Photo and video copyright

1. 68

   hubwriterposted 16 years ago

   How do you tell if a Photograph on a website is copyrighted? In particular, do manufacturers who post pictures of their products copyright those pictures? Is it reasonable to assume that a manufacturer would be encouraged to have you use their photograph since it promotes their product?
   
   Is there any protection on videos from "google video" or "You Tube"?
   
   ~Thank you

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2. 0

   tagtopicsposted 16 years ago

   Try http://www.youtube.com/t/howto_copyright for some basic, but understandable, copyright information in respect to videos.
   
   In terms of pictures, its the photographer who owns the copyright - i.e, if you take a picture of a tree you don't own the tree but you own the rights to that picture of it.
   
   That would be the same as product pictures, they're owned by the photographer or the manufacturer who commissioned them.
   
   It's better to be safe than sorry! Unless a website clearly states that you CAN use an image, don't use it - and especially don't embed it and use up their bandwidth.
   
   I'm no expert on copyright law - so I tend to stick with the images and videos I KNOW are available for reproduction.

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3. 68

   hubwriterposted 16 years ago

   Thank you for your input, and especially the link. It is still so hard to tell when a photograph is copyrighted. Especially when you go to a manufacturers website and there are photo's of the products they would like to sell. One would think they would be thrilled to have you use the picture, but then that would be assuming.....
   
   Thank you,
   hubwriter

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4. 58

   Mark Knowlesposted 16 years ago

   As I understand it, if an image has been distributed on the internet and is freely available for down load, the onus is on the copyright holder to ask you to remove the image if they are unhappy with you using it.
   
   I use lots of manufacturer's photos and I don't see why they would have a problem with using them.

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5. 49

   broalexposted 16 years ago

   Copyright doesn`t really apply on the web , especially for the low resolution photos . If it is for download , then you can Use it no one will have anything against you , if you don`t resell it . Reselling copyrights is trouble. Good luck !

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   1. 0

      tagtopicsposted 16 years agoin reply to this

      That has got to be one of the biggest reasons people get into trouble Broalex! It does matter and you can get in serious trouble if you ignore it.
      
      Like I said, I'm no expert, but there is a major difference between downloading images from a companies press area and simply right-clicking and saving it. Like Mark said, most companies want to see their product out there, this is why they have images available for downloading - they've approved these images and there are no royalties to pay.
      
      If copyright didn't matter on the web there would be no need for all the istockphoto, fotosearch websites would there. And think about it from the other side, how would you feel if your hard work was redistributed by every tom, dick and harry who stole it.
      
      If we can all help ourseleves to images and videos, why not software? What about if I copied your profile picture and put it on gay-porn websites? Extreme example I know, but perhaps now you'll agree that copyright DOES matter.

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6. 58

   Mark Knowlesposted 16 years ago

   Copyright does matter, but the onus is on the copyright holder to inform whoever is using their copyrighted material that they need to stop.

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7. 49

   broalexposted 16 years ago

   It does matter , I agree but in most cases , IF say you use a copyrighted image downloaded from a Photostock of course a small size - The Free Download Size (Computer Image) , How on Earth would they know that I did not  credit the owner of the photograph ? They can`t have this information , so as a conclusion to copyrighted images , you are not allowed to resell them or post them in their full size .The Extended RF Licence (If anyone has got to do with Photostocks they should know Exted RF-Licence gives the buyer the possibility to resell it on shirts , posters , calendars and so on ).

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8. 68

   hubwriterposted 16 years ago

   Well, I appreciate all the thoughtful input. Although it's inspired a debate I think there are some common understandings that lead to a basic concept. Do our best to determine the intent of a posted photo in regards to copyrighting. For me, I will look on the manufacturers website for a press area and see if they have photo's available. Secondly, I will try to email their webmaster and ask the simple question.
   
   Beyond that as Mark noted, it's up to the owner of the site or photograph to inform you. If they haven't made a concerted effort on their site, or disabling right clicking, etc. and they haven't placed an obvious statement, it should be reasonable to use the photo. Especially since I'm not trying to sell the photo, nor slander the photo. The photo will be used for the same context that the picture was taken for.
   
