Copyright?

[Gilligan]

Lisa,
The persons statement that pics on the internet are free game clearly indicates he is somewhat ignorant of Copyright laws. Attorneys cost money so that route is not worth it unless you found one that would take the case on a contingency basis. That is not likley unless big bucks are in it.

Some options:
1. Send him a business letter to "cease and desist" all use of the photo under the warning of legal action as the next step.
2. Pay an attorney just to send the letter hoping that in itself will work.
3. Send the letter yourself, wait a short time, then take him to Small Claims Court on your own and pick a reasonable amount for the photo use, like the max Small Claims allows?

I don't know if you have the time for all that. Most people don't.
One of the great things about being retired is that I have all the time in the world to deal with people like that

 

[chippy]

Lisa

I did a little investigating and found that even if you DIDN't put any copyright marks on the picture,under the Berne copyright convention everything created privately and originally after April 1, 1989 is copyrighted and protected whether it has a notice or not. The trouble with the law (and most laws) is that the vary considerably from country to
country.

I doubt he'd have a leg to stand on in court - it's not like he could say that he was unaware that it was copyrighted when he's blatantly removed the copyrighting marks!

There's some good articles on the net about copyrighting too though!!

 

[Al Mialkovsky]

Yes, sadly, that too.....does that mean I can bash his company now???
An old saying comes back to me
"The ignorance of law is no excuse"...or something like that

I think bashing his company would be a fun hobby.

I'm not sure how much effort you really want to put into this but a letter from an attorney usually gets quick results. It might cost a couple of hundred bucks to do this.

 

[justleesa]

I think bashing his company would be a fun hobby.

I'm not sure how much effort you really want to put into this but a letter from an attorney usually gets quick results. It might cost a couple of hundred bucks to do this.

The father of one of my clients that I care for at work is a lawyer....a letter from might do the trick

 

[justleesa]

The trouble with the law (and most laws) is that the vary considerably from country to
country.

Lucky for me then as he is in the same country

 

[caveseeker7]

Lucky for me then as he is in the same country

Actually Europe has excellent if not the best copyright protection. Artists will get compensated when their work resells (at an auction years after creation, for example), retain the right to show their work collectively (sold work will be made available for a public display) and much, much more.

If that joker pulled the business card crap there you'd be shooting with D100 in an LMI housing in no time.

If you can get the attorney to draw the c&d letter for you go for it. He'll use the proper legalese and make your claim to your rights official. Go for it.

 

[saf_25]

The amazing thing about this is that if he had just approached this like a decent person and asked you ahead of time, I'd imagine that you would have been willing to work out a fair price to use your pic. Heck, that's flattering that someone wants to use your work to advertise their business. Or, even if he had then replied to your letter apologizing, saying that he didn't realize he was using your stuff, or something, then the desire to take him to court would not be that great.
But, his response makes it clear that he is an a$$, and I really hope that you're able to get the better of him, somehow. At least an apology and getting him to stop using your picture would be nice. I hope that this incident doesn't change your willingness to share your pics with us - they're great and I'd hate for this jerk to ruin it for the rest of us who appreciate your work without taking advantage of it.

 

[ChrisM]

I'm not a copyright atty, but I know some of the law in the area. Generally, what others have said is correct. If you take a picture (not for hire), copyright attaches the moment of creation. Adding the copyright info (which did no good here) or registering the picture simply adds another layer of protection, and registration allows more damages.

The guy is clearly in the wrong, and the fact that he obscured your copyright info proves he knew it (in my mind).

All that said, it seems from your post that he has already changed the image to another one. In essence, you sent a cease and desist letter, and he ceased and desisted.

Chris

 

[scubasean]

Copyright last life plus 50 years.

Aren't you quoting the rule before the Mickey Mouse law went into effect?

The copyright web page seeks to differ with you...

http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-duration.html


Quoting them...
"The term of copyright for a particular work depends on several factors, including whether it has been published, and, if so, the date of first publication. As a general rule, for works created after Jan. 1, 1978, copyright protection lasts for the life of the author plus an additional 70 years. For an anonymous work, a pseudonymous work, or a work made for hire, the copyright endures for a term of 95 years from the year of its first publication or a term of 120 years from the year of its creation, whichever expires first. "

 

[Scubatooth]

justleesa

im sorry you had the unfortuante dealing with a scum bag who decided to steal your photo. you have been given some very good advice about the C&D letter, but i would also send along an invoice for useage of the photo, and in this case i would put it at 100k (yes a hundred grand) because that is the maximum fine for a copyright violation under fedral law. i know thats over kill and this A hole would probably never pay it but you could negotiate a fair useage price (a couple of grand) , a license to use the photo on a yearly basis, that must be renewed.

i have had the unfortuantely had this happen to me and through scouting have contacts to lawyers who were willing to help me for very reasonable because at the time i was a minor and it was some of my better work that was being stolen. in the end the C&D notice and a bill for useage got the company to stop there theft, to them it wasnt worth a legal over one little picture. as a result i recieved a pretty good sum for a teenager that helped pay for my first semester in college.

also would like to add if you know the person whos in that photo also get them to send a C&D notice for using there likeness without there permission and then send a bill for violation (maybe 2 bills will get there attention that you two mean biz)

Tooth