Uploading a wallpaper to interfaceLIFT, do I retain copyright?

[Chris28]

I feel like sharing a particularly special image with the internet community. Once released to the world wide web, do I still have full copyright power over the image?

[FlyingPhotog]

You are still the copyright holder and are technically protected as such but as to enforcing the power of your copyright, you're really letting the Genie out of the bottle (so to speak.)

[Chris28]

Thanks for the info, i'll have a think about it!

[basroil]

You are still the copyright holder and are technically protected as such but as to enforcing the power of your copyright, you're really letting the Genie out of the bottle (so to speak.)

Not necessarily. Some places force you to transfer ownership or non-exclusive, unlimited, transferable licensing rights. Many contests follow these rules.

Bottom line is, read the fine print always.

[FlyingPhotog]

Not necessarily. Some places force you to transfer ownership or non-exclusive, unlimited, transferable licensing rights. Many contests follow these rules.

Bottom line is, read the fine print always.

That's not what the OP asked, however...

The OP asked about simply putting an image on the internet.

But you are correct re: contests. You do have to read the fine print.

[basroil]

That's not what the OP asked, however...

The OP asked about simply putting an image on the internet.

But you are correct re: contests. You do have to read the fine print.

No, he was talking specifically about http://interfacelift.com/ which was written in the title of the thread :rolleyes: Some image hosting sites will have something like what I mentioned, not all, but some of the less friendly ones do.

After looking through the site (the layout is terrible, can't find any important information without clicking through a few links), found what OP needs to know:
"
Content Usage Rights

The content downloaded from this web site, including by not limited to destop wallpaper, icon sets, themes, and articles, are licensed for personal use only. The copyright for this material is owned by the orignal author(s) and/or artist(s). None of the content from this site or its related sites may be redistributed in any form without explicit permission from the original author(s) and/or artist(s).
Most downloadable content is accompanied by a link to an email form allowing you to directly contact the creator(s) of the content. If you are unable to contact the author directly through the web site, please contact the site operators for this information through the 'contact' link at the bottom of any page. Please understand that we respect the privacy of our content submitters, so in certain cases we may decline to provide you with contact information directly, but we may pass on the communication for you if appropriate.
If there is a copyright or other legal dispute regarding any of the content on the site, please contact both the site operator and the artist(s) and/or author(s) of the content involved. We will work to swiftly resolve such issues. Our intent is not to infringe on the copyright of any person or business and we are happy to remove offending content when such an action is warranted. We take such issues seriously and will respond as quickly as possible to resolve the situation in a manner acceptable to both parties. Author(s)/Artist(s) are asked to obtain permission to use any copyrighted content in their designs before submitting them to this web site."


More or less this site is "safe" to use. Doesn't mean people will not steal you images and plaster them on commercial items, but if they do, the site is explicit on the terms of use and then there's no excuse for the copyright violation.

[amfoto1]

But, I'd register the copyright before uploading the image... otherwise most of your clout going after infringers will disappear in 90 days (I'm assuming that it's similar in England, to here in the US).

Despite all your efforts to protect your copyright, it may be pretty futile. Even with a registered image, once it's online there will be a lot of infringement you never find out about, and even if you did it can be next to impossible to pursue in other countries.

Food for thought.