Are your photos safe on Flickr? Another Philippine Copyright Violation by a Local Daily in Cebu

Just when you think the news is out about Photographers fighting to protect their rights online.. here is another copyright violation story about Photos of taken from a flickr account and used in a Cebu Daily.

How did i find out about this? someone posted a link to my story and i was checking the sources of traffic and decided to click on the link and check out what they were saying about my case vs. manila bulletin but instead i find out that another copyright violation has happened.. this time philippine photographers with photos on flickr.. and a Cebu Daily.

“are you aware na ginamit ang pics natin sa isang local newspaper sa cebu?”

farm3.static.flickr.com/2337/1798837109_683a86b0dc.jpg

<—thats the print out. and the image of mine used was my image of the ferris wheel in slow shutter”

more here

What to do? Here is something I wrote on how to deal with someone stealing you photos online..

I think the photographers should unite and fight violations agaisnt our copyright.. how do we do it? I dont know.. a suggestion made by a fellow photographer was to use my case and show up during the first hearing to show that the community of photographers are united against copyright violation against photographers..

any other suggestions are most welcome…

Top Online Copyright Violations in the Philippines – How to deal with someone stealing your photos

Stories of Photos being downloaded and used left and right is more rampant today than ever. I was meeting with a friend and he said that clients asked him to download photos for use for an ad campaign. I said I would be the first one to report him! He said that he was joking and he knew it was wrong and explained to the client that it was cheaper to buy a photo then put up with a billing that would be dictated by the photographer with a “penalty charge” for use without permission.

What to do when you become a Victim of Copyright Infringement.

1. Confirm and reconfirm that the photo or image is really yours, if possible check EXIF file.
2. Make a copy of the infringement and related evidence to your claim. Assume that if the violator gets a inkling that you are on to him, he will take any evidence offline to protect himself and his business or site.
3. Make Initial Contact with proper authorities – make sure you do your homework and contact the right people.. talking to people that have no authority can be a pain! or actually drive you nuts! An Initial Email would help and it would be good to put the inital reaction of the violator in writing ….then eventually.. it is always better to get a contact you can talk to directly and get feedback. Be Diplomatic and dont burn Bridges!
4. Explain the violation and Show Proof of ownership.
5. Know what you want so you can work out something. Send them a billing if necessary, This usually gets their attention and can start the ball rolling for any negotiation.
6. If they Play hard ball, copyright lawyer to send them a demand letter an Philippines everything moves so slow so and a decision isnt even final.. they can take you all the way to the supreme court.. i know of a current case which has been on going for 2 years now even if the decision has been passed. The copyright violator wants to bring it all the way to the Supreme Court… will they get anything out of it? maybe.. maybe they think you will give up or lose hope along the way and decide to drop the case.
7. If all else fails.. take them to court and exhaust all legal means to prove your point.

I have had enough with my claims with Manila Bulletin, It is about time i move on and go after them legally. Yes, within a few weeks you will hear updates on my story of how a major daily like Manila Bulletin stole my photos

I hope that online copyright violations go down to a minimum and hope that all media practioners be aware of copyright and intellectual property rights. Nothing in this world is free. If its online, it isnt free… to steal.. it is free to look at and admire but please respect the artist and ask permission or offer to pay for use of the image or photo!

Here are top cases of copyright violation in the Philippines.

• ABS CBN vs Byhilo.com - RESOLVED
• Dubai Chronicles vs 7 Days Newspaper – UNRESOLVED
• Convergence NET 25 vs Yugatech.com – UNRESOLVED
• Alodia & Tricia vs Dimitriproductions.com – UNRESOLVED
• Anton Sheker vs Manila Bulletin – UNRESOLVED

Respect Intellectual Property Rights!

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