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• 22 May ' 21:27

  Nancy Carrizales In the reviewing of notes and past updates and in the conversations that I have had with members, the constant is change.  I read about the challenges of transitioning to database systems, Royalty Free disks, digitization, Internet and the need or not for distribution partners and the list goes on.  Change and challenges continue and will continue, that is why PACA is so important.  But what makes it the most effective, both for you and the association, is your involvement. A trade association is the collaborative efforts of organizations in the same industry.  So, during my term I want to build that collaboration. With a strong collaboration of members, the education, programming, marketing membership growth and other expectations that you have of your trade association will come. The weekend of June 9th, the incoming board and some past presidents will be meeting for a two-day retreat.  This is a wonderful opportunity for the board to outline the Goals for PACA, its board members and each of its committees for the next two years.  One of the challenges we face is finding volunteers to either chair or sit on committees.  I am grateful to those that have agreed to continue chairing and serving on committees for another term, but we need more volunteers.  So, I encourage you to think about where you believe you will benefit the most and volunteer.  After the retreat we will have a detailed list of each committee, its responsibilities and the volunteer opportunities. However, if you have questions or would like to discuss options prior, do not hesitate to call Cathy or I. Cathy Aron By popular request, our Opening Reception on Friday night, October 19th, will be our biggest yet. Open the Conference weekend networking with old friends, new acquaintances, and future partners The resounding message coming back from this year's Congress was how great it had been for business! In a week that saw more economic crisis and concern in the Eurozone, it was wonderful to hear how much business had been done—new and old—and how delegates were delighted to meet so many people in one place. The main networking space: the Table Area at the CEPIC Congress. © CTK Photobank Christina Vaughan/ Image Source CEPIC President Visual ConnectionsOct 24, New York Trademark Action With Huge Industry Impact PACA member Getty Images is currently defending a significant case that has implications for all those that license stock images. . Car-Freshner Corporation brought a claim in federal court, asserting that photographs displayed on Getty Images website depicting within the subject matter an air freshener in a shape similar to Car-Freshner’s tree design violates a number of trademark related claims, including trademark infringement, false designation of origin, common law trademark infringement, common law unfair competition, contributory liability, vicarious liability, federal trademark dilution and state trademark law dilution and is seeking an injunction as well as damages. Because common objects are necessarily incorporated in many stock images (as well as images created for editorial use), Getty Images asked the court to dismiss the action early on after the complaint was filed and before an answer and expensive discovery regarding licensing practices and customer use could be made. This request was based on the legal grounds that as a matter of trademark law a photograph of an object, even if the object may have some trademark or trade dress rights associated with it, is not a trademark use and does not violate any of the trademark owners rights, because the photograph that incorporates the object merely represents a photograph of a common scene (inside of a car) and not depicting the object for a trademark purpose. (For example, Getty Images is not in the business of manufacturing air freshener products in the shape of a tree, and the fact that several images depicting air fresheners as part of the subject matter among millions of images in a database, would not cause an image users to assume that Getty Images is associated with Car-Freshner or that the images online are sponsored by, approved by or affiliated with Car-Freshner.) If there is no legal basis for a claim, a court should dismiss it at the onset, because no facts, whether disputed or not, will change the legal result. Even though there is no clear legal precedent to support the plaintiff’s theory, the court refused to dismiss the case in this early stage, stating there might be some facts that could support the trademark claims, requiring Getty Images to undertake discovery (usually the exchange of documents, written questions, and depositions of officers and others who may have information) before Getty Images could again go back and ask the court to dismiss the action. Getty Images has now undertaken this discovery and will be preparing briefs to ask the court to dismiss the case. It a case is not dismissed on summary judgment, it must proceed to trial. This would be an expensive undertaking particularly in a trademark case, which often requires experts and expensive survey evidence because confusion or lack of confusion must be proved. This case has already had an impact on the industry as it has emboldened other trademark owners of products to demand that other image libraries remove images from their online catalog merely because the trademark owner recognizes an object it produced in certain photographs, citing this court’s decision not to initially dismiss the case before an answer on legal grounds. Because the revenue generated of licensing an image may not justify defending a claim, many photo libraries or photographer may opt to pull images rather than run the risk of litigation. As ordinary objects are the cornerstones of what makes a stock image suitable for broad uses, it is important to let this court know the impact on the industry in permitting a case like this to proceed. As this case is in the Northern District of New York (Albany) it is likely that the judge has not had as much experience involving the stock images industry and/or trademark actions and would benefit from PACA’s point of view.  A request to petition the court will need to be filed by the end of June. This is but one example of how the industry can support its members and insure that courts do not misinterpret laws or enact new laws and regulations in a way that can impede day to day licensing of images. Other issues that will be coming up in the next year include renewed orphan works legislation, and the rewriting of the Copyright Compendium, the manual that it used in instructing on copyright registrations. Various states are proposing new right of publicity laws that do not have clear exemptions for offering images for licensing. PACA’s point of view in these matters will be important as PACA represents a broad industry and not the point of view of one person.  (See PACA Legal Fund above.) Notice To PACA Members Regarding Publisher’s Contracts On occasion I have heard that PACA has approved a publisher's agreement or that I have individually approved a publisher's agreement and that it can be signed without negotiation. As a practice I do not approve contracts on behalf of PACA. Moreover, the fact that a client may sign a particular agreement, does not indicate we agree with all the terms or that the terms are appropriate for a different PACA member. There are many reasons that someone may sign an agreement, and not all requested changes are generally ever incorporated in a final agreement. A contract is negotiated document and I would never rubberstamp all the terms as being appropriate Nancy Wolff ALAMY GIVES STUDENTS A REAL TASTE OF STOCK PHOTOGRAPHY International stock imagery company Alamy has announced the expansion of its 100% Royalties project, designed to give young photographers experience of a professional stock photography agency. Launched in a number of universities in the UK and USA in 2011 the project has proved a real success. In fact, it has been such a success that it is being extended into a second year. The 100% Royalties project encourages students who are registered to submit photographs to the Alamy site for sale. Over 500 students have registered for the project and they have uploaded almost 9,000 images to date. Some of the students have already made sales; one lucky student has had three images published by the Daily Mail while others have had their work featured in national magazines. And as the title of the project says – the students keep 100% of the monies received from the licensing of their images—Alamy takes no cut. Commenting on the project, Alan Capel, head of content at Alamy said: "We’re delighted that we are able to help so many young photographers get a foot on the photography ladder and get real experience of the stock industry. Not only do they learn and gain valuable experience they also benefit financially. We are so pleased with the success of the project we are continuing with it for another year and widening our reach.’" Alamy is launching a mentoring element in the UK this year—with one student photographer getting to experience what it is like to work in a stock photography business, spending two days with Alamy learning firsthand about every aspect of the business, and having their portfolio reviewed. Adrian Brown, associate lecturer at Falmouth University said: "Alamys project offers student’s