Received letter saying Im a business

[mmkblogger]

The letter I received is the same as everyone else seems to be describing. The letter states all over though that it is a business website. The website they got the image from is a personal blog that I'd had up for the past couple years and had guest bloggers write for it. The website was never intended to make money and it hardly got any views. Couple hundred hits a month, mostly from bots. I personally hadn't wrote on the blog in over a year... and actually, the blog doesn't even exist anymore. It's been deleted from the internet.

They ask for over $700 in damage for an image and show a very cloudy screenshot as to where I can't even be sure the image is from my site or when the screen shot was taken and I don't ever remember even seeing the image before. Actually, I don't even own the domain name for the website that it lists anymore.

Do I really have to pay this? What course of action would you suggest for me? I'd already gone and cleared the google cache and archive.org screenshots as suggested on this site.

I do own the business name that matches the url of the website, but never started the business so I never used the web url for the business. I'm guess looking up the business may have been how they got all of the contact info?

Also, I did a google search of the image and there are hundreds of other sites using the same image from Budweiser to small blogs. Does this play any factor into anything?

[stinger]

Your options:

• You can pay
• You can fight or try to negotiate.  Read "An Experiment against Getty" on this site for some ideas.
• You can hire Oscar under the letter program he makes available on this site and not worry about it.
• You can do nothing and hope/pray that they go away.  They may not sue for one image, but they likely will harass you if you choose this option.

[mmkblogger]

Thank you, I've spent the last 4 hours studying up on this issue online and talked to others that have been hit by Getty. Sounds like the best option is to just ignore them for the under $1000 claims. Mine was $750... and the website no longer even exists. Seems like they have much bigger fish to fry. Funny thing is I recently tried to find the image on Getty, and for how long the image was on the site, it would have cost about $180. Honestly, if they would have hit me with that fine, I would have paid instantly and thought to myself "I need to just buy my own camera".

My social media sites as I'm a former professional athlete have over 10,000 followers each and I will be sure to let people know of Gettys schemes. I feel absolutely terrible for a lot of people that have been hit by this scheme. I feel like they plant the bait, wait for people to take the bait, then serve them with a claim automatically to see if they can get money out of it. Management like this should be disgraced and if anybody needs my word or anything at all in speaking against them, I'm there. I fully respect photographers rights, as I have a lot of photographer friends, and after talking to them they too refuse to ever work with Getty as even they know of their disgraceful business practices.

Oh a funny little tid bit too on my situation... the address they are sending the letters to is my parents address... is there some harassment legalities against that?

[Jerry Witt (mcfilms)]

as I'm a former professional athlete have over 10,000 followers each and I will be sure to let people know of Gettys schemes.

GREAT! I love to hear about people getting the word out.

[Robert Krausankas (BuddhaPi)]

yes spread that word!! and BTW if you don't own the domain, if i were you I would tell Getty to suck ass, not my domain...that is unless your name is still on the domain whois, and if it is and shouldn't be i would consider reporting an invalid whois to ICANN to have your name removed..

[stinger]

Spreading the word would sure help.  And when they keep spreading the word, I would encourage any of your followers who are pursued to consider "turning up the heat" on Getty with letters to the appropriate:

• Attorney General
• Better Business Bureau, and
• Bar Associations.

[Greg Troy (KeepFighting)]

Examples my be found in the "experiment Against Getty" Thread

Spreading the word would sure help.  And when they keep spreading the word, I would encourage any of your followers who are pursued to consider "turning up the heat" on Getty with letters to the appropriate:

• Attorney General
• Better Business Bureau, and
• Bar Associations.

[Oscar Michelen]

Thanks for the post - when you discuss Getty on your site, be sure to link back to ELI!

[Greg Troy (KeepFighting)]

Also the FTC and your congressman and senator.

Spreading the word would sure help.  And when they keep spreading the word, I would encourage any of your followers who are pursued to consider "turning up the heat" on Getty with letters to the appropriate:

• Attorney General
• Better Business Bureau, and
• Bar Associations.