How much compensation if a newspaper steals your picture

I'd like to ask for some advice.

Let's say a major newspaper runs a front-page article meant to drive the sales for that particular edition and they use a photograph of yours to help push that article, and hence their sales of that edition, without your permission or consent. You only found out that they used your photo when you saw it being used on the front page of the newspaper.

What kind of compensation should you be looking for? How liable is that newspaper for copyright violation?

It would seem fairly serious to me as they would have stolen your photograph to use for their own profit and gain.

Talk to an attorney.

Definitely talk to an attorney since most of us are probably not versed in Kenyan law.

airfrogusmc wrote in post #8492554
Talk to an attorney.

+1

I guess it depends on how much you could have asked for a photo as a photographer and how much they made off of it.
Talk to a lawyer and ask for the general estimate. Then ask another lawyer and decide if you wanna make them work for a fixed fee or commission ^_^

Sorry, I should have changed my location. I'm acually back in Canada now. This was a Toronto newspaper.

I'd definitely call an attorney!!!!

I have no idea how much compensation you should look for... but you should definitely stand up and fight!!! It's YOUR photo, and a major newspaper should know better than run something without the photographer's consent.

If you don't mind me asking; how did they get you photo to begin with?

Maybe that'll help determine how much you should be compensated by how far they went to steal.

They stole the photo from an internet site: Facebook

BTW, don't just look for an attorney, when you look make sure you look for an "Intellectual Property Attorney". I'm sure Canadia has more than a few -- but they'll have the expertise you need.

you may also want to read up on the facebook user agreement you agreed to at the time you signed up. At one point their agreement said that they own the copyright to all images uploaded to facebook. I believe it has changed now but if you agreed to it they may have released it for you.
oh, and totally talk to an attorney.

Here is an article I found
http://www.broadstuff.​com …read-the-small-print.html
excerpt:
When you post User Content to the Site, you authorize and
direct us to make such copies thereof as we deem necessary in
order to facilitate the posting and storage of the User Content
on the Site. By posting User Content to any part of the Site, you
automatically grant, and you represent and warrant that you
have the right to grant, to the Company an irrevocable,
perpetual, non-exclusive, transferable, fully paid, worldwide
license (with the right to sublicense) to use, copy, publicly
perform, publicly display, reformat, translate, excerpt (in
whole or in part) and distribute such User Content for any
purpose on or in connection with the Site or the promotion
thereof, to prepare derivative works of, or incorporate into
other works, such User Content, and to grant and authorize
sublicenses of the foregoing.
This was from 2007, but I believe it depends on when you signed up.

True, but this is for them using the pictures or promoting Facebook or within the site.

I did find some things on Canadian copyright law and there is an exception for what they call "fair dealing". If they quote the source and the author of the photograph then it isn't a violation. Now, another part states that the ownership of the photo remains with the person who took it. Funny part is that they don't know who I am so there is no way that they could quote me as the author of the photo.

I have to go and see a lawyer later today about a totally unrelated matter and I'll bring this up then as well.

jaybird wrote in post #8493454
True, but this is for them using the pictures or promoting Facebook or within the site.

But the agreement says that the license they are claiming is "transferrable" and that they have a right to "authorize sublicenses".

This terminology seems to indicate that they can allow whoever they want to use or publish the photo. I hope this is not the case, but the language seems to be in their (and the newspaper's) favor. If indeed the newspaper did obtain proper authorization from Facebook, Inc.

what was the photo of?

I would also contact the paper. If they did not know the image belonged to you they may be willing to negotiate.
What was the subject? They may also have subject release issues. You may own the copyright to the image, which may have been released unintentionally to Facebook, but a subject/model release is a different story.

wow keep us posted!!!