Author Topic: Image found by using TinEye. Stolen? (Read 8204 times)

Bateleur · « **on:** May 26, 2008, 15:51 »

So ... I joined TinEye (took me all of 11 minutes from sending my request to getting an invite) and did a search on some of my popular images.

Almost immediately I came up with this one of mine ...

... under someone else's name on Photobucket

here:

http://s138.photobucket.com/albums/q275/lauren158/?action=view&current=mistletoe.jpg

Before I do anything (as far as I can), has anyone here got any words of advice on what to do? I want to get it right.

Thanks everyone

MicrostockExp · « **Reply #1 on:** May 26, 2008, 16:17 »

humm not sure if it worth the trouble the thumbnail is quite small no ?

Bateleur · « **Reply #2 on:** May 26, 2008, 16:53 »

Now I've found it somewhere else, too. Being offered as part of a free graphic ...

http://www.pyzam.com/graphics/details/4317

Granted they may possibly have bought it. But does that give them the right to give it away free?

designalldone · « **Reply #3 on:** May 26, 2008, 16:56 »

Well, it looks like the album belongs to a teenie-bopper girl, so I really don't think she means any harm by having it in her collection.

She hasn't implied it's her own work, and she's not making any money from it so I'd take it as a compliment if I were you - she obviously thinks it's good

(this was in reply to your first post)

snurder · « **Reply #4 on:** May 26, 2008, 17:12 »

On the first Photobucket appearance I would write the user, or the Photobucket site if the small one concerns you..

The second one is definitely a commercial site. They have a vehicle for reporting copyright infringement. Go to ths link for details

http://www.pyzam.com/pages/tos

madelaide · « **Reply #5 on:** May 26, 2008, 19:33 »

I found one used in a site with a LO watermark, all downsized.

I asked in another thread and maybe someone can help: are CD covers allowed without an EL?

Regards,
Adelaide

PS: I reported two sites using watermarked images (one from IS and one from DT).

Bateleur · « **Reply #6 on:** May 27, 2008, 03:12 »

Thanks for your input folks.

Quote from: designalldone on May 26, 2008, 16:56

Well, it looks like the album belongs to a teenie-bopper girl, so I really don't think she means any harm by having it in her collection.

She hasn't implied it's her own work, and she's not making any money from it so I'd take it as a compliment if I were you - she obviously thinks it's good

(this was in reply to your first post)

I don't see it's relevant how old she is. If a kid pinches a couple of sweets from a store you do something, don't you? I don't see how this is different.

Quote from: ldambies on May 26, 2008, 16:17

humm not sure if it worth the trouble the thumbnail is quite small no ?

I don't see the size matters either. Interestingly a couple of other finds that come up on TinEye are the same size as this one. So I've no way of knowing if those others bought it legally or got the image from her.

And ... yes ... I know that I should take it as a compliment that she feels it's good enough to put it up under her name (which ... even though she doesn't state it explicitly ... is as good as saying it's hers).

Unfortunately bakers don't accept compliments as payments for bread.

Susan S. · « **Reply #7 on:** May 27, 2008, 04:34 »

If the image was from istock and they bought the appropriate extended licence then the use as a e card is OK. If no extended licence was purchased, then they need to get one. I don't know what restrictions other sites use on redistribution of images like this - one of the downsides of having your images on various sites is that it makes compliance enforcement a bit harder, especially if terms and conditions of use vary.

Bateleur · « **Reply #8 on:** May 27, 2008, 04:43 »

Quote from: Susan S. on May 27, 2008, 04:34

If the image was from istock and they bought the appropriate extended licence then the use as a e card is OK.

But Pyzam are not using it as an e-card.

As far as I can tell they are providing free graphics (sort of clip art if you like) for their users to incorporate on their MySpace/Facebook/Bebo pages, or to put in to e-mails, or to use on their own websites.

I don't think ELs (from whichever site) cover free onward distribution of graphics.

Bateleur · « **Reply #9 on:** May 27, 2008, 11:39 »

Interesting.

I sent a formal e-mail to each of these sites (Photobucket and Pyzam) telling them that I believed that they were infringing my copyright and asking them to remove the image.

I got a response from both within a couple of hours, apologising and promising to remove it immediately.

TinEye? Brilliant! I would never have picked these up without it. (And, in passing, by pure chance I found someone else's image from iStock being used illegally, still with watermark. I told her and she's taking action.)