Getty Gives It All Away

[Rob MacKillop]

"Getty Images makes 35 million images free in fight against copyright infringement
Getty Images has single-handedly redefined the entire photography market with the launch of a new embedding feature that will make more than 35 million images freely available to anyone for non-commercial usage."

LINK: http://www.bjp-online.com/2014/03/g...free-in-fight-against-copyright-infringement/

According to a Facebook Friend: Getty has just shot all of their photographers in the foot, or somewhere far more uncomfortable. This is the end of it for many photographers. It's as if in order to compete with Alamy and the few remaining half-honest and decent stock/library portals, they are willing to screw their contributors over for 100% of all fees they might ever, or never, have received for the work they have done. Well done Olivier at the BJP for breaking this bombshell news.

Thoughts?

 

[Julian de'Courcy]

I would not have a clue to the consequences or how this will affect future copyright in this areana. It appears the same or similar to the option on flickr, if you choose to make your pictures accessible to anyone or keep the copyright. Lots of these social sites appear on reading terms and conditions have a hold over the posted images. This seems to affect those other companies who may well lose business , with people opting for free images credited to Getty. But heck I don't know.
I often post large images on Flickr fully aware that they can be used in a way other than for the web logo or whatever, not that I'd like my images used in that way, I just don't wish to become to precious about what is a hobby.

If I was a professional photographer which is a big concern, I think this trend and many trends that have been going on whilst the net has been actively alive is not helpful for making a living in photography. It never was easy at anytime.

 

[Pete Askew]

So, free to link as an embedded object bearing the GettyImages logo etc. How to turn part of uncontrolled use into a marketing campaign!

 

[Julian de'Courcy]

So, free to link as an embedded object bearing the GettyImages logo etc. How to turn part of uncontrolled use into a marketing campaign!

That is actually how I see it. Keeping a brand alive, advertising, all that jazz . Perhaps we all aught to slap a huge water mark across the centre of our images and become Famous for the watermark.

 

[Tom Dunne]

It's hard to believe that something like this could even be legal.
I had about 200 images on a British Stock library and they disappeared off the face of the earth.

 

[Nick Lukey]

It's hard to believe that something like this could even be legal.
I had about 200 images on a British Stock library and they disappeared off the face of the earth.

It's a major problem when a company gets so big it feels it can do what it wants. I know of many cases where images have been taken off Flickr and used without permission by Newspapers and the Beeb, where clearly they should know better.

The problem is there are so many images online, companies take advantage, knowing that the image owners don't bother policing their accounts.