real life experience and increases their eventual employability. The project enhances the learning students are receiving in university and gives them a focus on making a living from photography. For the students to have insight into working with an organisation like Alamy before they even graduate is a great opportunity." VIDEO BECOMES ALAMY’S NEW STAR International stock imagery company Alamy has recently announced its move in to the stock video market. Coming 12 years after Alamy’s game changing entry into the photo stock world, the company aims to bring the same radical shake up to the provision of moving images. With over 100,000 video clips from the most respected stock video agencies and videographers from across the world,  Alamy’s offering is wide and deep and will meet a range of needs from high-end, full production advertisements, interactive education resources and those of online publishers. The company aims to expand its collection rapidly over the next 12 months and develop an encyclopaedic collection of video the way it has with stills. Alamy also intends to bring its simplicity and straightforward approach to video. Through a simple one price structure, SP (Simple Pricing) a hybrid of the best features of RM and RF (Rights Managed and Royalty Free) licensing, and its easy to buy on-line process the company intends to take the complexity out of buying video. Commenting on the move, Alan Capel, Head of Content at Alamy said, ‘Our initial collection is hand-picked and we are launching with an amazing portfolio from high quality suppliers, such as, Wavebreak, Corbis, Blend, Image Source, Specialist Stock, DV Archive and Rubberball. The collection already encompasses lifestyle, business, landscapes, wildlife, health, science and archival content and we plan to expand further. We have a constant stream of new and exciting content being added daily and we intend for Alamy to have the widest and most comprehensive video stock archive available. ‘The demand for video has seen a tremendous increase in recent years. Driven by the need for rich media content for online and integrated marketing campaigns, e-books, websites, blogs, micro blogging sites and responding to society's need for visual input, video is now an integral part of our lives. We now live and learn in a world full of visual, animated and aural inputs. And the old world order of printed text on a page is no longer the best way to captivate media consumers. We are now engaging the iPad generation with a medium they embrace. Video can make information fun, stimulating and memorable in a way that text often cannot’. See our brand new video showcase. AGE fOTOSTOCK INCREASES PERSONNEL AND APPOINTS JULIANNE EASON AS NEW CONTENT MANAGERBarcelona, Spain age fotostock has announced the addition of experienced sales executives in its offices in New York and Paris, and the appointment of Julieanne Eason as the Providers Content Manager in the Barcelona office, the administrative hub for the age fotostock companies. Julieanne, a New Zealand native that has lived in Spain for more than 7 years, will be managing the relationships with the 370 stock agencies that distribute and re-distribute over 17 million images through the THP (Technological Hosting Platform) which is managed by age fotostock and is used by more than 80 other stock agencies around the world.  As a Content Manager, Julieanne will be in charge of administering the substantial collections from the growing number of Providers of images, while also prospecting the distribution of new collections to support the company's efforts to meet the present market's growing needs for original, high quality visual content. Julieanne's professional background in the arts and communication worlds, in both for profit and non-profit organizations, includes content management, event management, audio-visual direction and installation and arts management. These new job appointments respond to the company's growing stance and the compromise to build an ever more solid team of multi-disciplined professionals with strong professional backgrounds that will add value to the global team. Other than Julieanne, there have been new additions to the sales teams, both Anne-Sophie De Neve in the Paris office and Dilcia Johnson in the New York office who join us with many years of experience working in our industry. Alfonso Gutierrez, CEO at age fotostock states: "We are now noticing a growth in business that we want to consolidate and boost, as clients are becoming more discerning about what kind of images they want to see and what types of licensing guarantees they need. After so many years in this business we know that there are moments in time in which investing in human resources is just as important as continuing to invest in the production of new images and technology as the key points to a new growing spiral and we at age fotostock are concentrating on these to continue moving onwards and upwards. STOCKFOOD INTRODUCES RECIPE VIDEOSKennebunk, ME StockFood, the leading food media agency, is adding a new product to its extensive visual collection: instructional Recipe Videos, offered with a package of additional complementary information services. The Recipe Video collection is targeted at the food, retail and hospitality industries, as well as a broad user group of online media In food advertising and communication, video has become one of the most important media of our time. Professional media customers will now have a large selection of Recipe Videos at their disposal: stylish productions demonstrating the detailed food preparation of the most iconic international dishes and professional cooking techniques. All videos are model released and there are no products or labels involved. Unique in the industry, this product will be delivered to clients as a ready-to-use media package: Recipe Videos come complete with original sound, English or German voice-over, detailed recipe text, the text script and selected photographs. All Recipe Videos last for between one and five minutes and they are produced according to StockFood’s well-established quality standards which are exceptionally high. Each video production enjoys a complete film crew on set, consisting of a director, cinematographer, writer, voiceover artist, food photographers, food stylists, and not least, an experienced chef de cuisine. The videos can be licensed for a wide variety of uses such as websites, tablets, digital marketing and screen advertising. Recipe Videos are easily accessed via the StockFood website www.stockfood.com/recipe_videos. A detailed category search enables clients to browse efficiently through all available Recipe Videos. New videos arrive on a monthly basis and the collection is scheduled to grow quickly. Alongside these brand new Recipe Videos, StockFood continues to offer its established collection of Short Clips: short sequences of up to 1 minute in length, with sound and final cut left to customers’ choice for optimum flexibility. They are available in two different price categories: Premium Clips start from 99 €, Value Clips from an affordable 19 €. Short Clips are particularly suitable for integrating into existing projects, such as adverts and promotional videos. In the field of brand marketing, increasingly video-based, these clips are proving extremely popular. They are also used by leading retail chains for screens and displays in their stores. StockFood’s business clients include television stations, advertising agencies, media and publishing houses, corporate communications, hotel and restaurant chains and large web portals. Recipe Videos and Short Clips are available in all formats from web size up to full HD. Short clips can also be licensed for a one-off fee for unlimited use (“Royalty Free”). For more information go to www.stockfood.com/video_collection VISUAL CONNECTIONS NEW YORK 2012 Booking is now open for our next image expo in New York on Wednesday, October 24th. This is the biggest marketing event in the world aimed exclusively at image buyers. We will be returning to the popular and ideally-located Altman Building in Chelsea, Manhattan. The show will open with a Q&A session for image buyers, offering a valuable educational element to the day that will ensure a good crowd from the moment the doors open. We have just 50 tables left, so… Book now for the best prices and to receive maximum pre-event publicity. Exhibit space is available from $1,350, advertising in the show guide from $450, and on-screen from $144 (after PACA member discount, valid until July 31). We offer exhibitors: One-on-one contact with hundreds of image buyers actively seeking new image and footage suppliers. No hidden extras: furniture, power, show guide entry, all-day refreshments and access to the buyer registration list are all included. Complimentary gallery listing in our Image Sources directory, the most comprehensive in the industry. Extra discounts on advertising at the event and in GD USA magazine. First time exhibitors: we offer a 100% money back satisfaction guarantee or an additional 10% discount. Find out more at: http://www.visualconnections.com/NY2012/ “Our biggest asset is the clients we already have, and having them see we’re one of the premier agencies, one of the Names to Know, is priceless. That's what being present at Visual Connections does for us.” — Nancy Carter, North Wind Picture Archives Contact Deborah Free at +1 585 768-7880 / deborah@visualconnections.com

