My friend RC brought to my notice a case of plagiarism in flickr.
Here is the original photo taken by RC. Please have a look at the technical details.
Here is the copy paste version. And compare with the previous version. Do check the date of capture, and date of digitization.
Someone spends so much time to take a photo, and another person shamelessly copy pastes it. Its so stupid and silly. And the person doesnt even have the courtesy to inform.
Is there any way to copyright/protect the pictures? I guess the only way is to add that copyright information at the bottom right of the picture. Do you know of any such tool for adding copyright information?
on 21 Aug 2006 at 9:02 pm # rubic_cube
Hey Ferro, Thanks for bringing this up. There is a framing tool that is available from flagrantdisregard.com site. http://flagrantdisregard.com/flickr/frame.php
Also, I have seen Anita Bora signing her pictures with a frame. Maybe I could so something like that.
There are other Flickr toys available at http://flagrantdisregard.com/flickr/.
on 21 Aug 2006 at 10:18 pm # arjun
Hi
The only way u can avoid plagiarism with pics is to put a watermark on it….
U get loads of software to do it on download.com - u can sign every pic with ur name on it…
Cheers!!!
on 22 Aug 2006 at 1:27 am # Jacky
I understand the pain and other emotions but calling for copyright violations should be left to seriously ethical people! Why can’t we give back something to Net? This might sound strange but we are all leechers, we download movies, music and almost everything that is copyrighted but the laws are non-existent if it’s not our intellectual property.
As long as the photographer is not aiming at putting his work in any competition it’s better to ignore these things.
on 22 Aug 2006 at 8:00 am # rubic_cube
Jacky - It is not about copyright issues. I am not complaining about why he has put it up on his site. Also, if you notice, he has tagged it “Deccan Herald” which surprises me more. If DC has published the photo without my permission, then yes, this is an issue. If the photo is simply sitting on that website, then atleast appropriate credits should be mentioned. This is more like an Anu Malik style copy. Copy it exact and claim it as original!
on 22 Aug 2006 at 8:56 am # Jacky
Rubic_Cube,
You have every right to fight for it on the appropriate forum like Flickr support or ask for an explanation with the violator. Btw, why were you so polite with him/her?
My point is if it’s raised as a moral issue to ponder elsewhere then it’s better to do a bit of self-introspection. Easy.
on 22 Aug 2006 at 11:42 am # King
Agree with Jacky..
on 22 Aug 2006 at 12:04 pm # Anon
Yeah I agree with Jacky too! People in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.
on 22 Aug 2006 at 2:15 pm # F e r r a r i
Arjun,
Thanks for the link
Jacky,
You have a valid point. But then many a times people are not aware of the rules. What you say makes sense
on 22 Aug 2006 at 2:51 pm # rubic_cube
Jacky - why was I polite with him/her?
>> For a start, I do not know what the real issue is. All I know is that the pic is the exact copy of my original. It could be a problem with Flickr. I have been thinking about it for a while now and there are some ways in which this can be a Flickr issue. If the guy who “seems” to have copied has genuinely done so, I still want to know why. I did not want to go on the offensive right at the beginning and ask “How come you showcase this as your work when it is mine?”. He has not yet responded. Maybe it is time that I take it up with Flickr now.
One positive reason that this has been blogged is… a) people know that this is happening and will be on the lookout. b) it is possible that someone else has had a similar issue and will come up with a resolution method.
And for the record : I do not copy pictures. If I did, I do mention the websites that I pick them up from. To the extent possible, I have not copy-pasted even code nor reverse engineered stuff. Just so that the argument of people staying in glass houses does not arise on this topic.
on 22 Aug 2006 at 3:41 pm # Ravages
I have been plagiarised too on Flickr. Made a complaint.
on 22 Aug 2006 at 9:00 pm # rubic_cube
Ravages - and what happened? Where exactly did you register your complaint?
on 25 Aug 2006 at 2:57 am # Prasad
Rubic,
did you see this thread on flickr- a plagiarist sueing the original photographer for stealing his photos!!!!! Ridiculous.
what has the world come to! this guy has some crazy guts!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kk/206114040/
on 28 Aug 2006 at 11:17 am # Vish
Rubic,
Its good that you have filed a plagiarism complaint with Yahoo. Its really pathetic how people copy others work and claim credit for that. Is there a way to report this person as bogus? We can do that for you, if there is a way.
Also its good to frame the picture with the copyright information but then when they are intending to copy they can always remove the frame add a one with their name on it. The only solution would be to leave a copyright mark on the photo but this I feel would spoil the beauty of the pic. So can’t think of any way to avoid this without making the photo look ugly, which I hate to do.
Vish