Insuring Yourself Against Copyright Abuse Insuring Yourself Against Copyright Abuse
The British Journal of Photography
Software which embeds a digital fingerprint into images to provide evidence of ownership has been combined with an insurance policy for the first time to counter piracy on a worldwide basis.
Thousands of images are 'stolen' every year from picture libraries, newspapers and magazines, and until now copyright holders have had little or no redress.
The new package was launched last week by New Mexico Software, insurance brokers C.E. Heath, and Signum Technologies which has developed SureSign digital fingerprinting.
"When combined with the insurance policy, the new protection system, , will deter pirates who infringe the copyright on more than 30% of all pictures on the Web", says Norman Milne, UK MD of New Mexico Software. He adds: "Publishers, picture libraries, photographers, illustrators and artists can now display photographs on the Internet and CDs with the knowledge that their images are protected on a worldwide basis".
Many pirates feel safe in the knowledge that a photographer or a picture library would not be able to afford to pursue copyright infringements due to the high cost of litigation. NMS CoPs claims to provide users with the legal muscle to protect their rights when they need to.
Annual premiums start at £110 which includes the annual license for the use of SureSign fingerprinting software. Further details on +44 (0) 1992 589579.
This article first appeared in "The British Journal of Photography" magazine, 11 March 1998 and is reproduced by kind permission of the publisher.
This document is Copyright © 1998 British Journal of Photography. All rights reserved.