Getting shafted.

[bman0023]

Hi All, I posted a situation I am in a few days ago about copyright

infringement of an image that was published without my knowledge in

2000. I have contacted the agency and they are giving me the run

around. They made it clear that they do not want to pay for the use

of the image b/c it was in 2000, and they are "non-profit".

Outrageous. They stated that another agency gave them permission to

publish it, whom I did not authorize. This is really angering me.

How can get away with this, its robbery! Has anyone been in a

similar situation? And the outcome? It seems like the attorneys

would be the victors in my case. This is certainly discouraging and

frustrating to say the least.

 

Brad

[zane1664879013]

Small claims court?

 

What's it worth to you to pursue, in terms of time and aggravation? Sometimes it's easier all around to just take a deep breath and walk away.

[conraderb]

Brad - I'm no lawyer, but either the other agency misled them, or they are lying.

 

call up the other agency and find out what they say. if they deny what the first agency says, then the owness is on the first agency to prove that they had permission.

 

from what I undersatnd, to get off the hook, they need to show you a document where you gave permission to use the image. if they can't produce that, then they should be smart enough to know that they are in trouble.

[disneyry]

If you know any lawyers, a friend hopefully, see if they will write a short letter outlining what happened and the steps that you are willing to take (even if you aren't) to get your rightful compensation. Send it to both agencies and see what happens.

 

It's worth a shot.

[art_haykin]

Any potential legal action is only enforcible or valid based upon the degree to which you are willing to pursue it. Millions of crimes and torts, both minor and major, go unchallenged every year of the world. If suits were brought in each and every case, the courts would be backed up for over 100 years.

[dglickstein]

Brad,

 

1. If you did copyright your photos then you are entitled to collect your legal fees.

 

2. Consult with a lawyer ASAP -- it won't cost you anything if you copyrighted your photos.

 

The agency is relying on you giving up. Good luck.

 

dG

[robert_roaldi1]

I like Ryan's suggestion (3 above this post.) You're not likely to get any money but why should you be the only one to be stressed? For the price of a stamp (better yet send it registered mail so they have to sign for it) and some time to write a letter, you will annoy a couple of people who deserve to be annoyed. And they can't complain because they're in the wrong. That may be the best possible outcome in this situation.

[Jerry_]

Try making a invoice up. Mail the invoice to the 'non-profit' place. Give them 30 days to pay the invoice. If you do not get paid, keep a 'unpaid' copy of the invoice for your income tax return. (If you really want to waste a stamp, write to the IRS that the 'non-profit' gained additional funds by not paying your invoice for using your image. If you do not 'gift' the non-profit, they may have to pay income tax on your loss reported on your tax return.)

 

 

 

 

Credit card companies that 'give' you a break on a reduced total amount go to the trouble of informing the IRS you were 'forgiven' xxxx$'s and the IRS wants you to pay tax on the the 'forgiven' amount.

 

 

 

 

Try it and see what happens....

[bman0023]

Well, after I called them and informed them again that the image was copyrighted, they found out that they did not have my consent to publish and a different organization gave consent. Then their attitude changed very quickly and they were happy to settle. I am happy to get anything, but I beleive that I received a fair amount. Thanks to all for the tips. I hope that they are more cautious as a result now and treat photographer better.

 

Thanks,

Brad