   I think it could be considered unreasonable if someone wanted to use the photo for a negative or unrelated topic.
   
   Thanks to all the ideas on how to address this responsibly. Each of you have provided good ideas.
   
   Thank you,
   hubwriter

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   1. 59

      darksideposted 16 years agoin reply to this

      But if you're using that photo to profit from it? And not necessarily to sell it, but to use it on a venture in which you will make money.
      
      If a magazine editor took an image from a website without asking, and published it in their magazine as an illustration, what happens then?
      
      It hasn't been used for an advertisement, but to accompany a feature article.

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9. 68

   hubwriterposted 16 years ago

   Good points Darkside but note that I was primarily concerned with photo's from a manufacturers website. If a photo is used form a manufacturers website, it's essentially free advertising for them. Yes, the publisher of a website could possibly profit from it, but the hope of a manufacturer is to get their product in the publics face anyway. I suppose we could try to get manufacturers to pay us to use the same photo as advertising.
   
   I do agree, and as an amateur photographer appreciate what your saying with relation to most photographs found on the web. I've been hesitant to post my pictures for this exact reason. In fact, note to self....probably best to watermark my photo's that I use on hubpages so they don't show up elsewhere on the web (at least not by credible publishers that would honor an obvious watermark.)
   
   Thank you,
   hubwriter

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   1. 59

      darksideposted 16 years agoin reply to this

      Specifically speaking about manufacturers, indeed, I would personally would have no problem using their images to promote or review the product.
      
      It looks as if KTM doesn't want anyone to use their images. I wonder if they'll follow Fords course of action and try and put a stop to people publishing photos of their own bikes.

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      1. 58

         Mark Knowlesposted 16 years agoin reply to this

         Good grief! - So, not only is music you purchased not legally your own, now you can't take a photo of your own car. I wonder if this is a two way street and they fill fix it for you for free when it breaks down? seeing as they still own it

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         1. 59

            darksideposted 16 years agoin reply to this

            One wonders if they'll go from telling cars to selling licenses for the use of their vehicles.
            
            You have an annual subscription rate or pay by the month. And you have to sign an End User License Agreement before taking delivery and abide by their ToS.
            
            Will they take Paypal?

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10. 68

    hubwriterposted 16 years ago

    P.S.
    
    So with very little investigation on a site I was interested in, I find this Legal Notice (I htink this implies they will hunt you down, hehehehe):
    
    From ( http://www.ktm.com/Legal-Notice.8.0.html )
    Legal Notice
    Copyright © 2008 KTM-Sportmotorcycle AG.
    All rights reserved.
    
    Any and all visible and invisible components of this website, especially videos, animations, pictures, text, sound, and graphics, as well as their arrangement, are protected under the provisions of intellectual property law, especially by copyright. The contents of KTM websites must not be handled, more specifically they must not be altered, reproduced, assigned, distributed, or disclosed to third parties, for commercial purposes. Besides, some KTM websites include contents that are subject to proprietary rights of third parties. Unless specified otherwise, any and all trademarks on KTM websites are protected under trademark law, which applies particularly to KTM trademarks, emblems, company logos, and type labels.
    
    The intellectual property contained in KTM websites, such as in particular copyrights and trademark rights, patents and designs, is protected, in which context it is expressly pointed out that through these websites no licenses for the utilization of these rights of KTM or third parties are granted.
    
    Despite the fact that KTM websites are created with the utmost diligence and care, KTM cannot assume any guarantee for the correctness and completeness of the information contained therein. KTM excludes any liability for damage arising out of or in connection with the use of KTM websites, unless such damage results from at least gross negligence by KTM.
    
    This website uses etracker technology to collect visitor behavior data. This data is collected anonymously to be used for marketing and optimization purposes. All visitor data is saved using an anonymous user ID to aggregate a usage profile. Cookies may be used for this purpose, but only to collect and save data in anonymous form. The collected data will not be used to identify a visitor personally and is not aggregated with any personal data.

