Dealing with Copyright Issues

Wayne Newton

Failure to understand copyrights in this digital age of the internet can cause serious problems for Webmasters and Newsletter Editors. The new technology and evolving legislation adds to the difficulty we face in keeping up with developments. I am assuming that no-one reading this desires to deliberately steal anyone’s property, I know I don’t, but how do you protect yourself from risk from content that appears everywhere on the web saying it is “free” until you get a very large bill from the copyright holder or “rights manager” threatening suit if you do not pay? Since this recently happened to our website, I have done a lot of research on the matter and I feel that I need to share what I have found with others to help them possibly avoid a very troubling and costly situation.

Before this happened, I thought I understood a lot about copyrights, but I now realize a lot of it was out of date or simply myths and not real facts. I have found three very good resources on the web which clearly explain copyright facts and expose the myths. Please visit these sites and spend time reading the content and exploring the hyperlinks. It is information you need to know.

http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html

Before this happened, I did not realize that there were “stock photo” companies who managed copyrighted photos for lease to web developers. I always searched the web for “free photos” and they are available practically everywhere. Therefore I was surprised to receive a letter and find out that three low resolution thumb nail sized “free photos” were actually very expensive “rights managed photos”, and that quickly removing them from the website did not take care of the problem. They wanted money and lots of it. We felt “set up” because two of the offending photos that we had downloaded many years before and only recently used, were still suspiciously available for “free download” on a popular photo website on the internet. What would stop the management company from uploading some of their photos to the “free site” and then sending a bill if you accidentally used them. Many people believe this could be going on, so Lesson No. 1: “Beware of all free photo sites, they likely are a setup”.

Another misconception is that your site will go unnoticed. FALSE! The technology is being used to encrypt copyright and rights management information permanently hidden into the digital photos themselves. Even if someone altered it by cropping, colorizing, printing or scanning it before placing it on the free site, the information is not altered. You can’t see it, so you are unaware of the copyright, but special computer software can read it. A company in Israel is using banks of computers day and night to “crawl the web” looking for photos with encrypted information. They send a report of all websites they find to the management companies who then compare it with their list of customers. If you are not on the list for leasing the photo, they hit you with a threatening letter and a huge bill. Lesson No. 2: “Beware of using photos you have saved from “free photo” sites over the years. If you do not have written permission from the owner, how do you know they are not “setups”? Read the following link for information on the technology and then the other link for some comments from alleged victims.

Index Stock Imagery, Inc.: “Rights” or Wrong

Luminous Landscape Forum -> Great Home Page photograph!

How to defend against Copyright Infringement

So, what do you do if this ever happens to you? I hope it never does and I hope understanding and using this information will help you avoid this very unfortunate situation. Lesson No. 3: “Don’t panic”. This is very hard to do when you get a very serious and threatening letter. Hind sight is always better, but just because you get a letter, doesn’t mean you are going to be sued. One approach is to try to work out a satisfactory settlement yourself. If you are unsuccessful in reaching an agreement, then you probably need to consult an attorney. Learn from our experience because we were completely unprepared and did not know what to do. Here are some links to helpful information. I am not an attorney and do not offer legal advice, just information to educate and inform.

Fair Use Network: Copyright 101 - Infringement

Fair Use Network: Home Page

FAQ about Linking -- Chilling Effects Clearinghouse

So, what is happening in the world of legislation involving this subject? It is a real mixed bag. There are opposing viewpoints from our legislators, some wanting to make the penalties stiffer and others wanting to give the digital consumer some protection against being “set-up”. If stiffer penalties are passed, then it is mandatory that we be protected from “set-up” or we could face “jail-time” on some future “set-up”. Since digital copyright information can be encrypted in photos and text documents, then it would seem that it should be mandatory that anyone be able to read this information. They would then know not to use it or they would know who to contact to purchase or get permissions. This would provide the copyright protection that the owners and “managers” need and it makes you wonder why they seem to be opposed to it. We will have to wait and see what happens. Unfortunately, much of the beautiful, wonderful, educational and healing things the internet can help us achieve could be lost due to fear of litigation. To see how scary this is, I will post one final link.

Gonzales proposes new crime: 'Attempted' copyright infringement | Tech news blog - CNET News.com

If you have a folder of “free photos” that you downloaded from the “free photo” websites over the years, are they still “free”? The situation is a real mess, so don’t take a chance. I shredded my “free photo” files. I decided to verify the status of everything we use on the site, even the backgrounds. If I could not get a permission email from the copyright owner, I took it off. We had to forgo much of the beauty we have spent years creating because it is just not worth the risk.

Another problem is that a website or publication can change their “terms of use” at any time and you are required to follow them. For example, we have used a publication for many years that had very “relaxed” terms of use. They allowed everyone free access to use all of their articles for reprinting in newsletters or on websites as long as you gave them credit. Now, the recent edition of the magazine states you must have written permission to use their material. I am trying to get further clarification from the publisher, but I hope this does not mean that an article that was “free to use” in 1990 now requires permission if I use it again. What about a webpage I created containing the article in 1990 and is still accessible on the internet? Should I remove it? The situation is really a mess and it seems to be getting worse. It may eventually require extensive documentation on everything you use…maybe even to the extent of keeping copies of old magazines in case you need them in court. It would be a shame if we have to spend more time and money to stay out of trouble than performing our support mission. To put things in perspective, this one event has created a bill for more money than it would take to pay for and operate our website for the next 20 years.

My purpose has been to help you understand what can happen so you can take the necessary steps to prevent it from happening to you. I also hope our website resources have helped you in your grief journey. We want to keep it available for everyone. Thank you for your loving support and encouragement. You have my permission to pass this along to others who are interested and especially to those that have to deal with published material.