toyota pirtates photos off flickr
Yesterday I was informed by a fellow flickr user that the new website promoting the Toyota 4Runner was using a photo of mine. Not only was the Toyota website using a photo from my flickr stream without permission, but also 39 other © flickr user photos. This isn’t the first time I have had my photos used without permission, but you would think these guys would know better.
I enjoy sharing my photography and do not hesitate to post it on the internet. Its a bummer to see the the mentality the “everything on the internet is free” is so pervasive and it amazes me to see such a BIG company, along with its ad agency Saatchi & Saatchi, would not have contacted each of the photographers involved. I am sure many, if not all, would have loved to have been a part of the project for fair compensation.
Toyota posted an apology in the Flickr help forums…
“Toyota apologizes for pulling images from Flickr without photographer permission. Images from a handful of photographers appeared on a Toyota site for five days. We’re working quickly to reach out to the individual photographers involved. Until then, the images have been removed, and corrections have been made to the process of pulling images from Flickr.”
I have contacted the ad agency in-charge of the website. So, we’ll see where it goes.
- See the “Toyota, Oh What a Stealing!” Galleries for all the photos.
- News story on PDN
Other blog posts on the topic:
- Calanan Photography – Found my photo used without permission
- Snorri Gunnarsson | Photo blog – Toyota steals photos of Flickr
distrubing to hear Corey…You should ride em till you get a new set of keys
WOW. First Toyota is dealing with the largest ever safety recall in their history, and now they're ripping off photographs. Not to make light of the copyright infringement issue, but their legal department will be enjoying job security for a good long while!
Corey have you contacted any law firms yet? unfortunately most the time you have to get lawyers involved to get fair compensation for things ….
Corey, There are a bunch of other threads on flickr talking about this as well. Others have been effected. If you need some links let me know!
Corey that sucks and i hope you make the bastards pay! I will not drive my Toyota Tacoma this weekend in protest of their evil doings. Seriously, that sucks!
That sucks! All 39 of you should get a lawyer together and go after them to get paid for them using your work. I looked and couldn't see the photo – do you have a link?
Thanks for the comments guys! This was def the fault of Toyota's ad agency and not Toyota themselves … So, Thanks for the boycott offer Joel, but I'm driving my Tacoma today! lol.Weird you dont see the pics Jeff .. Here are links:http://www.flickr.com/photos/coreyk/261574884/http://www.flickr.com/photos/coreyk/4075432694/
They must have pulled it from their site now. Reading through the comments on some of the other users pages, it looks like the ad agency is offering some sort of a settlement, so hopefully you'll get at least paid for the work and an apology. Still sucks. Nice photo btw!
Thanks Jeff .. Yeah, I have spoken to the ad agency. I'll post a update when I get a resolution.
Wow thats a shame!
Its weird that the photos that are still up on the site are linked right to Flickr when you click on them. Almost like they thought by providing that link, they were giving credit or something.
that is BS . Happened to me this issue of National Geo Traveler – was reading on plane to SF opened up a page to see a shot of Ruins above W Fork of Gila. Not as big a deal as Toyota by any means, but shity deal eitehr way
get a lawyer……. and a new truck ; )
dude.. that sucks! Hopefully, something good come out of it!
Total BS. Happened to me last spring when a TV station used a bluefish photo I put on flickr in a video clip without permission. I only found out because I happened to see the video on Moldy Chum.
You’re so right. Professional businesses that fiercely protect their own intellectual property should know better than to pilfer someone else’s.
ask for an ‘09 loaded Tundra…. that would be fair for all the pain and suffering I’m sure this has caused you right!
Don’t you love the passive voice used in the apology? Nobody actually did anything, bad stuff just “happened” as if by the invisible hand of the universe.
The digital era has been pretty hard on content creators, at least this time they got caught.
Corey,
You guys should suit them.
My friend is working on professional field, it is very common to see those things happen and they should pay for the “mistake” or pay the use, even only 5 days. My friend’s film was appeared on the TV only for few seconds, and he won the lawsuit, also get a pretty decent compensate.
Through all that is unfortunate and unscrupulous and unprofessional and unethical and illegal about this, at least it’s flattering that they stole YOUR work? ; )
Thanks for the comments and kind words! I’ll post an update when all is said and done.
hey corey,
that’s what watermarks are for. ask for payment and leave the lawyers out of it if you can. they will get everything. Try $25,000. They might pay it to make you go away, and then you can come down to Costa Rica to fish.
Chris: No doubt … I have started watermarking my photos and only putting up fairly low rez images. 25k is way way WAY off from what S&S offered … The lawyer was a necessity for this one, but I have no doubt that he will get a better result. Either way .. I’d LOVE to head down to Costa Rica to fish sometime!