Are Your Twitter Pictures Really Yours?

Feathers have been ruffled again on Twitter but not with words, this time its about the images or photography, causing the 555 million Twitter users question if their own pictures have been used elsewhere, and are your Twitter pictures really yours?

Photo:By English: Michael R. Holzworth, TSgt, USAF [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

One case just decided on Friday that they are yours. A United States jury has ordered Getty Images and Agence-France Presse (AFP) to pay $1.2 million for using photographs posted on Twitter obtained without permission and used for commercial purposes.

The man behind the groundbreaking lawsuit, photojournalist Daniel Morel,was formerly employed with AP (Associated Press). In 2010 he uploaded photos to Twitter of the aftermath from the  earthquake in Haiti. Just hours later his images were used by Getty Images, AFP, and the Washington Post, all parties named in the lawsuit for copyright infringement.

Other news agencies, such as CNN, ABC, CBS and the Washington Post had already made settlement arrangements with Daniel Morel for an “undisclosed” sum.

The judge Allison Nathan and jury (in just 5 hours of deliberation) sided with Morel in what is to be a precedence setting case for copyright and use protection of images and content uploaded to public and social sharing sites.

The New York Times legally purchased Morel’s images for use and is among other agencies that sought legal permission (prior) to use the photographs for their publications.

Image:By GageSkidmore at en.wikipedia [Public domain], from Wikimedia Commons

In the Twitter Terms of Service rules, listed as “Your Rights” the issue of ownership of property uploaded is explained as follows:

“5. Your Rights

You retain your rights to any Content you submit, post or display on or through the Services. By submitting, posting or displaying Content on or through the Services, you grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license (with the right to sublicense) to use, copy, reproduce, process, adapt, modify, publish, transmit, display and distribute such Content in any and all media or distribution methods (now known or later developed).”

In an earlier case from January 2013 a judge found that while the TwitPic terms of services allows for re-use of posted pictures, such as re-tweeting purposes, the reuse of the images for commercial purposes is a direct violation of Twitter’s policy.

Judge Allison Nathan also found that both AFP and Getty were in violation of DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) requirements, and added another $200,000 to the $1.2 million fine for the two agencies. The ruling can still be appealed, but serves as a warning to other news agencies and the general public, reminding us all to be vigilant about protecting your own property and respecting the property of others. It’s simple Twitterquette.

Are Your Twitter Pictures Really Yours?