Messages

1

Getty Images Letter Forum / Re: Small Business up against big Getty

« on: November 04, 2013, 09:00:44 PM »

Thank you everyone for your support!!

Just to clarify - the first letter to Getty was sent from my lawyer, but they were instructed to reply to me. My lawyer seemed pretty sure they would let the whole issue drop since it is not the same image. When they didn't, she suggested I make an offer to settle, so that's why I did that. In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have, but alas, you learn from your mistakes!

The images do have some similarities. They both have a blue sky and some water. However the hammock image has sand and a beach, and the image I used is simply a dock extending out with a dog sitting at the end of it (with blue sky and water in the background). I can send the hammock image if there is interest, however I have completely deleted and removed the dog on the dock image off of my website, computer, etc. I can't see where their technology is seeing the images are exactly the same...probably something in the sky is my best guess

I will continue to come back and update!!

Cheers

2

Getty Images Letter Forum / Small Business up against big Getty

« on: October 29, 2013, 09:54:48 PM »

Hi there!

I have been reading these forums since I recieved my first Getty letter back in July of this year. The advice on here is wonderful and I want to thank Matthew Chan & Oscar Michelen for creating this website!

The reason for my posting is that my situation is like many others, however a little unique.
Here is my story in short:

July 2013 - receive first Getty letter demanding $1275.00 for one image.
I am thrown for a curve as I have never heard of anything like this and at first, suspect it is a scam. In my letter it states that I am using an image on my homepage that is licensed to Getty. As we all know, they add a grainy black and white scan to the end of the document to show the image in question. I look at the image and I see that the image they are saying I used, and the actual image on my website are different. One is of a dog at the end of a dock, and the other is of a hammock on a beach. What the heck?? Either way I remove the image immediately. I contact my lawyers, send off a nice letter saying I received this letter in error and think it is all done with.

August - I receive an EMAIL from Nancy Monson stating that they received my letter. She states "The features of the image found on your website match the features of the image that we exclusively represent. While you have been using a modified version of the image in question, it is our position that there is no question that we are talking about the same image". I am led to believe at this point that the photographer of the "hammock" image must have used parts of that image to create the image of the dog I was using on my website. These are two completely different images but their pixel-bot says they are one and the same.

Just to be done with it I write a letter back, and I make a generous offer to pay $500 in order to settle. In this letter I state that going forward, all communication from Getty should be directed to my mailing address.

October - Surprise, surprise - Getty rejects my offer to settle. Shortly after this I receive a letter from NCS trying to collect the full amount of $1275.00 on Getty's behalf.

This is where I am now. I am in the process of drafting up a short letter in response to NCS.

I am slightly confused about how to proceed as I feel like I have made an honest effort to settle. I also do not know how much ground Getty has to stand on with two images that are not even the same! I understand that the photographer must have used one image to create the other, but I am unclear on how far the copyright protection goes in a situation like this. If Getty has the rights to a image of a hammock in front of sky, and that photographer uses the same sky in 5 other images, Getty has the rights to those 5 other images as well? Any help or opinions on this would be greatly appreciated!

I run a small business in Canada (only myself) and don't like being bullied by big corporations

Thank you!!