German Company Using My Photo in Their Marketing Material

[happinessforever]

Hi

I am a British musician and back in 2008 i was joking around backstage with a friend of mine who is a photographer. I picked up a piece of musical equipment (which does not belong to me) and struck a very silly sultry pose with it, completely in jest, and he took a photo. this was a funny personal photo and it was put along with various other photos from the night on his personal facebook and flickr pages.

fast forward a few days ago, and a friend in London picked up the 2012 catalogue of a large German music equipment company, the company who made the piece of equipment i was holding, and this photo is in their catalogue - bearing my clearly recognisable face! The photo had an embedded digital copyright at the time it was taken (my friend has some fancy camera and if you rightclick the properties on the original photo, the copyright is there.) Neither the photographer nor myself were approached by or granted permission to the company to use this photo for marketing purposes. This photo is in printed brochures which are currently being circulated in the UK (and likely most of Europe, as the company are based in Germany) . It is currently also in the brochure directly downloadable as a pdf from their site, which is available to download worldwide.

I have spoken to several lawyer friends who do agree this is a copyright infringement and unauthorised use and that myself and the photographer have a case against this German company. I realise this is more likely a matter for the photographer, however I am dealing with this on behalf of us both, as he would prefer that and that there is also the element of the assumed endorsement by myself in my capacity as a musician, as I am featured in their marketing material holding one of their products.

Based on the legal consultations I have undertaken so far, I am hoping to negotiate a settlement with the German Co without formally instructing solicitors. I have specifically tailored a letter based on a template I found which refers to the German Co's violation of sections 22, 23 and 27 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, however I am not a lawyer and so have been wondering, whether this Act I refer to will have any validity in Germany ? (Relevance based on the fact that the image is being distributed as brochure form in UK and also available to download in the UK.) and wondering whether there is any more appropriate EU legislation I should refer to instead of/in addition to the Act?

Would really welcome any thoughts or input or let me know if you need any further information from me.

We have a compensation figure in mind, however I would also be interested in any ballpark figures anyone fancies throwing out there, to give us some general perspective.

best wishes and thanks.

[llworking]

Hi

I am a British musician and back in 2008 i was joking around backstage with a friend of mine who is a photographer. I picked up a piece of musical equipment (which does not belong to me) and struck a very silly sultry pose with it, completely in jest, and he took a photo. this was a funny personal photo and it was put along with various other photos from the night on his personal facebook and flickr pages.

fast forward a few days ago, and a friend in London picked up the 2012 catalogue of a large German music equipment company, the company who made the piece of equipment i was holding, and this photo is in their catalogue - bearing my clearly recognisable face! The photo had an embedded digital copyright at the time it was taken (my friend has some fancy camera and if you rightclick the properties on the original photo, the copyright is there.) Neither the photographer nor myself were approached by or granted permission to the company to use this photo for marketing purposes. This photo is in printed brochures which are currently being circulated in the UK (and likely most of Europe, as the company are based in Germany) . It is currently also in the brochure directly downloadable as a pdf from their site, which is available to download worldwide.

I have spoken to several lawyer friends who do agree this is a copyright infringement and unauthorised use and that myself and the photographer have a case against this German company. I realise this is more likely a matter for the photographer, however I am dealing with this on behalf of us both, as he would prefer that and that there is also the element of the assumed endorsement by myself in my capacity as a musician, as I am featured in their marketing material holding one of their products.

Based on the legal consultations I have undertaken so far, I am hoping to negotiate a settlement with the German Co without formally instructing solicitors. I have specifically tailored a letter based on a template I found which refers to the German Co's violation of sections 22, 23 and 27 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, however I am not a lawyer and so have been wondering, whether this Act I refer to will have any validity in Germany ? (Relevance based on the fact that the image is being distributed as brochure form in UK and also available to download in the UK.) and wondering whether there is any more appropriate EU legislation I should refer to instead of/in addition to the Act?

Would really welcome any thoughts or input or let me know if you need any further information from me.

We have a compensation figure in mind, however I would also be interested in any ballpark figures anyone fancies throwing out there, to give us some general perspective.

best wishes and thanks.

I am sorry but the is a forum for US law, and I don't believe that any of the volunteers here have any knowledge of UK, Germany, or EU copyright laws.

[happinessforever]

i just realised that! i am really sorry! i will see if i can delete my post, but thank you!

[Mr. Knowitall]

I realise this is more likely a matter for the photographer, however I am dealing with this on behalf of us both, as he would prefer that and that there is also the element of the assumed endorsement by myself in my capacity as a musician, as I am featured in their marketing material holding one of their products.

Some things to think about before you go back to the lawyers you've been chatting with: Would anybody other than your immediate family recognize you? What about the picture suggests that you endorse something?

[happinessforever]

hi, thanks for your interest in my query :]
actually that is how i found out is that one of my 'fans' (dont really like that word, but you know what i mean) saw the photo and congratulated me on my modeling contract (lol) with this company! i was bemused and then he sent me a photo of the catalogue with my picture in it. in the type of music i am making and playing, i am gigging on a global scale (not trying to brag, i can hardly believe it myself!) and one of the few women in the field as well, so my face is definitely recognisable by plenty of people who might be shopping in that catalogue. Similar to a Sports person or something, if you see their picture holding the equipment next to the specs on the equipment makes site and how to buy the equipment, it would appear i am voluntarily helping to sell this equipment. it is as if they are receiving all the benefits of an endorsement or sponsorship, without contributing anything to the the person actually doing the endorsing! if that makes sense.. the thing is, they may not be aware of me, and my music, however they could have easily learned this had they simply asked the photographer (and my) permission to use the photo for this purpose, but they didnt. they just took it!