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• 22 May ' 10:48

  5/22/2012 04/17/2012May 22, 2012 From Our New President Since agreeing to accept the nomination for Presidency, I have found myself traveling down memory lane trying to determine what I wanted to accomplish during my presidency.  I have reread various messages from Presidents, reviewed minutes from past board retreats and major meetings that I have participated in, talked with past presidents and other members, but most importantly reviewed my own experiences and expectations as a PACA member. PACA has been an integral part of my career, actually my life.  My first term of service on the PACA Board was over 20 years ago, as PACA Secretary. My first PACA event was over 30 years ago, the Annual PACA Picnic at Jane and Russ Kinne’s house.  Over the years I have met my mentors, business partners and friends; I have learned more than I ever could have imagined, through educational seminars, being involved in committees and on the board and just through casual conversations with all those I have met.  PACA, and the opportunities it has given me, has been crucial in my personal successes and those of Animals Animals/Earth Scenes as well. In the reviewing of notes and past updates and in the conversations that I have had with members, the constant is change.  I read about the challenges of transitioning to database systems, Royalty Free disks, digitization, Internet and the need or not for distribution partners and the list goes on.  Change and challenges continue and will continue, that is why PACA is so important.  But what makes it the most effective, both for you and the association, is your involvement.     A trade association is the collaborative efforts of organizations in the same industry.  So, during my term I want to build that collaboration. With a strong collaboration of members, the education, programming, marketing membership growth and other expectations that you have of your trade association will come. The weekend of June 9th, the incoming board and some past presidents will be meeting for a two-day retreat.  This is a wonderful opportunity for the board to outline the Goals for PACA, its board members and each of its committees for the next two years.  One of the challenges we face is finding volunteers to either chair or sit on committees.  I am grateful to those that have agreed to continue chairing and serving on committees for another term, but we need more volunteers.  So, I encourage you to think about where you believe you will benefit the most and volunteer.  After the retreat we will have a detailed list of each committee, its responsibilities and the volunteer opportunities.   However, if you have questions or would like to discuss options prior, do not hesitate to call Cathy or I. PACA offers countless benefits to it members, but after over 20 years of participation, I can honestly say the most beneficial is involvement.  I look forward to working with you. Warm wishes, Nancy Carrizales/Animals, Animals/Earth Scenes PACA President PACA Legal Fund One of the many benefits of PACA membership is the role our association plays in the legal arena.  We are your eyes and ears watching over the many lawsuits, copyright office issues, legislative initiatives and other matters that affect your stock archive business. As such, Nancy Wolff, our PACA counsel, often supports our industry and our membership in the form of amicus briefs (which comes from amicus curiae or “friend of the court”) for legal cases.  This is a legal brief that is filed by either a individual, company or an association that is not a party to the case under consideration but has a strong interest in the outcome of the cases and wants the court to understand that a particular result in the case may have an impact on a community broader than the parties. The information found in this brief can be useful for the judge evaluating the case, and it becomes part of the official case record. These amicus briefs require extensive legal research and persuasive legal writing to advocate for the industry and as a result are time consuming and costly, usually around $10,000 each which is billed at a reduced rate.  PACA, in the past, has supported at least 1-2 of these briefs per year. These include briefs in support of the registration process provided to PACA members by the Copyright Office that has been under attack in at least 5 cases presently, as well as two separate cases brought by celebrities in California against Corbis Corporation asserting that the mere act of displaying images on a website for potential licensing, violates the celebrities rights under California common law and statutory right of publicity. Unfortunately, because of the very litigious atmosphere of today’s industry we have already participated in 3 briefs so far this year and can no longer fund them from our general fund. In the past we have made requests for additional funding when the need arose and have had individual participation from some of our members and other associations who have occasionally joined in the briefs to help with some of our costs. If a lawsuit is brought directly against your company, however, you may not be able to contribute financially to an amicus brief in some jurisdictions without disclosures, which may diminish the impact of the brief and is not favored. A better solution is to have a fund to be able to support amicus briefs without having to raise money each time a need arises. The PACA board has recently voted to establish a LEGAL FUND to support the needs of our members. PACA member Getty Images is currently defending a significant case that has implications for all those that license stock images. (See the Legal Update Below).  The next case could be against your company. We are asking all of our members to make a donation to this newly established fund.  Please send what you can, as any amount will help.  Checks should be made out to PACA and designate on the check that the monies are for the PACA LEGAL FUND.  You can donate by credit card by contacting me at execdirector@pacaoffice.org. Thank you for helping out your association.  These legal issues impact all who sell images in today’s market and PACA wants to continue to be a voice. Cathy Aron PACA Executive Director This year, the PACA 2012 International Conference is moving to Chicago, one of the country’s most popular convention locations. Home to more than 400 corporate headquarters, Chicago is a where the nation comes to do business! By popular request, our Opening Reception on Friday night, October 19th, will be our biggest yet. Open the Conference weekend networking with old friends, new acquaintances, and future partners!  Conference fees will include, as always, the wonderful breakfast and lunches you’ve come to expect from PACA! 2012 CEPIC Congress London London CEPIC Week closed on an absolute high on Friday night with an amazing Annual Industry Party sponsored by Corbis at Somerset House where delegates were able to enjoy a fabulous exhibition organised by the prestigious World Photography Association. Afterwards, delegates danced until the early hours at The After Party in Soho. The resounding message coming back from this year's Congress was how great it had been for business! In a week that saw more economic crisis and concern in the Eurozone, it was wonderful to hear how much business had been done - new and old - and how delegates were delighted to meet so many people in one place. For the CEPIC team in a tough Euro economy, the most clear target was to facilitate business networking and new contracts - and this has been delivered on better than any Congress of recent times. More people did more business than ever before in a truly global environment. CEPIC President Christina Vaughan commented " the one thing that has delighted me more than anything, particularly as many in our industry are still steering through challenging times, is the fact that almost all delegates told me how much business they did. And that was my main goal - I wanted to create business opportunities for all our members in one place. I am also delighted by the positive response to putting photography at our heart by the two wonderful photographic exhibitions at the Congress Centre, the Presentation by Jonathan Torgovnik and hosting our Annual Party at the Sony WPO exhibition". Delegates may not have had sunshine and at times felt the unseasonably cold English weather but business was done and plenty of it. That is an important goal of CEPIC as well as the learning and educational seminars with one of the best IPTC Metadata days ever as well as a visionary keynote from Dave Coplin of Bing. The final destination for Congress 2013 is still to be confirmed but the likelihood is that it will be in much warmer climes!

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• 08 May ' 12:29

  Glow Images (Chicago, New York)Sales Executives

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• 03 May ' 03:26

  Glow Images (Miami, FL)Sales Executive

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• 17 Apr ' 18:29

  Our event will be held at the chic Chicago Marriott Downtown, where you’ll encounter the epitome of luxury and convenience. Located on Michigan Avenue, this renowned Windy City landmark is walking distance to the city’s main attractions. who has served as PACA Treasurer for the last three terms (six years) and to Maria Kessler who has been an integral part of our organization for so long.  And of course, our loudest shout-out to Rob Henson for his extraordinary service to PACA over the last two years. Rob stepped up into this position when we were in desperate need of a leader and has done an amazing job for our association.  We look forward to his continued work on the board as Immediate Past President and know that his dedication to our organization will keep on inspiring us with new ideas and challenges. Shoot LAApr 28, Los Angeles I recently spoke with their outside attorney for Pearson today. We discussed the process in which PACA members can continue to process and resolve invoices and other enter into license agreements with Pearson that may involve some past usage. Because of the class action and the certification of a class by the court, class members can only contact Pearson through an attorney with respect to past licenses. If you need to contact Pearson regarding usage that is not prospective only, you need to have your attorney contact one of the in-house lawyers, such as Harriett Goldberg and state that you are aware that there is a class action but you do not desire to be part of the class. This will permit your company to continue to enter into agreements with Pearson without going through the class appointed attorney, if it is your intent not to be part of the class or if you believe the class action does not cover your licenses. Most invoices now, he stated should only be forward looking, but that he understands that there may be some outstanding invoices that have been pending that have past licensing issues that need to be cleared up.  If you have any questions, feel free to contact me. .  On the issue of the "right and ability to control" that could take a site outside of the DMCA safe harbor, the Second Circuit rejected the District Court's narrow interpretation, requiring knowledgeof the specific activity before exercising power and control.  It held that the provision "requires something more than the ability to remove or block access to materials posted on a service provider's website," but it did not spell out exactly what would satisfy the "something more" standard. Whether these two cases will result in more vigilance by Google in monitoring for counterfeit sites, (something it has been willing to do to date) or a willingness to use filtering technology to identify infringing sites will be interesting to watch. HOW’S STOCK PHOTO EXPO: REACH 3,700 DESIGNERS! ROBERT HARDING WORLD IMAGERY UNVEILS MAJOR VIDEO PLANS Leading still photography collection Robert Harding World Imagery has just acquired the Specialist Stock stills and video library. This presages Harding's move into video in a big way. Robert Harding says, "This is our springboard for video. Our future plans are to develop the video side of our business in a substantial way.". Specialist Stock has a large collection of material which is complementary to Harding's own library. It is particularly strong on science, society and the natural world, being well known for its environmental stills and video. Harding plans to continue running the Specialist Stock website in parallel to their own for the moment. “Harding sees more video content as the way forward for his library, because video in different formats will be needed for mobile platforms and apps increasingly in future. He believes that the move into video is a strategic one as there will be a higher demand for video in future. Harding is looking for video partners, both individual video shooters and companies to supply video material, which would be distributed by Harding directly and through their worldwide network of agents. This is an opportunity for video creators who want to work with a worldwide distribution network but are wary of the majors in the business. Specialist Stock also have a research arm which does research for broadcast companies, and this is an additional revenue stream for Harding which they intend to continue. Robert Harding says, "We are very, very pleased with this acquisition and it will provide us with a broader content base to launch into video." Websites: CITIZEN STOCK FEATURED IN WALL STREET JOURNAL ARTICLENew York, NY The Wall Street Journal recently featured PACA Member Citizen Stock in an article titled "The Everyman's Photo Op". You can read the entire aricle and view the companion video here... http://on.wsj.com/Irj7bY. One of the many benefits of PACA membership is this monthly newsletter, read by many in North America and internationally. The newsletter actively encourages and welcomes contributions on all aspects of the business and we want to hear your views. In addition, the Career Opportunities section is free to members. Use this section to place job postings. PACA's reach is substantial so make sure you get the most of your membership. Please e-mail information to

