getty images attorney general complaint 17

7/31/2019 Getty Images Attorney General Complaint 17

1/14

Status

Amount Disputed

Actual Savings

Estimated Savings

Activities

Location

NAICS

Complainant

Number

Date

Name Contact Phone Toll Free Email

Getty Images605 5th Ave S Ste 400

Seattle, WA 98104

(206) 925-6753 [email protected]

m

403401

2/23/2012

Respondent(s)

Complaint

Bellingham - Consumer Protection Division

Date Added Activity Type Activity

2/24/2012 Email to Respondent R First Letter to Respondent To:[email protected]

2/24/2012 Email to Complainant C First Letter to Consumer To:[email protected]

3/13/2012 Email from Respondent

541920-Photographic Services

Assignee Fisher, Valeria W

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

Code Practice

023 Scare Tactics

316 Billing Issues

Practice(s)

Closed

Referral(s)

Name Contact Phone Contact Phone Email

403401

CatalystComplaint Cover Page

Name Phone Day Phone Evening Email

Thomas Michael Malafarina107 Slater DrWernersville, PA 19565

(610) 781-8328 (610) 781-8328 [email protected]

1 of 2403401

RK-00409

PRR-2012-00283


2/14

Description

My name is Thomas M. Malafarina. I am a horror fiction writer from Pennsylvania. This is a hobby, whichdoes not make me any money, but is still an activity I enjoy. In an attempt to become better known andperhaps someday actually sell some books, I created a website (www.ThomasMMalafarina.com).

A friend of mine, a professional graphic artist created, a logo for me to use on the website. He did so for freeand told me it was his own creation. I used that logo on my website.

Yesterday, 02/21/12 I received a very threatening letter from Getty Images saying that I was using two of theirimages illegally and that I should pay them $2,130.00 or they would come after me. The entire letter was veryharsh and threatening. I called and asked them what this was about.

I told them I would talk with the artist, show him the letter and ask what was up. I also told them I wouldimmediately remove the image from my website, (which I have done) whether they had a legitimate complaintor not because I simply could not afford to risk being in such a situation.

They told me that even though I remove the image I still have to pay. I spoke with the artist and he denied theimage was theirs. He did say he got two free images from the internet, merged them together and altered themsignificantly, but to the best of his recollection, these images were not the ones.

For the record, I am not interested in getting into any argument or legal hassle with this company. I am anhonest, taxpaying citizen and who only wants to write some books as a hobby and have a little stress relief inthe process - not have my hobby become a source of new stress. I make no money from this hobby and usuallyend up spending a good deal of money supporting this hobby every year. I cannot afford this type of hassle.

I have researched this company on the web and have discovered many different opinions about the legality andlegitimacy of this company. I simply do not know what to do next. If they feel they were wronged I am willingto offer them something like $75 or $100 for previous use of each of the two images. But if they are not withintheir rights and are some type of scam, I certainly do not want to waste my money.

Likewise, I cannot afford to get bogged down in any long legal thing. The bottom line is, I need some advicefrom the attorney general's office. Is this legitimate? Am I at fault? What should I do?

Expected resolution details: Leave me alone

Complaint Description

Catalyst Report

RK-00411

PRR-2012-00283


3/14

From: Copyright Compliance [mailto:[email protected]]Sent: Tuesday, March 13, 2012 10:39 AMTo: ATG MI Bellingham CRCSubject: RE: 403401 : A notice from the Washington State Attorney General'sOffice (1165874)

605 Fifth Avenue South, Suite 400, Seattle, Washington 98104Tel 206 925 5000 Fax 206 925 5001www.gettyimages.com

March 13, 2012

Via e-mail to [email protected]

Valeria W. FisherComplaint AnalystAttorney General of WashingtonConsumer Protection Division103 East Holly Street, Suite 308Bellingham, WA 98225-4310Tel: (360) 738-6187

Re: Thomas Michael MalafarinaYour File Number: 403401Our Case Number: 1165874

Dear Ms. Fisher:

We are in receipt of the complaint filed by Thomas Malafarina that you forwarded to us onDecember 28, 2011. We appreciate the opportunity to respond to Mr. Malafarinas concerns.

