Blogger goes ape over Getty “extortion” letter

Posted: October 31, 2012

In the ongoing debate of what constitutes image copyright violations, discussions about stock photo agencies and theft of images posted to stock photo agencies continues to reach new levels. This blog post gives you the point of view of a photographer who was accused of copyright violation by a large stock photo agency, and of a blogger that tries to explain the agencies side of things.

Copywriting expert and blogger, Ryan Healy has posted about what he feels are extortionary tactics used by Getty Images to claim damages from images used on websites unlawfully.

As a copywriting professional, Healy paints a compelling picture of how he used a Getty image unlawfully by mistake, why he feels he has been treated unfairly by the company and why he further feels Getty is charging too much to settle the matter.

In the comments section of his blog, I tried to play the role of Getty’s “advocate” – pointing out why they would and could not share his views on the unlawful use of one of their photographer’s images. I further went into great detail explaining the differences between RF and RM image licenses and why from their perspective, Getty and the photographer are likely to be within their rights to protect their assets.

My comment was met, perhaps predictably, with a fair amount of disdain from Healy and at least one reader who frequents his blog. A somewhat more exciting response did follow.

Read entire article Blogger goes ape over Getty “extortion” letter

Biz Tip Provided by Tony Bynum, Owner: Tony Bynum Photography