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• 17 Apr ' 12:21

  4/17/2012 03/15/2012 02/16/2012 01/18/2012April 17, 2012 From Our President In the mid-nineteenth century, a Parisian composer stopping in to a café heard a tune he wrote performed live by the house band. He refused to pay for his drink, stating that he himself didn’t receive compensation from the café owner for the use of his music, which drew clientele. There was a suit in the French courts, and the government’s decision fell to the composer—a triumph for copyright. Equally if not more important, the government instituted an office that administered royalties for all performances to copyright holders. Fast forward almost one hundred years and you have royalty societies ASCAP, BMI and SESAC in the US, all distributing royalties to copyright owners and publishers from revenue derived by issuing licenses to public venues. By holding a license, businesses are protected from being sued by content owners, can attract clientele/traffic, and put money into the pockets of content creators who are incentivized to produce. Today, this ecosystem is going strong. Last year ASCAP alone generated almost $1B in royalties for its members. Let’s draw a parallel. Content on sites like Pinterest is (largely) passive. It absolutely draws traffic and engages users, but these users are not going to license an image and do not view their interaction as infringing use.  It’s a lot like visual radio, but without the distribution of royalties to content owners and publishers. Where are the advertisers that theoretically provide the funds that pay the royalties? There is a mass audience to communicate to, but no way for the aggregator to allocate advertising without being the recipient of copyright-infringement lawsuits. Hiding behind the DMCA’s safe harbor only works when you’re not knowledgeable over what you’re hosting—once you start applying ads to content, you forfeit safe harbor. The size of the potential market for passive use is huge: just look at the number of images on the web, the growth of content, the available domains that users can interact with content, etc. If you couple that with more effective means for aggregators to monetize through advertising, it’s an incremental market to what we know is commercial and editorial licensing (or ‘active’ use, to pair with the idea of ‘passive’ use.) The problem persists for domains like Pinterest to aggregate and monetize, and for content-rights holders to get paid. The solution might not be that far off from the royalty-society model: build a way to offer domains a general use license in exchange for a fee. The monies received from the license are then distributed as royalties to the rights holders. It’s a simple solution. Most importantly, this is a solution based on how users behave; in fact, it’s transparent to users. It creates a common economy and bond between two often-acrimonious industries: content and technology. Additionally, it doesn’t impede on existing infringement models within the commercial space, nor traditional commercial and editorial licensing. Royalty societies like ASCAP are non-profit, which goes a long way toward building the political capital required to both functionally engage and collaborate in transparency with its constituent members and its business partners to whom it allocates licenses. See the parallel? While we watch carefully how companies like Pinterest react to safe harbor issues, it’s equally important to train our eyes on the horizon. Facebook acquired Instagram for $1B; that alone is an enormous validation for the value and power of the image, but more so how social users are engaging in content, and how imperative it is for those who monetize content and those who own content to find ways to effectively collaborate. How big is our industry? Perhaps it is as big as we want to envision it. This year, the PACA 2012 International Conference is moving to Chicago, one of the country’s most popular convention locations. Home to more that 400 corporate headquarters, Chicago is a where the nation comes to do business! Our event will be held at the chic Chicago Marriott Downtown, where you’ll encounter the epitome of luxury and convenience. Located on Michigan Avenue, this renowned Windy City landmark is walking distance to the city’s main attractions. The big draws, of course, are Wrigley Field (home to the Chicago Cubs) and the United Center (Chicago Bulls); Lincoln Park Zoo, a surprisingly free animal attraction; and Navy Pier, a carnival-like outdoor entertainment experience (think Ferris Wheel, carousel, and funhouse). Chicago’s walkable downtown is packed with distinctive neighborhoods featuring delectable restaurants, expressive art galleries, and trendy boutique shopping perfect for a quick break or unwinding after a productive day at the Conference. Nearby O’Hare International Airport, a major airline hub and the second busiest airport in the world, ensures ease of access for business travelers coming from anywhere in the world. This year’s program will help you streamline your business. New vendors and PACA Corporate Sponsors will have opportunities to show off their latest technical solutions for stock archives big and small. Our informative sessions will include publisher and buyer panels; covering ways to make our work together easier and more efficient. Gadgets, software, workflows, networking… and much, much more. By popular request, our Opening Reception on Friday night, October 19th, will be our biggest yet. Open the Conference weekend networking with old friends, new acquaintances, and future partners! Mark your calendars for October 19-21, 2012, because you won’t want to miss our 17th Annual International Conference. Registration will open in June, so check out our website conference page for updated information about the Conference program and marketing hub. CHANGE IN ADMINISTRATIONS MAY 1, 2012 It’s with deep gratitude that we say good-bye to our hardworking out-going 2010-2012 PACA Executive Board. Their dedication and volunteer efforts are not recognized nearly enough. So we want to once again acknowledge their service over the last two years: Robert Henson, Evolve Images, Animals, Animals/Earth ScenesAlan Bailey, Rubberball Treasurer: Dave Herbig, Danita Delimont PhotographyJason Brown, Getty Images Member-at-Large: Member-at-Large: , Masterfile Immediate Past President: Maria Kessler A special thank-you to Dave Herbig who has served as PACA Treasurer for the last three terms (six years) and to Maria Kessler who has been an integral part of our organization for so long.  And of course, our loudest shout-out to Rob Henson for his extraordinary service to PACA over the last two years. Rob stepped up into this position when we were in desperate need of a leader and has done an amazing job for our association.  We look forward to his continued work on the board as Immediate Past President and know that his dedication to our organization will keep on inspiring us with new ideas and challenges. Pearson Update Because the court certified, in part, the class action lawsuit brought by photographer Wu against Pearson Publishing, many PACA members have asked me how they can continue to process invoices with Pearson that may contain past licensing. Because the lawsuit appoints the class action attorney as attorney for all members of the class, it has made it difficult to process invoices if they involve any past licensing use, rather than prospective licensing use.  (While the class certified actions involving copyright infringement based on print overruns, some members may not actually be part of the class depending on the language in the particular license agreements.) As advisor to the PACA editorial committee, I have had ongoing communications with Pearson's outside counsel to determine how PACA members can continue to operate on a business level with Pearson. I recently spoke with their outside attorney for Pearson today. We discussed the process in which PACA members can continue to process and resolve invoices and other enter into license agreements with Pearson that may involve some past usage. Because of the class action and the certification of a class by the court, class members can only contact Pearson through an attorney with respect to past licenses. If you need to contact Pearson regarding usage that is not prospective only, you need to have your attorney contact one of the in-house lawyers, such as Harriett Goldberg and state that you are aware that there is a class action but you do not desire to be part of the class. This will permit your company to continue to enter into agreements with Pearson without going through the class appointed attorney, if it is your intent not to be part of the class or if you believe the class action does not cover your licenses. Most invoices now, he stated should only be forward looking, but that he understands that there may be some outstanding invoices that have been pending that have past licensing issues that need to be cleared up.  