[E-trademarks] Copyright question re: identifying owners of photos for purposes of obtaining copyright licenses to use same

[Sam Castree]

I agree with everything that Nancy said.  Both that it's probably
impossible to know who owns a given photo, and how vitally important it is
to get ownership warranties and indemnity from people who are providing
copyrightable material.  DMCA safe harbors might also help, depending on
what your client is actually doing.

Cheers,

Sam Castree, III

*Sam Castree Law, LLC*
*3421 W. Elm St.*
*McHenry, IL 60050*
*(815) 344-6300*



On Wed, Dec 11, 2024 at 2:45 PM Nancy Prager via E-trademarks <
e-trademarks at oppedahl-lists.com> wrote:

> I am not aware of a service that will identify the owner of the copyright.
>
> Do you have a contract through which your client licenses the photos?  The
> licensor should represent that they are the copyright owner, and if not
> they have the right and license to sublicense it to your client.
>
> Best,
>
> Nancy
>
> On Wednesday, December 11, 2024 at 03:12:35 PM EST, Leesa N. Weiss via
> E-trademarks <e-trademarks at oppedahl-lists.com> wrote:
>
>
> By now, I’m sure a number of us have clients who have been on the
> receiving end of correspondence from any number of the companies
> representing owners of copyrighted photos inadvertently used on the
> client’s website, effectively demanding payment of a ransom for the
> unlicensed use of the photos. A client of mine, a very small non-profit
> organization with very limited funds recently was on the receiving end of
> two such claims; thankfully, I was able to contact the copyright owner
> directly and have them retract the demand for payment.
>
>
>
> Going forward, and especially since my client receives photos and other
> materials from the organizations with whom they work, my client has
> inquired whether there is a means to scan photos to confirm if the
> copyright is owned by the person or entity providing same and, if not, how
> to identify the owner of the copyright. I know Google has a means to search
> a photo, but it may not necessarily identify the owner of the copyright.
>
>
>
> Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
>
>
>
> Thank you, in advance.
>
>
>
> Leesa
> *Leesa N. Weiss*
> *Partner*
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> Gaithersburg, MD 20878
> lweiss at esfip.com
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> Fax: 301-762-4056
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