By way of introduction, Getty Images is the leading creator and distributor of still and movingimages. More than 4,000 images per day are licensed on our website, www.gettyimages.com,which features wholly-owned content (i.e., images to which we own the copyright), as well asexclusively licensed content (i.e., third-party contributor images which are licensed exclusively

AdaS 3/13/2012

403401

RK-00419

PRR-2012-00283


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through us). Customers such as graphic designers, advertising agencies, and publishers licenseour imagery for a variety of purposes, including but not limited to print advertising, billboards,newspaper and magazine articles, brochures and websites. Our license information is clearly

available from each page of our website, and customers are not permitted to use imagerywithout agreeing to a license.

Notwithstanding the license requirement, like other digital media companies, Getty Images doesfall victim to individuals pirating its intellectual property. To combat this, Getty Images usesboth employees and digital image recognition software to locate entities that have used GettyImages imagery without paying a license fee. One such individual recently identified as havingused unlicensed imagery from our collections is Mr. Malafarina.

On February 16, 2012, we sent Mr. Malafarina a letter with notification that we had foundunauthorized use of two of our images on his website, www.thomasmmalafarina.com. The

images are part of Getty Images Rights-Managed Stone and Photographers Choicecollections, #LA1731-001 and 200137251-001 (the Images), and can be found on our website at http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/LA1731-001 andhttp://www.gettyimages.com/detail/200137251-001 . We informed Mr. Malafarina that use ofthe Images without licenses constitutes copyright infringement, and that Mr. Malafarina musteither (i) provide evidence that licenses were issued, or (ii) pay a fee for use of the Images. Inthis instance, the total of the fees was $2,130.00, and we provided an invoice in that amount,which featured thumbnails of the Images and their image numbers, along with screenshots ofthe Images on Mr. Malafarinas website. The amount invoiced is in line with what typicallywould be charged for licenses of the Images under these circumstances.

We do not doubt Mr. Malafarinas statement that he acquired the Images from a web site

designer. As the end user of Getty Images imagery, however, Mr. Malafarina is ultimatelyresponsible for ensuring that he has obtained appropriate rights to use the imagery. Mr.Malafarina further states that he has removed the Images from his website. While we appreciatethe removal, the Images are protected by copyright, and were previously displayed on thatwebsite. Copyright law holds responsible anyone who publicly displays an image withoutauthorization of the copyright holder. The use of the Images without a license constitutescopyright infringement, for which we are entitled to seek damages.

At this time, Mr. Malafarina has not raised any valid defenses. We would prefer to resolve thismatter amicably, but in the event that Mr. Malafarina remains unwilling to pay for the Imagesunlawfully used on his website, we reserve the right to continue to pursue this matter as

copyright infringement. Getty Images has acted appropriately and in good faith in pursuing theunauthorized use of our intellectual property. Should you require any additional informationabout this matter, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards,

Getty Images, CopyrightCompliance

403401

RK-00420

PRR-2012-00283


5/14

Status

Amount Disputed

Actual Savings

Estimated Savings

Activities

Location

NAICS

Complainant

Number

Date

Name Contact Phone Toll Free Email

Getty Images605 5th Ave S Ste 400

Seattle, WA 98104

(206) 925-6753 [email protected]

m

402806

2/14/2012

Respondent(s)

Complaint

Vancouver - Consumer Protection Division

Date Added Activity Type Activity

2/14/2012 Email to Complainant Csup Thank You for Info To:[email protected]

2/14/2012 Resolution-CLOSEDINQUIRY/INFORMATION

2/14/2012 Reopened

2/14/2012 Phone Call from Complainant

2/14/2012 Phone Call to Complainant

541920-Photographic Services

Assignee Richl, Shirley

$0.00

$0.00

$0.00

Code Practice

300 Excessive Price or Charge

Practice(s)

Closed

Referral(s)

Name Contact Phone Contact Phone Email

402806

CatalystComplaint Cover Page

Name Phone Day Phone Evening Email

Mary Ellen Thompson10623 E Sprague Ave Ste BSpokane Valley, WA 99206

(509) 951-8230 (509) 951-8230 [email protected]

1 of 2402806

RK-00425

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From: Copyright Compliance [mailto:[email protected]]Sent: Thursday, March 15, 2012 2:00 PMTo: ATG MI Vancouver CRCSubject: To Ms. Shirley Richl re: File Number: 402806 - Mary Ellen Thompson

