PALM DESERT, Calif. – Sept. 19, 2018 – Photographs posted on the internet enjoy the same U.S. copyright protections as the written word, and the “Who owns the photos?” question can create problems in real estate listings.

A meticulous California photographer who registers all his photos with the U.S. Copyright Office and requires limited licensing contracts from listing agents is suing Zillow for copyright infringement, according to The American Genius.

California photographer George Gutenberg claims copyright violations and alleges that Zillow “scrapes images from Multiple Listing Services (MLSs) rather than using listing data syndicated to them.” He’s asking the court for “an amount to be proven or, in the alternative, at Plaintiff’s election, an award for statutory damages against Defendant in an amount up to $150,000.00 for each infringement pursuant to 17 U.S.C. §504(c), whichever is larger.”

If the court agrees to the $150,000-per-photo price, Gutenberg could be awarded as much as $81,450,000.

In addition to registering photos with the copyright office, Gutenberg also has his listing-agent clients sign an agreement, in which they agree to a “limited license to use the photographs for up to one-year purposes of marketing the property.” The agreement “expressly states that it is not transferrable and prohibits third party use without permission from Gutenberg.”

Read the full article following the link below.
Full Article in FL Realtor Magazine