\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

By Kerry Smith<\/div><\/div>\n

That happened last week. Fla. agents continue to receive demand letters over photo copyright issues. But a safe-harbor provision provides some immunity for IDX claims.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

ORLANDO, Fla. \u2013 Under U.S. copyright law, someone owns almost all the photos, writings, drawings, music, printed material and videos on the internet \u2013 and people who don\u2019t hold the copyright to those things cannot use them without permission.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In real estate, most brokers and agents already know this<\/a>. And while a handful may break the rule now and again on the theory that they won\u2019t get caught \u2013 they will, eventually \u2013 IDX data feeds provide a unique challenge within the industry. Agents can host an IDX data feed on their website but they can\u2019t control the data. What happens if a photographer claims use of the photo is illegal on your website, yet you have no control over that piece of content?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

A Florida Realtor recently received a demand letter from a photographer saying that a photo appearing within their IDX feed was copyrighted, and they did not have permission to display it. The writer demanded $800 from the Realtor, who called Florida Realtors Legal Hotline<\/a>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a process you can institute to protect yourself from violations within your IDX feed. It is a safe-harbor provision under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA),\u201d writes Meredith Caruso, Florida Realtors associate general counsel. \u201cUnder the DMCA, you, as the \u2018service provider and\/or website provider,\u2019 can take five steps to protect yourself if you are republishing images.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

To qualify for safe harbor, brokers and agents must:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Not have actual knowledge of the infringing content<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n

Be unaware of the facts or circumstances from which the infringement is apparent<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n

Not receive any financial benefit directly attributable to the infringing activity<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n

Act quickly to remove the infringing content when notified<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n