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11. 49

    broalexposted 16 years ago

    People don`t understand one thing about Copy Right . The only thing you are not allowed to do is to resell them. Why ? Because it is not your work , as for copy paste , it is not a big problem because they would never know who has credited the author of the photograph or did not credit  ! I am on 8 Photo Stocks uploading Photographs and know pretty well about the rules. IO have heard thousand of complains about people`s photographs being stolen and uploaded on who knows what sites well maybe the author of the photos complaining has been credited by the person who uploaded his photo and he doesn` know ! )
    
    For more information about Photographs go to my hub about Photo Stocks and follow the links to Stock Photo Sites. (You might be interested to raise your income as well )
    
    http://hubpages.com/hub/Photostock-Sites-
    
    Good Luck Everyone!

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    1. 0

       tagtopicsposted 16 years agoin reply to this

       I still disagree with this - you seem to be saying (and please correct me if I'm wrong) that copy and paste is OK because you won't get caught - Risky strategy!
       
       Interesting to read the Ford article - makes a good point about the above, as even those people who have brought and paid for a car still don't own the copyright to them! So the assumption that using someone elses images for promotion of their products is OK is in fact not

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12. 61

    cyndeehaydonposted 16 years ago

    Lots of thoughts here - just thought I'd share I have a REALTOR friend in Maryland that does her own maps - and has them online - everytime one is found that was copied she has a lawyer on retainer that makes ALOT of money for the infringement and she is ruthless about it. 
    
    I make it a practice to take my own photos or use stock photos that I have rights to. Just my 2 cents. Good Luck!

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13. 70

    Inspirepubposted 16 years ago

    You could always do what I did for my body jewellery Hub - emailed the manufacturer and said "I want to promote your products, is it OK if I use your pics to do it?"
    
    Their response was - sure, as long as you make it clear the pics are copyright.
    
    No problem!
    
    Jenny

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14. 58

    Mark Knowlesposted 16 years ago

    http://www.eff.org/issues/dmca

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15. 57

    Gillie2tatposted 16 years ago

    My approach is what was taught me at web school - if you don't know it's OK to use it, don't use it. Full stop. It's your responsibility under US law to know whether it's OK to use something on your web pages - and if sued you would have to go to the country of origin of the copyright holder to attend the court case. So it's worth being careful.

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    1. 59

       darksideposted 16 years agoin reply to this

       And if you're not in the US?

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       1. 57

          Gillie2tatposted 16 years agoin reply to this

          Still your responsibility to know for sure as far as I'm aware - I'm in the UK. And copyright applies to the country of origin.

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16. 68

    hubwriterposted 16 years ago

    Update......So I decided just to contact a manufacturer and see what they had to say. Well, I didn't immediately get permission, but they asked some questions about hub pages, and whether the photographs would only be used online. I pointed them to the About page for the hubpages neighborhood, and then let him read my article, http://hubpages.com/hub/kidsmotocross .
    
    After very little effort, I received this response from them:
    
    "Sounds good...I spent a little time this morning reading some articles, and I like the concept.
    
    Let me know exactly what you need, and I provide some photographs that we have full permission to publish."
    
    I encourage fellow writers to adopt the philosophy of, hmmm I'll send them a quick email and see if I can get permission to use those photo's.
    
    I started this thread to promote discussion on the topic, and I found value in most of the comments made. Thank you everyone for participating.
    
    I hope I can have similar luck with other manufacturers and that my emails don't end up in the aether of e-space.

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    1. 74

       LiamBeanposted 16 years agoin reply to this

       There is one other source that I haven't seen mentioned here. If you use photographs/graphics from U.S. Government sites you are free of copyright constraints. With few exceptions (the government does copyright some images such as the Presidential Seal), government generated/created graphics/photographs are by law public property. No copyright permissions required.
       
       For example I wrote a hub about acne and used a cross-section graphic of a pore created by a government run health organization. I was surprised how many companies used a slightly modified, but essentially same graphic in their advertisements.
       
       Just my two cents here.

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17. 68

    hubwriterposted 16 years ago

    LiamBean,
    
    Thanks for the additional input, that is good information to have. I never considered graphical content provided by the government when thinking of copyright laws. I can see where that could prove valuable to many articles being generated.
    
    two cents well earned, I will not ask for my change!

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