I am not sure why you think you have to lecture people when you don't otherwise seem to have an answer to my question to another poster. Most reasonably intelligent folks, would see that I asked a real question. I was not asking morally or anything else, other than did he have legal authority for his legal assertions. The gentleman seemed to be making a legal assertion and as an attorney, I was attempting to learn if he learned of some new rulings or laws which would tends to clear up some of this gray area.
Before I asked me question the other night, I attempted to search to see if any new rulings had been issued so that I would not have to ask the question. Instead, if found the site for the American Society for Media Photographer's, figuring if anyone, they would have the latest info on the topic. This organization has apparently been in existence since the 1940's and one of its main goals is to protect photographer's legal rights and define ethical standards.
http://photography.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ/Ya&sdn=photography&cdn=hobbies&tm=8&f=00&tt=14&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.asmp.org/commerce/legal.php
Here is their take on this matter:
Q: Someone has linked to one of my photos on their web site. Is this legal?
A: There are basically two ways in which your photos may appear on someone else’s web site. The first is by someone else actually copying your image file and putting it on their server for display on another site. In most cases, this is blatant copyright infringement, with or without a credit line. In some cases, the alleged infringer might claim this to be fair use, and it may very well be. But it will be up to you to contact them and to inform them that they are violating your copyright.
In the second case, the image file is actually not being copied to another server; someone else’s browser is just being pointed to your server so that the image appears to come from their page. This situation is a little more problematic. Most copyright laws were written before the Internet. Until legislation catches up to the technology, we have to rely on case law for direction, and there isn’t much that exists in this area.
Sample terms that can be used on a web site generally specify the following: “… the images, text and coding on these pages may not be copied to another computer, transmitted, published, reproduced, stored, manipulated, projected, or altered in any way, including and without limitation to any digitization or synthesizing of the images, alone or with any other material, by use of a computer or other electronic means, or any other method or means now or hereafter known, without permission of the creator.”
If you use these terms, infringers may be held liable for “contributory infringement.” A contributory infringer isn’t controlling any copying, but has taken actions solely to cause other people to make allegedly illicit copies for themselves. (This was part of the Napster suit, for example).
If the link showing your photo on someone else’s site is hidden, they are probably violating your copyright. If there is only a link to your photo on another site and a user has to click on this link to view your image, then your copyright has probably not been infringed.
Your next step would be to contact the owner of the page and the Internet host of the page to alert them to the situation and to request that your image, or the link, be removed. Go to our Enforcing Your Rights page for more information.
http://photography.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ/Ya&sdn=photography&cdn=hobbies&tm=8&f=00&tt=14&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.asmp.org/commerce/legal.php
I come here to learn and share information if I have anything to offer. However, I seldom come here anymore because of some of the childish folks I see on here.
If anyone has any legal authority on this matter, I would like to hear about it.
Regards.
