Many people think that making use of images from the Internet is allowed and that such images are free for anyone to use. However, unless the owner of an image has specifically granted a public right of use, it is copyright and the owner may sue for breach of copyright if there is use of the image without authorisation.
A removal firm recently found this out to its cost – in this case an out-of-court settlement of £2,000 plus legal costs. The payment came about when the firm was sued by Getty Images for using a single picture from its picture archive.
Some owners of image rights (and Getty is one) use software to search for their images, and issue demands for considerable sums to users who make unauthorised use of them.
Copyright applies equally to text and in a recent case copying a mere eleven words was considered to be a breach of copyright – plagiarists beware!
Using Internet Image Costs Firm Dear
If you are publishing any ‘second hand’ material, it is essential to make sure you have the legal right to do so, or the rightful owner may sue you for damages. It is also important to make sure that any material which you publish that is created for you by third parties contains only authorised material. Image rights are often inexpensive to acquire, but surprisingly often this is ignored or forgotten about: this can be an expensive mistake.
Contact us for advice on all copyright and intellectual property issues.
Contact us for advice on all copyright and intellectual property issues.
The contents of this article are intended for general information purposes only and shall not be deemed to be, or constitute legal advice. We cannot accept responsibility for any loss as a result of acts or omissions taken in respect of this article.
