the moment an images is taken, however Getty asks for unreasonable amounts.
I also would not pay them a penny without them providing proof of their claim which they will not do. I am not a lawyer but if the image is as wide spread and offered on "Free" sites as you say it sounds like it is a case of deminimis infringement at worst. I would get screen captures of the sites offering the image up for free and hold on to them. There is lots of information in the forums to guide you on fighting back as well as examples of letters and complaints.
If you do not have the time or the will to fight with them I would use Oscar's Letter Program. $195 and they can no longer contact you, Oscar has handled over 800 of these to date.
I also would not pay them a penny without them providing proof of their claim which they will not do. I am not a lawyer but if the image is as wide spread and offered on "Free" sites as you say it sounds like it is a case of deminimis infringement at worst. I would get screen captures of the sites offering the image up for free and hold on to them. There is lots of information in the forums to guide you on fighting back as well as examples of letters and complaints.
If you do not have the time or the will to fight with them I would use Oscar's Letter Program. $195 and they can no longer contact you, Oscar has handled over 800 of these to date.
614
P2P/BitTorrent Lawsuits Forum / Re: Canadian firm monitoring illegal downloading for court cases
« on: May 13, 2013, 06:47:34 PM »
Thanks!
615
Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: A note on photos that are "public domain"
« on: May 13, 2013, 02:33:17 PM »
Thanks for that link Jerry, that made my day 
Mulligan, I think K-Mart is going to be the one to come after you:
Personally I think it will be a sad day if the web goes back to some early 90's text-only version because of fear of the trolls. I have to say I am shooting more of my own stuff and I still use images from royalty free sites. I document this meticulously. If I ever heard from an artist (or even a person that claimed to be the artist) I would remove the image and work with them to discover why a site was offering it for free. I also purchase microstock quite a bit, I'm just careful not to buy from Getty Images subsidiary iStockPhoto.
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