If you have any questions, feel free to contact me. APPEALS COURT REVIVES VIACOM CASE AGAINST YOUTUBE(Viacom International Inc et al v. YouTube Inc et al, 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 10-3270; and The Football Association Premier League Ltd et al v. YouTube Inc in the same court, No. 10-3342.) In the past few weeks, the appellate courts have sent two major cases previously dismissed on summary judgment in favor of ISPs, back down to the trial level, one involving copyright and the other involving trademark. The Second Circuit revived the copyright action Viacom and other content owners brought against YouTube for the public performance, display and reproduction of nearly 80,000 clips that appeared on YouTube between 2005 and 2008. The lower court had previously dismissed all the claims against YouTube, finding that its conduct was protected by the safe harbors outlined in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). The DMCA protects qualified ISPs from monetary damages based on content uploaded by its users if the ISP does not have knowledge that the material is infringing or the ISP is not aware of facts or circumstances from which infringing activity is apparent or upon obtaining knowledge or awareness, acts expeditiously to remove or disable the material. In addition the ISP cannot receive any financial benefit. Central to the case was whether ISPs needed item specific knowledge of infringing material, or whether ISPs could obtain knowledge based on facts that should make it obvious that infringing activity is taking place, referred to as “red flag knowledge”. Summary of Second Circuit Decision: Actual And "Red Flags" Knowledge. The Second Circuit said that knowledge does have to be item-specific, but at the same time it recognized that there may be sufficient evidence in this case to raise a triable issue of fact on knowledge. (There were several emails produced in evidence that indicate that material was either left up or not taken down expeditiously). Willful Blindness.  The Second Circuit held that "the willful blindness” doctrine may be applied, in appropriate circumstances, to demonstrate knowledge or awareness of specific instances of infringement under the DMCA. "Willful blindness” means conscious avoidance of knowledge where there is a high probability of a fact in dispute. This doctrine could provide a potent tool against sites founded on a business model predicated on piracy. Right And Ability To Control.  On the issue of the "right and ability to control" that could take a site outside of the DMCA safe harbor, the Second Circuit rejected the District Court's narrow interpretation, requiring knowledge of the specific activity before exercising power and control.  It held that the provision "requires something more than the ability to remove or block access to materials posted on a service provider's website," but it did not spell out exactly what would satisfy the "something more" standard. Rosetta’s Stones Trademark Infringement Lawsuit Against Google Arising From Its Sale Of Marks As Adwords Continues(Rosetta Stone Ltd. v. Google Inc., 4th Cir., No. 10-2007, 4/9/12) For all those trademark owners annoyed at Google’s explicit policy of selling trademarks to anyone as part of its Adwords program, there may be some change in policy in the future. The Fourth Circuit held that Google may have intended to create confusion by selling trademarks as advertising keywords, so a federal trial court should not have been so quick in granting Google’s motion for summary judgment, dismissing the language-learning company’s trademark infringement lawsuit. In particular, the appeals court faulted the District Court for disposing of the case on summary judgment when, taking Rosetta Stone's allegations as true, genuine issues of fact remained surrounding (1) Google's intent in selling marks as AdWords, and (2) the question of consumer confusion caused by that practice. Instead of properly applying the summary judgment standard, the district court viewed the evidence related to a potential likelihood of confusion as it would during a bench trial, the appellate court said. Some of the evidence Rosetta Stone presented to establish confusion included 123 complaints from individuals who had purchased pirated software believing it to be genuine. Although that evidence did not indicate whether any customer made a purchase via a sponsored link, the court said it was reasonable to infer that a great number of those individuals were confused by the apparent relationship between Rosetta Stone and a sponsored link. In addition, the court noted that Google's own witnesses had trouble distinguishing between ads linked to sponsored links for authorized Rosetta Stone resellers and those posted by counterfeiters. The district court also erroneously applied trademark law's functionality doctrine. The district court held that because Google's AdWords are used to trigger the display of an ad, they are functional—and beyond the scope of trademark protection. The functionality doctrine provides that a party cannot claim exclusive rights over purely functional features. The appeals court disagreed that the doctrine should apply here, concluding that Rosetta Stone used its mark as a brand identifier. Consequently, Google's use of it as a keyword did not take the mark outside the realm of trademark protection, according to the court. The court reversed the court's grant of summary judgment on direct and contributory trademark infringement against Google, as well its ruling on trademark dilution. Whether these two cases will result in more vigilance by Google in monitoring for counterfeit sites, (something it has been willing to do to date) or a willingness to use filtering technology to identify infringing sites will be interesting to watch.. ALAMY PASSES 30 MILLION MARK, NOW ADDING 1 MILLION IMAGES EVERY MONTHBrooklyn, NY Online stock photo giant Alamy has moved effortlessly past the 30 million milestone and is currently adding 1 million new images to its pool of editorial and creative stock imagery every month. Alan Capel, head of content said: “We’ve added some fantastic photographers such as Eric Lafforgue, Jessica Sample and Konrad Bak, alongside securing strategic deals with major reportage and celebrity agencies. This combination delivers the diversity and freshness that our customers demand.” Rachel Wakefield, head of sales said: “There are no limits to our aspirations; we’ve shown that we can consistently grow our collection. Our broad contributor base leads to a large quantity of unique imagery; we can supply all of the images that customers expect plus unusual and hard to find one-offs.” The company will shortly be adding video to its portfolio to further strengthen its comprehensive product offering. For further information and interviews please contact: Emily Hoskin, Alamy T: +44 (0)1235 844664 E: emilyhoskin@alamy.com POND5 REACHES 1 MILLION STOCK VIDEO CLIPS AS GROWTH ACCELERATESBrooklyn, NY Pond5, the pioneering online marketplace for stock media and creative components, recently announced that the one-millionth clip had been added to its stock video collection, making Pond5 by far the largest and fastest-growing collection of royalty-free video on the Web. The site also offers millions of stock images, audio files, and other creative components for use as raw material in media productions of all types. The millionth stock video, entitled Hong Kong Night Heavy Traffic, is a timelapse shot uploaded by Hong Kong-based artist Pui Yuen Ng. To celebrate, Pond5 paid its artists 100% royalties for all sales occurring on the day of the milestone, March 4. In addition, Pui Yuen Ng will receive 100% royalties for the next $1,000 of sales he receives. "Pond5 would be nothing without its artists", said CEO Tom Bennett, "so this is a way to say thanks." Pond5 represents a fast-growing global talent pool of thousands of filmmakers, musicians, motion graphics designers, and other media makers, who are attracted by the site’s uniquely artist-friendly model: prices on Pond5 are set by the artists themselves, and they receive an industry-leading 50% cut on all sales. The result, says Bennett, is "the first truly dynamic marketplace for stock media and creative assets, offering the most comprehensive collection of fresh, high quality content, at the absolute best prices." The model is clearly working, as the site’s stock video offering has doubled in the past year, with sales following the same trajectory. Pond5 artists earned millions of dollars in royalties in 2011, and the company has been profitable since 2009.

