Sometimes it’s a good idea to use Google to see what content comes up. When I do that, it shows that a website is stealing Fstoppers articles and stealing my photos. Here’s what I did about it.
No wonder that happens. Fstoppers and some other photography websites recruit famous writers in the industry and say this with all humility who can write compelling articles and know how to use cameras. The articles are free for you, although the writers are paid and Fstoppers receive revenue from advertising. Everyone wins.
Fstoppers owns the written content; they contract me to write articles for them, and I get paid for it. If you’re reading this, thank you; despite reading this for free, you just helped put bread on my table. The photos we provide to illustrate the articles have been licensed to Fstoppers, but they still belong to us.
Sometimes a new website will start up and copy and paste content from one site and another into their site. You might think it’s a compliment to a writer and photographer when someone thinks their work is good enough to be featured on their website. However, that is of course piracy. It is a felony punishable by large fines and imprisonment.
Indeed, a relatively new site, let’s call it StolenPhotosRUs.com (not their real name), has taken my articles and pictures and reposted them on their site. That is along with other Fstoppers articles and several articles for various photography websites. They placed a comment at the end of each section with a link, stating, “This article was curated from the original publisher.”
I did some research and found out the name and address of the website owner, let’s call him Nigel (not his real name), the server hosting it and many more information about him and his business dealings.
After I raised the issue with Alex Cooke, Editor-in-Chief at Fstoppers, he wrote a comment on Nigel’s social media. Nigel responds and claims this is an aggregator site and therefore, legit. Nigel later turned off comments on the post and deleted Alex’s comments and switched the conversation to direct message. An actual aggregator site that posts short previews of articles, and when people click on them, they are redirected to the original site hosting the articles, so that the right creators get revenue their. StolenPhotosRUs.com is not an aggregator site. Nigel copied and pasted the articles and images directly into his website. Anyone who clicks on the link is directed to his page, not Fstoppers.
What will happen next? One option is to report Nigel for National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center (IPRC) through U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a division of the UD Department of Homeland Security.
The US Department of Justice says this:
Although individuals or companies may pursue civil remedies to address their intellectual property rights violations, criminal sanctions are often warranted to ensure sufficient punishment. punish and deter wrongdoing.
They go on to point out that piracy is a felony. It is punishable by up to three years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Similar harsh penalties apply in the UK and elsewhere. Indeed, the internationally adopted Berne Convention covers much of copyright law. It is one of the oldest laws known to exist because of the recognition that creators should be protected. Versions of our present-day copyright law can be found in ancient Greece as far back as 8,000 years ago.
We all have stolen photos from time to time. Most people submit takedown notices. However, on my website, I have terms of use with fees for those who use my images without prior permission. If you use my photos without asking, you agree to pay those fees. My fees start at around £20,000 GBP per photo, per page, per month for a small commercial site like Nigel’s. Fees are there as a deterrent. If people buy images, they will pay less. My fees are much higher for large businesses and still higher if someone prints my work. Nigel used my image 20 times.
I sent Nigel a £40,000 bill and a strongly worded email about his use of my image.
To cut a long story short, Nigel ended up removing all the offending articles and photos of the writers from his website. He also deleted stuff he stole from PetaPixel, DPReview, Shutterbug and others. You are welcome, folks!
I gave Nigel the option to apologize to the other writers. Once he has done that, I will consider canceling the bill I sent him.
So people often don’t act when they are a victim of piracy. They accept it as usual. But it is not a crime without a victim. Those of us who make a living from this art have lost income. You won’t be happy if someone steals your salary.
There is also the misconception that if something is on the internet, it is fair game. It’s not. Years ago, I was on the board of a reputable organization. One of the senior staff presented a new policy to the board for approval. Before the board meeting, I checked it and found the author had taken it from another organization’s website. Apparently the employee used the imperfect find and replace function in Word to swap the names of the organizations. They didn’t check for inevitable errors. They also forgot to change the different job titles the other organization used. Moreover, the text is full of legal documents that employees will never be able to write. I pointed out that it was plagiarized during the board meeting.
The business’s senior manager claims that if it’s on the internet it’s in the public domain and therefore it’s free to use. I suggested that he speak to the legal team. He did. The policy was not adopted.
Some major websites are even guilty of plagiarism. A few months ago, one of our writers wrote an article here at Fstoppers. Within a few days the same article, with the same paragraph structure but slightly rearranged words and a few added synonyms, appeared on another website, credited for a other writers. It was noticed. Both the reputation of the writer and the website are damaged as a result.
Using someone else’s creative work without permission is a crime. Adding content like “No copyright infringement intended” will not exempt you from the law if you steal someone else’s work. That’s like stealing and hanging a sign around your neck that says, “No theft intended.” That applies to text, photos, videos, and any artwork created. If you do, you may receive a takedown notice. However, there’s also the chance that you’ll end up with a hefty bill, a fine, and a few years in jail. I hope you will help stamp it out.
