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

[Laura Geyer]

Also, besides the Google reverse image search, which is actually not bad, if the complained-of photo has been up for any length of time I do ask the client to do their level best to figure out how the image ended up there (like, I had a client once where the Priceless Art Photograph in question was I think a mixed green salad and trust me it’s not like Ansel Adams had taken it) because sometimes the lawfirm or outfit threatening you is actually incorrect. Sometimes the client licensed the salad fair and square through a now-dead outfit for the use made and it’s all in an email from 5 years back. And sometimes you figure out that the person threatening you might theoretically have a claim if it weren’t for the fact that someone else is the record owner and the asserter weirdly are incapable of producing any evidence they own it. I always ask for a copy of the registration certificate.

And if it’s a fair cop, then I do my best to (as suggested by others here) find out what it is being licensed for and if it is a $25 license fee, I let that be the negotiation guide.

And yes, if someone provides the client an image for use, there’s a rep that the work is their own and no third party has rights in it.

Basically, assume nothing!

Laura Talley Geyer | Of Counsel

ND Galli Law LLC
1200 G Street, N.W., Ste 800
Washington, DC 20005
Tel: (202) 599-9019 (direct)
https://ndgallilaw.com/laura-geyer/
https://ndgallilaw.com/

From: E-trademarks <e-trademarks-bounces at oppedahl-lists.com> On Behalf Of Louis Levy via E-trademarks
Sent: Wednesday, December 11, 2024 5:21 PM
To: 'For trademark practitioners. This is not for laypersons to seek legal advice.' <e-trademarks at oppedahl-lists.com>
Cc: Louis Levy <llevy at symbus.com>
Subject: Re: [E-trademarks] Copyright question re: identifying owners of photos for purposes of obtaining copyright licenses to use same

EXTERNAL EMAIL
When a photographer is named in a complaint, I immediately check Getty Images, ShutterStock and others to see if I can find the photo, or at least find what the photographer generally licenseds their photos for. There’s good case law discussing limits of statutory damages to single-digit multiples of a license fee that takes the wind and credibility out of exorbitant claims for damages.

Just a thought.

Lou

Louis J. Levy | Attorney
Symbus Law Group PLLC
1775 I Street, NW, Suite 1150 • Washington, DC 20006
Direct:  240.453.9211• Mobile:  202.258.6547
llevy at symbus.com<mailto:eraynes at symbus.com%0dwww.symbus.com> • www.symbus.com<mailto:eraynes at symbus.com%0dwww.symbus.com>
From: E-trademarks <e-trademarks-bounces at oppedahl-lists.com<mailto:e-trademarks-bounces at oppedahl-lists.com>> On Behalf Of Sam Castree via E-trademarks
Sent: Wednesday, December 11, 2024 5:11 PM
To: For trademark practitioners. This is not for laypersons to seek legal advice. <e-trademarks at oppedahl-lists.com<mailto:e-trademarks at oppedahl-lists.com>>
Cc: Sam Castree <sam at castreelaw.com<mailto:sam at castreelaw.com>>
Subject: Re: [E-trademarks] Copyright question re: identifying owners of photos for purposes of obtaining copyright licenses to use same

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<mailto: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<mailto: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
[cid:ii_193b7c4346377ea775c1]
9801 Washingtonian Boulevard, Suite 750
Gaithersburg, MD 20878
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