605 Fifth Avenue South, Suite 400, Seattle, Washington 98104Tel 206 925 5000 Fax 206 925 5001

www.gettyimages.com

March 15, 2012

Via e-mail to [email protected] fax to(360) 759-2159

Shirley RichlComplaint AnalystAttorney General of WashingtonConsumer Protection Division1220 Main Street, Suite 459Vancouver, WA 98660Tel: (360) 759-2152Fax: (360) 759-2159

Re: Mary Ellen Thompson re: Candidate CoachingYour File Number: 402806Our Case Number: 1154264

Dear Ms. Richl:

We are in receipt of the complaint filed by Mary Ellen Thompson that you forwarded to us onFebruary 16, 2012. We appreciate the opportunity to respond to Ms. Thompsons concerns.

By way of introduction, Getty Images is the leading creator and distributor of still and movingimages. More than 4,000 images per day are licensed on our website, www.gettyimages.com,which features wholly-owned content (i.e., images to which we own the copyright), as well asexclusively licensed content (i.e., third-party contributor images which are licensed exclusively

ShirleyR 3/16/2012

402806

RK-00440

PRR-2012-00283


7/14

through us). Customers such as graphic designers, advertising agencies, and publishers licenseour imagery for a variety of purposes, including but not limited to print advertising, billboards,newspaper and magazine articles, brochures and websites. Our license information is clearly

available from each page of our website, and customers are not permitted to use imagerywithout agreeing to a license.

Notwithstanding the license requirement, like other digital media companies, Getty Images doesfall victim to individuals pirating its intellectual property. To combat this, Getty Images usesboth employees and digital image recognition software to locate companies that have used GettyImages imagery without paying a license fee, much akin to pirating music. One such entityrecently identified as having used unlicensed imagery from our collections is CandidateCoaching and Prescreening (Candidate Coaching).

On January 12, 2012, we sent Candidate Coaching a letter with notification that we had found

unauthorized use of one of our images on its website, www.candidateprescreening.com. Theimage is part of Getty Images Rights-Managed Photographers Choice collection,#200133432-001 (the Image), and can be found on our web site athttp://www.gettyimages.com/detail/200133432-001 . We informed Candidate Coaching thatuse of the Image without a license constitutes copyright infringement, and that CandidateCoaching must either (i) provide evidence that a license was issued, or (ii) pay a fee for use ofthe Image. In this instance, the fee was $875.00, and we provided an invoice in that amount,which featured a thumbnail of the image and its image number, along with a screenshot of theImage on Candidate Coachings website. As the end user of Getty Images imagery, CandidateCoaching is ultimately responsible for ensuring that it has obtained appropriate rights to use theimagery. The amount invoiced is in line with what typically would be charged for a license ofthe Image under these circumstances.

Ms. Thompson states that Candidate Coaching contacted her about this notification, as it hadhired her business, Mary Mary Marketing, to design its website. Ms. Thompson states that athird party, Eye Candy Designs, provided the Image and that at her request, Eye Candy Designsremoved the Image from the Candidate Coaching website. While we appreciate the removal,the Image is protected by copyright, and was previously displayed on that website. Copyrightlaw holds responsible anyone who publicly displays an image without authorization of thecopyright holder. The use of the Image without a license constitutes copyright infringement, forwhich we are entitled to seek damages.

At this time, neither Ms. Thompson nor Candidate Coaching has raised any valid defenses. We

would prefer to resolve this matter amicably, but in the event that both Ms. Thompson andCandidate Coaching remain unwilling to pay for the Image unlawfully used on the CandidateCoaching website designed by Ms. Thompson, we reserve the right to continue to pursue thismatter as copyright infringement. Getty Images has acted appropriately and in good faith inpursuing the unauthorized use of our intellectual property. Should you require any additionalinformation about this matter, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards,

402806

RK-00441

PRR-2012-00283


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RK-00449

PRR-2012-00283


9/14

RK-00450

PRR-2012-00283


10/14

RK-00451

PRR-2012-00283


11/14

RK-00452

PRR-2012-00283


12/14

RK-00453

PRR-2012-00283


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RK-00454

PRR-2012-00283


14/14

RK-00455

PRR-2012-00283

getty images attorney general complaint 17

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