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  Media Contact: Raphael Pelegrino rpelegrino@granger.com +1 212 447 1789

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  Those following Pinterest—whether from inside as an active user, or outside via press—will no doubt be aware of its growing reputation as one of the largest generators of orphaned works outside of Google.  The overall growth of the social media site is staggering, and for good reason.  It’s extremely simple to use, with great design, and exploits successful aspects of Facebook’s media sharing features and Fickr, among other photo sharing sites.  Pinterest’s exploitation doesn’t stop at good design and execution, however. Any current (and historical) successful social media destination gained their success on the backs of good content.  In order to pull in a crowd, you require compelling and familiar content.  Youtube scaled their business on the backs of the entertainment industry, just as Napster scaled theirs on the music industry.  While both of these examples are very different in models and outcome, both had leveraged the DMCA’s safe harbor and both have leaned heavily on the base proposition of an individual user publishing protected content to a wide audience via a third party platform. With Pinterest, this is a shared supposition with prior successful models, but the map of content infringement unfurls much wider beyond a single industry that controls publishing rights: Pinterest makes no attempt to properly link an image to its source.  This is the primary issue with Pinterest’s impact to orphaned works.  Pinterest already generates more referral traffic to the blogosphere than Twitter.  Generally, the blogosphere is a minefield of stolen imagery with little to no attribution.  This severely impacts the ability of content owners to monetize works, when base attribution and linking becomes moot. Pinterest scrubs embedded/exif metadata from images on their platform.  In random testing I performed, I pulled both images from Pinterest and the same image from the linked to site (by following Pinterest’s link back to the site of ‘origin’) and found that the embedded data from the site of origin had been scrubbed by Pinterest.  The exif data was null, so Pinterest had not re-embedded their own metadata, but nonetheless it entirely removed any embedded metadata. Pinterest generates affiliate ad sales (opaquely).  Any high traffic volume destination will seek to leverage affiliate ad revenue, but Pinterest inserts itself into an existing equation by imposing its own affiliate links behind product pins, essentially swapping affiliate links, so that Pinterest generates affiliate ad money other than the site of origin. Pinterest’s terms and conditions are draconian.  Broad rights to anything uploaded onto Pinterest are asserted in Pinterest’s favor, including a “worldwide, irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, transferable, royalty-free license, with the right to sublicense, to use, copy, adapt, modify, distribute, license, sell, transfer, publicly display, publicly perform, transmit, stream, broadcast, access, view, and otherwise exploit [content]”.  A Pinterest user also acknowledges that they are the copyright owner of any image uploaded to the site, which exposes the user to liability while protecting Pinterest.  Obviously, the gap (chasm?) in practice and theory is wide.  Pinterest makes it extremely easy to pin anything found on the web, but uploading your own imagery to the site is, comparatively, quite onerous. (This asymmetry is also found within the efficacy in take down notifications/posting images across all ISPs.) With the entrance of Pinterest, the front for the war in piracy has just now extended many miles in both directions.  ISPs and social sites that build their business on the backs of copyright holders without any attempt to share in revenue (whether affiliate, licensing, or otherwise) directly challenges the freedom for rights holders to monetize their works.  Businesses like Pinterest are singing an old song out of the DMCA songbook, but when exploitation of copyrighted works is easier than pursuing revenue models that help preserve and accelerate creative works, why change the tune? And to extend the music analogy, what new songs are there to be sung that ensures mutual benefit between rights owners and content publishers like Pinterest?  Suing infringers is not a model that can be scaled, nor is it entirely effective in changing behaviors, but the lack of effective regulation around piracy doesn't leave much incentive for businesses that exploit content to change their paths and it leaves rights owners with little recourse.  How about establishing a shared revenue pool generated from ad revenue, in exchange for the rights to publish content on their platform?  What of sharing in commercial infringement revenue that Pinterest helps indentify?  And to extend a music analogy further, who is going to build the ASCAP and BMI for visual artists/rights holders, so that we can have a sustainable ecosystem? PACA has been vocally anti-piracy and an advocate for expanding our market’s potential.  As PACA continues to engage for our members, whether across the various judiciary decisions that impact us or directly with businesses like Pinterest who chose to freely distribute our property, we encourage your participation and activism. IMPORTANT UPDATE Aaron Franklin, Community Specialist at Pinterest spoke with Cathy Aron and Nancy Wolff of PACA and Eugene Mopsik Executive Director of ASMP on a conference call this morning, arranged by PACA. He started by explaining that the idea behind Pinterest is to help creators get discovered and to facilitate discovery through sharing. Aaron acknowledged that many of the issues raised by Rob had been brought to Pinterest recent attention and are being worked on. New terms and conditions are being drafted for imminent release and should address the copyright ownership and relicensing issues raised. PACA and ASMP volunteered to review the terms before posting if there was an opportunity. Pinterest is also looking at the removal of metadata and is hoping to correct that. They are looking into deep-linking to see if that will help some of the issues involved with attribution and are considering models in which creators a can identify their content. According to Aaron, many of these issues have arisen due to the fact that this was a small start-up that grew faster than anticipated and many of these issues were not initially considered. Aaron reiterated that the company cares about intellectual property and wants to work with the creative community to improve these issues. He was very appreciative that we reached out to him. PACA 2012 International Conference Mark your calendar for PACA’s 16th Annual International Conference to be held this year in the windy city, Chicago!  The dates are October 19-21, 2012.  Look for some exciting new changes to this year’s meeting.  We’re looking forward to seeing you there! From the Nominations & Elections Committee Congratulations to our new officers for the 2012-2014 Term: President:  Nancy Carrizales, Animals Animals/Earth Scenes Vice President:  Megan Murphy, Getty Images, Inc. Treasurer:  Karl Schatz, Aurora Photos Secretary:  Sarah Fix, Blend Images LLC Member-at-Large:  Alan Capel, Alamy Member-at-Large:  Geoff Cannon, Masterfile Corporation Member-at-Large:  Steve Spelman, Corbis Member-at-Large:  Lanny Ziering, Superstock Thanks to all of you who cast your confirmation ballots. A Warm Welcome To Our Newest PACA Member Join us in welcoming our newest General Member: Humanline 2208-9, 22/F Tower On, Times Square Matheson Street, Causeway Bay Hong Kong Phone: +1 650.924.9902nikolay@humanline.comwww.humanline.com B2B Contact: Nikolay Staykov, nikolay@humanline.com   PACA International ConferenceOct 19-21, Chicago INFRINGEMENT OR IMPLIED LICENSE? ONLY A JURY WILL KNOW FOR CERTAINPsihoyos v. Pearson Educ., Inc A book is published with images before a publisher gets around to finalizing the paperwork with the photographer or his or her representative. Sounds like a classic case of copyright infringement? Maybe not so, says a recent New York Federal Court.  On February 29, 2012, (leap day) the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York declined to hold Pearson Education, Inc. liable for copyright infringement for including four photographs by Louis Psihoyos and James Reed in its educational publications without express written permission. More specifically, the court denied the photographers’ motion for summary judgment as to copyright infringement and whether the infringements were willful as defined under the Copyright Act, because, among other things, questions of fact remained as to whether Pearson was granted an implied license to use the photographs. (Summary judgment is a mechanism for ending a case in the early stages before a trial based on the law. The plaintiffs licensed their photographs through the stock image library Science Faction, which subsequently entered into a sub-distribution agreement with Getty Images. Both stock libraries then provided Pearson with access to the photographs and an opportunity to negotiate a non-exclusive license to use them in various publications. Pearson accessed some of the images from Getty Images through an image storage agreement (under which Getty Images placed portions of its catalogue on a special internal database owned by Pearson) and others through a preferred vendor agreement that streamlined the licensing process by setting prices and other terms and served as an addendum to its license agreement. Neither agreement provided for any usage rights. Before December 12, 2008, the date Getty Images ceased being a distributor of Science Faction photographs; Pearson obtained the plaintiffs’ four photographs from Getty Images and began using them in their educational publications. When Pearson contacted Getty images to obtain the appropriate licenses, Pearson was informed that Getty Images no longer represented these photographs and that Pearson would have to contact Science Faction directly. Pearson then contacted Science Faction to obtain licenses, and in each instance Science Faction requested