Provide a way for receiving notice of the infringing content \u2013 register a person with the U.S. Copyright Office<\/a> as the designated agent to receive notices about infringement, and post that person\u2019s name, address, phone number and email address on their website<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
The requirement doesn\u2019t apply only to a broker\u2019s website. If a broker\u2019s individual agents host their own websites, the broker should make sure each website is independently registered with the U.S. Copyright Office.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
\u201cThe statute requires each website to register a person or entity that will receive notice of alleged infringement, referred to as a \u2018DMCA \/Service Provider agent,\u2019\u201d says Katie Johnson, general counsel and chief member experience officer with the National Association of Realtors\u00ae (NAR). \u201cThe Copyright Office form is set up such that one person or entity can be the agent for multiple websites by specifically listing each website on the registration form. Therefore, to be fully compliant with the statute, you must list each of the websites for which you want to act as DMCA agent.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
\u201cThe first line of defense is to take your own pictures or hire someone to take pictures for you,\u201d says Caruso. \u201cIf you use online images, pay the licensing fees to ensure that you comply with the law. If you work with a web developer, consider inserting language into your services agreement that indemnifies you in the event that the developer provides an image that infringes on someone\u2019s copyright.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
Your terms of use<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
\u201cYour website should clearly state what someone who suspects a copyright violation should do,\u201d Caruso says.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
NAR recommends the following appear on every Realtor\u2019s website: <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
If you believe that your intellectual property rights have been violated by [brokerage name] or by a third party who has uploaded Content on our Site, please provide the following information to the [brokerage name]-designated copyright agent listed below:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
a. A description of the copyrighted work or other intellectual property that you claim has been infringed<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
b. A description of where the material that you claim is infringing is located on the website<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
c. An address, telephone number, and e-mail address where [brokerage name] can contact you and, if different, an email address where the alleged infringing party, if not [brokerage name], can contact you<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
d. A statement that you have a good-faith belief that the use is not authorized by the copyright or other intellectual property rights owner, by its agent or by law<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
e. A statement by you under penalty of perjury that the information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright or intellectual property owner or authorized to act on the owner\u2019s behalf<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
f. Your electronic or physical signature<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
[Brokerage name] may request additional information before removing any infringing material. [Brokerage name] may provide the alleged infringing party with your email address so that that person can respond to your allegations.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
[Brokerage name] has registered a designated agent with the Copyright Office pursuant to 17 U.S.C. 512(c). If you believe your copyright material is being used on this Site without permission, please notify the designated agent at:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
[Brokerage\u2019s Designated Agent name, address and contact information]<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
\u00a9 2020 Florida Realtors\u00ae<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n
Go to Source<\/a>
\nAuthor: marlam<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Kerry Smith That happened last week. Fla. agents continue to receive demand letters over photo copyright issues. But a safe-harbor provision provides some immunity for IDX claims. ORLANDO, Fla. \u2013 Under U.S. copyright law, someone owns almost all the photos, writings, drawings, music, printed material and videos on the internet \u2013 and people who don\u2019t hold the copyright to those things cannot use them without permission. In real estate, most brokers and agents already know this. And while a handful may break the rule now and again on the theory that they won\u2019t get caught \u2013 they will, eventually \u2013 IDX data feeds provide a unique challenge within the industry. Agents can host an IDX data feed on their website but they can\u2019t control the data. What happens if a photographer claims use of the photo is illegal on your website, yet you have no control over that piece of content? A Florida Realtor recently received a demand letter from a photographer saying that a photo appearing within their IDX feed was copyrighted, and they did not have permission to display it. The writer demanded $800 from the Realtor, who called Florida Realtors Legal Hotline. \u201cThere is a process you can institute to protect yourself from violations within your IDX feed. It is a safe-harbor provision under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA),\u201d writes Meredith Caruso, Florida Realtors associate general counsel. \u201cUnder the DMCA, you, as the \u2018service provider and\/or website provider,\u2019 can take five steps to protect yourself if you are republishing images.\u201d To qualify for safe harbor, brokers and agents must: Not have actual knowledge of the infringing content Be unaware of the facts or circumstances from which the infringement is apparent Not receive any financial benefit directly attributable to the infringing activity Act quickly to remove the infringing content when notified Provide a way for receiving notice of the infringing content \u2013 register a person with the U.S. Copyright Office as the designated agent to receive notices about infringement, and post that person\u2019s name, address, phone number and email address on their website The requirement doesn\u2019t apply only to a broker\u2019s website. If a broker\u2019s individual agents host their own websites, the broker should make sure each website is independently registered with the U.S. Copyright Office. \u201cThe statute requires each website to register a person or entity that will receive notice of alleged infringement, referred to as a \u2018DMCA \/Service Provider agent,\u2019\u201d says Katie Johnson, general counsel and chief member experience officer with the National Association of Realtors\u00ae (NAR). \u201cThe Copyright Office form is set up such that one person or entity can be the agent for multiple websites by specifically listing each website on the registration form. Therefore, to be fully compliant with the statute, you must list each of the websites for which you want to act as DMCA agent.\u201d \u201cThe first line of defense is to take your own pictures or hire someone to take pictures for you,\u201d says Caruso. \u201cIf you use online images, pay the licensing fees to ensure that you comply with the law. If you work with a web developer, consider inserting language into your services agreement that indemnifies you in the event that the developer provides an image that infringes on someone\u2019s copyright.\u201d Your terms of use \u201cYour website should clearly state what someone who suspects a copyright violation should do,\u201d Caruso says. NAR recommends the following appear on every Realtor\u2019s website: If you believe that your intellectual property rights have been violated by [brokerage name] or by a third party who has uploaded Content on our Site, please provide the following information to the [brokerage name]-designated copyright agent listed below: a. A description of the copyrighted work or other intellectual property that you claim has been infringed b. A description of where the material that you claim is infringing is located on the website c. An address, telephone number, and e-mail address where [brokerage name] can contact you and, if different, an email address where the alleged infringing party, if not [brokerage name], can contact you d. A statement that you have a good-faith belief that the use is not authorized by the copyright or other intellectual property rights owner, by its agent or by law e. A statement by you under penalty of perjury that the information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright or intellectual property owner or authorized to act on the owner\u2019s behalf f. Your electronic or physical signature [Brokerage name] may request additional information before removing any infringing material. [Brokerage name] may provide the alleged infringing party with your email address so that that person can respond to your allegations. [Brokerage name] has registered a designated agent with the Copyright Office pursuant to 17 U.S.C. 512(c). If you believe your copyright material is being used on this Site without permission, please notify the designated agent at: [Brokerage\u2019s Designated Agent name, address and contact information] \u00a9 2020 Florida Realtors\u00ae Go to Source Author: marlam<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":4545,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nwfl4sale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4544"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nwfl4sale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nwfl4sale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nwfl4sale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nwfl4sale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4544"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nwfl4sale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4544\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nwfl4sale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4545"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nwfl4sale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4544"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nwfl4sale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4544"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nwfl4sale.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4544"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}