the date of publication. Science Faction was informed that the publication date was prior to the request. Science Faction never invoiced Pearson or granted Pearson a license to use the images. Instead, Psihoyos and Reed filed the action against Pearson for willful copyright infringement seeking statutory damages and attorney’s fees. While Pearson made many challenges to the motion for summary judgment, the one that the Court focused on was whether an implied license based on the parties conduct existed that would defeat the copyright infringement claim. Under the Copyright Act, a nonexclusive license does not need to be in writing and could be formed by conduct. The court looked at both Science Faction and Getty Images course of conduct to determine whether there was an implied license. The exact details of the Pearson/Getty Images licensing procedures formed the heart of the parties’ dispute. Pearson argued that a “course of conduct” developed over the years whereby it would obtain an implied license to use certain images in its publications from Getty Images weeks, months, or even a year before it secured a formal (and backdated) license agreement. Pearson claimed that this practice was well established and provided the court with evidence of some retroactive license agreements with Getty Images and two with Science Faction. The plaintiffs, on the other hand, disputed the implied license theory, claiming that Pearson had no right to use their photographs in its publication without a formal agreement. In support of their position, the plaintiffs pointed to times when Pearson began using photographs from Getty Images only after entering into a formal licensing agreement and claimed that provisions in Getty’s preferred vendor and other agreements with Pearson required licensing before use which barred an implied license from ever coming into effect. The court began its analysis of the parties’ dispute by stating that “[t]he law in the area of implied licenses shows a measure of conflict” but came to express its view on the issue as follows: No party is forced to offer a license to use its works. However, if the course of conduct between two parties [or their agents] demonstrates that there was a “meeting of the minds” that the practice of occasionally backdating licenses was permissible… then it is reasonable not to impose copyright infringement liability when a defendant engages in this practice. The court found that the “course of conduct” evidence submitted by the parties was “inconclusive and contradictory” and that, given the state of the evidence, the court could not impose copyright infringement liability on Pearson at the summary judgment stage. Whether these retroactive licenses were the norm or just operations for the norm was not clear, nor whether Getty Images or Science Faction was the appropriate party for examining the course of conduct. Pearson would have to pursue a jury that at the course of conduct created an implied license as the court the record insufficient to rule on this question as a matter of law. Because the court refused to grant the photographer's motion for summary judgment as to copyright infringement, it also denied their motion that the alleged infringement was willful or purposes of obtaining enhanced statutory damages under the Copyright Act. Given these findings, the case will continue toward trial and the parties will continue to marshal evidence in support of their respective “course of conduct” characterizations. It is clear from this decision, (running 46 pages in length) that this dispute has been arduous, time consuming and expensive for all parties. Results are never certain in any litigation, which is why many parties make an effort to resolve claims prior to litigation. Not only does it avoid draining resources, it avoids having courts interpret an industry practice and inquire whether an implied license may exist. It should be noted that the licensing terms in our PACA materials and in the Getty Images license terms at issue clearly state that the delivery of an image is for consideration, and does not constitute an implied license. PACA established an editorial relations committee that has made efforts to reach out to the publishers to discuss resolutions to the issues of retroactive licensing, print overruns and standardized licensing terms and definitions, as an alternative to litigation. If anyone has any questions, please contact the editorial relations committee editorialrelations@pacaoffice.org Pinterest—Copyright Land mine or Fair Use? Sharing your opinions, music, images and video clips has become part of the social fabric of on online communications. Facebook lets you “like” posts, Twitter allows you to “tweek” what you are doing, moment by moment, Tumbler lets you tumblelog and share your posts and images, and now Pinterest lets you, as a member or pinner, “pin” your favorite photos of hairstyles, kitchens, recipes and more to create a virtual scrapbook that allows you to plan weddings, decorate homes and gather new recipes. In order to become a member you have to request an invite to create an account and register with Pinterest. Today there are over 10 million members of Pinterest. Although the site is becoming increasing popular, at the same time there is increasing scrutiny over its copyright policy and the legality involved in  “pinning” and “repinning” content. If you cruise around the site, you will notice the high quality of the images pinned by members, with rarely any reference to source or photo credit.  It is obvious that most members are not pinning images of their own work but grabbing images by photographers and artists from other websites and re-posting to Pinterest. By pinning these images, the pinner is likely violating the Copyright Act. Unless the images pinned are available under a creative common license, which permits sharing, the reposting of an image by the “pinner” is a reproduction and public display, exclusive rights of a copyright owner, requiring permission absent any exception. Even if the pinner was to credit the source, the underlying web source may not own the rights to the images and merely offering credit to the original owner or author is not enough under the Copyright Act. Pinterest and its terms of use has been in the news recently as the term of use place the burden of complying with the Copyright Act on the pinner.   The terms of the site state that in registering with Pinterest, you acknowledge and agree that you are solely responsible for all member content that you make available through the site. In doing so you are warranting that you are either the sole and exclusive owner of the content you are making available or have all rights, licenses, consents, and releases necessary to grant Pinterest the use of the image and that neither the content nor the posting or publication of the content will infringe, misappropriate or violate a third party’s intellectual property or other proprietary rights. In other words, the responsibility is on the user, not Pinterest. Kristen Kowalski, a member who is both a photographer, lawyer and blogger caught the attention of the media by blogging about the hidden dangers of pinning on the site and why she took her pins down. The terms of use state that you acknowledge and agree that the entire risk arising out of your access to and use of the site, application, services and site content remains with you. Further, you agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless Pinterest against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses or expenses, including legal and accounting fees that may arise. In other words, not only does the pinner have to cover his or her own fees but Pinterest’s fees as well. While some suggest that the pinning of images is fair use under Section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Act, fair use does not offer clear-cut rules, only guidelines. Fair use grants limited rights to use and exploit a copyrighted work. Fair use is determined under an analysis of four factors: (1) the purpose and character of the use, (2) the nature of the copyrighted work, (3) the amount and substantiality of the work used in proportion to the work as a whole, and (4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. Arguments can be made on either side as to whether or not the use of images on Pinterest are fair and would have to be considered on a case-by-case basis for each image presented. The fact of the matter is that if the use is not fair and is infringement liability is placed exclusively in the hands of you the pinner. In reaction to negative responses from photographers and publishers about the pinning of their works without permission, Pinterest has introduced a snippet code. Websites can add the code to their sites to stop users from pinning their content. If a user tries to pin something from a website that has added the code the user will be prompted with the message: “This site doesn’t allow pinning to Pinterest. Please contact the owner with any questions. Thanks for visiting!” Although not preventative of all acts of infringement, the code does work as a mechanism to protect copyrights. Likewise, Pinterest diligently follows the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) procedures. Every piece of content that has been pinned includes a flag that allows users to report copyright violations. Under the DMCA, a service provider that hosts content is not liable for copyright infringement if they speedily take down the infringing material after it is reported. If you are the photographer or artist whose work has been pinned without authorization there is something you can do. Pinterest claims that it will remove the image upon notification. However, these steps don’t really answer the question. It is not possible to require licensees to add a snippet of code to their website opting-out of pinning when licensing images. Some magazines and other companies have found Pinterest to be a great marketing tool, running contests and the like.  Whether images pinned have licenses broad enough to cover social media use is uncertain. Ideally there should be away to monetize these types of use, even in micropayments. At this time, Pinterest does not appear to be making any money based on members pinning. If that changes, not only may its members take a harder look, but the rights holders of the images may take a closer look at the pinning usage as well. IMPORTANT UPDATE Aaron Franklin, Community Specialist at Pinterest spoke with Cathy Aron and Nancy Wolff of PACA and Eugene Mopsik Executive Director of ASMP on a conference call this morning, arranged by PACA. He started by explaining that the idea behind Pinterest is to help creators get discovered and to facilitate discovery through sharing. Aaron acknowledged that many of the issues raised by Rob had been brought to Pinterest recent attention and are being worked on. New terms and conditions are being drafted for imminent release and should address the copyright ownership and relicensing issues raised. PACA and ASMP volunteered to review the terms before posting if there was an opportunity. Pinterest is also looking at the removal of metadata and is hoping to correct that. They are looking into deep-linking to see if that will help some of the issues involved with attribution and are considering models in which creators a can identify their content. According to Aaron, many of these issues have arisen due to the fact that this was a small start-up that grew faster than anticipated and many of these issues were not initially considered. Aaron reiterated that the company cares about intellectual property and wants to work with the creative community to improve these issues. He was very appreciative that we reached out to him. Indiana May Broaden Publicity Rights for Deceased Celebrities Indiana's right of publicity law was signed into effect in 1994. It is one of the broadest laws in the nation and allows individuals 100 years of personality rights protection after their death. It covers anyone worldwide regardless of domicile. In June 2011, Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson of the Southern District of Indiana ruled that the law could not be retroactively applied to anyone who died before 1994. As a result, Indiana legislators amended its right of publicity law to expressly confer personality rights whether the celebrity died before, on, or after July 1, 1994. The bill (H.B. 1133) has already passed the Indiana House and the Senate and will now go before Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels for his signature.  Because of the severe impact this could have on image licensing worldwide, PACA, on behalf of itself, ASMP and ASPP wrote the Senate urging that this broad bill not pass and after passage, wrote the Governor this week urging veto. A copy of the letters are available at the PACA office. Our next event is in Chicago on April 26th. Chicago is second only to New York for its vibrant creative and publishing industry, with a large community of image buyers. Great incentives for buyers to attend, including a Q&A seminar, prize drawing, and free beer and wine from 4:30pm. Find out more at: www.visualconnections.com/CH2012/ “The size was perfect so the day was productive without being overwhelming. I liked that the event is not combined with any other function—it was exclusively for image vendors and buyers.” —Lyle Anderson, Sourcebooks, Inc. STOCKFREEIMAGES.COM LAUNCHES, OFFERING 400,000 FREE IMAGES TO DESIGNERS, WEBMASTERS AND BLOGGERS Dreamstime, a leading stock photography community, has launched Stockfreeimages.com, a royalty free image database for designers, advertisers, webmasters and bloggers. According to a recent study, content that contains photos generates 47 percent more click-throughs than those without photos. Stockfreeimages.com currently offers the largest collection of free images on the web, featuring almost 400,000 images that are safe todownload and legal to use anywhere. The images span a wide range of topics, addressing whatever visual requirement creative users may have. Whether they seek images to liven up a cooking blog or want to add color to the monthly recycling newsletter, Stockfreeimages.com has every need covered. Despite the costly repercussions of copyright infringement, illegal downloads from sites like Google Images and Flickr are still a common occurrence. Stockfreeimages.com helps users protect themselves from the costly fines that often result from these violations. Image use is completely free of charge, but site terms do require users to provide attribution via a creditline. “With Stockfreeimages.com, users can rest assured that any image they download is not only free and safe, but is also completely legal and will not put them at risk for high infringement fines,” says Serban Enache, CEO, Dreamstime. “The site offers a reliable alternative for users who previously downloaded illegally—whether intentionally or not—and the wide image selection meets the diverse creative needs of users ranging from SMB executives, to mommy bloggers, to college students.” The availability of Stockfreeimages.com allows Dreamstime to offer high-quality free images in a separate space, without jeopardizing sales from existing customers or creating additional competition for the site’s dedicated contributor community. Image copyright violation had been an ongoing issue for stock photographers, causing not only extreme frustration but also significant income reduction, an unwelcome obstacle in an already competitive industry. In addition to providing a valuable resource to the general stockimage user, Stockfreeimages.com also serves as the next step in image copyright protection for contributors. THE GRANGER COLLECTION LAUNCHES MOBILE WEBSITE Historical image library The Granger Collection has launched a mobile version of its website, www.granger.com, that will make it fast and easy for picture professionals to search 25,000 years of world history from the palm of their hand. The site has been designed to accommodate the small screens of mobile devices with a simplified layout that facilitates searching and makes e-mailing links to images a snap. “We have observed from our data that the number of smartphone users visiting our website has been continuously growing,” notes Lila Dlaboha, Managing Director of The Granger Collection.  “We are delighted to introduce this new mobile-friendly site that will allow our clients to perform quick searches while on the go.” The site is now accessible by visiting www.granger.com on a mobile device. IN TRANSIT IMAGES PUBLISHES UNIQUE BOOK ON SAN FRANCISCOMontreal, QC San Francisco and the Bay Area: The Haight-Ashbury Edition There are a number of historical books about Haight-Ashbury but nothing that portrayed the modern Haight-with its rich mix of 1960's tie dyes, 1980's Deadheads and 2000's murals recalling the past. This was the germ of the idea to create a book of images that reflects the Haight of today. But the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood does not exist in isolation. Its history and culture are intertwined with the City of San Francisco and the Greater Bay Area that surround it hence the structure and title of the book. For the production of this book Dick worked closely with his long time photo-editor, Yasemin Kant. Ben Fong-Torres, noted Bay Area writer and former founding editor of Rolling Stone magazine, wrote the Foreword and section introductions. The background research was provided by local guide and historian Stannous Flouride. About the Dick Evans and Ben Fong-Torres Born and raised on a cattle ranch in Oregon (U.S.), Dick Evans could easily have stayed home and become a cowboy. Instead, he studied engineering and evolved into a globe-trotting CEO with more than 75,000 employees worldwide. Along the way, Dick lived in North America, Africa, and Europe. He also traveled extensively to countries like China, Japan, Brazil, Australia, Iceland, and India among others. And while fly-fishing on a stream in northern Quebec (Canada), he rediscovered his passion for photography. Ben Fong-Torres is an American rock journalist, author, and broadcaster best known for his association with Rolling Stone magazine (through 1981) and the San Francisco Chronicle (from around 1982). All images featured in the book are available for licensing at In Transit Images.   ROBERT HARDING ACQUIRES SPECIALIST STOCKMaidenhead, UK Robert Harding World Imagery www.robertharding.com, the world's leading independent specialist in travel and global imagery has acquired Specialist Stock. Specialist Stock is a comprehensive collection of photo and footage libraries and a world leader on environmental themed content, which supplies to international broadcasters, publications and the education sector. “We’re delighted to acquire this excellent collection two reasons.   It gives us a leading edge in environmental and nature imagery and makes us a major player in video,” said Robert Harding. The acquisition will mean that Robert Harding becomes an authority in themes such as global warming and green energy which will be central in the years to come, as well as kick starting the incorporation of footage into their collection. It will also be a boost to Specialist Stock’s contributors, exposing their material to Robert Harding’s wide, well-established client base and strong international partner network. Specialist Stock’s Director Tom Walmsley is confident that Robert Harding will allow this collection to grow further. “In a global market it needs a substantial company with an international reputation to do justice to this wonderful archive. I am confident that Robert Harding is the right company to help the collection reach wider audiences and become even better than it is today.” Clients can access the Specialist Stock images and video via www.specialiststock.com as before, and the images will later be incorporated into Robert Harding’s main website: www.robertharding.com. For further information contact Robert Harding: robert@robertharding.com Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7478 4135

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• 15 Mar ' 13:14

  3/15/2012 02/16/2011March 15, 2012

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• 16 Feb ' 22:40

  Member-at-Large:  Steve Spelman, Corbis It's aLREADY BEEN A BUSY YEAR FOR PACA'S LEGAL OUTREACH

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