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(Urgent) PIXSY email demanding fee for so called "unlicensed use of images"

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  • (Urgent) PIXSY email demanding fee for so called "unlicensed use of images"

    (Your prompt reply is highly appreciated.)

    Hello everyone!


    A year ago, I bought a small company in Tokyo, and last month I got an email from a company called (PIXSY) claiming ($750) for what they called "unlicensed use of images.".
    In there email, they attached a PDF file containing the image they referred beside other detailed information. When I checked, I found it was an image posted by a freelance designer, who was temporarily hired by the previous owner of the company. When I checked with the previous owner, he said he tried to get in touch with the freelancer but couldn't reach him.
    So, the whole thing was unwitting. I deleted it the image immediately.


    I did some research, and I found that Pixsy has been sending these kinds of emails to different people across the world over the past 5-6 years.
    The problem is that I couldn't find any clear answer as to whether I should pay them or not, or how the previous similar cases ended.

    I've got three emails from them so far, and the deadline is in a couple of days.

    So, should I just ignore them? or ask for a discount?
    Or should I reach out to the photographer directly and explain the situation?
    or what should I do.

    Please help!
    Tags: None

  • #2
    Here's a thread you can read: https://legalbeagles.info/forums/for...r-a-pixsy-case
    Lawyer (solicitor) - retired from practice, now supervising solicitor in a university law clinic. I do not advise by private message.

    Litigants in Person should download and read the Judiciary's handbook for litigants in person: https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/..._in_Person.pdf

    Comment


    • #3
      Thank you very much, atticus for sharing the thread. I really appreciate it.
      It still did not answer my questions, though.

      I need to know how similar cases ended up, to know what my next step should be.

      Any advice is highly appreciated.
      Last edited by Jack Harmon; 6th March 2024, 09:51:AM.

      Comment


      • #4
        Can you help, please?

        sdavies1
        echat11
        R0b
        atticus
        Celestine
        Ping922

        Comment


        • #5
          Are you in the UK?

          EDIT TO ADD More stuff to read: https://www.google.com/search?q=pixs...&ie=UTF-8#ip=1
          Lawyer (solicitor) - retired from practice, now supervising solicitor in a university law clinic. I do not advise by private message.

          Litigants in Person should download and read the Judiciary's handbook for litigants in person: https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/..._in_Person.pdf

          Comment


          • #6
            Originally posted by Jack Harmon View Post
            Hi Jack,

            I am sorry to hear this and I know from personal experience just how worrying it is when it happens.

            I paid £650 in the end as It cost me so much time to deal with it. I even contacted the photographer but he said it was out his hands. I was just fed up and frustrated by the threatened emails from them. If there is petition to stop this I would support it; it feels an immoral targeting of small businesses.

            Comment


            • #7
              Ping922

              I am sorry to hear that!
              It is indeed! Very frustrating

              Comment


              • #8
                Originally posted by atticus View Post
                Are you in the UK?

                EDIT TO ADD More stuff to read: https://www.google.com/search?q=pixs...&ie=UTF-8#ip=1

                Thanks for sharing.
                I am based in Tokyo, Japan, in which they claim they have a representative office.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Are you aware that this is a UK law discussion forum? Presumably any case will be brought before a Japanese court.
                  Lawyer (solicitor) - retired from practice, now supervising solicitor in a university law clinic. I do not advise by private message.

                  Litigants in Person should download and read the Judiciary's handbook for litigants in person: https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/..._in_Person.pdf

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    So what you are saying, is that you bought a company, the former freelance designer placed the image on the website of the company you bought. When you were made aware, you deleted it.
                    Pixsy people are chasing you for using the image, when you knew nothing about it, is that it in a 'nutshell'?

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Originally posted by atticus View Post
                      Are you aware that this is a UK law discussion forum? Presumably any case will be brought before a Japanese court.
                      Yes, but they are contacting me from USA, as their emails suggest.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by echat11 View Post
                        So what you are saying, is that you bought a company, the former freelance designer placed the image on the website of the company you bought. When you were made aware, you deleted it.
                        Pixsy people are chasing you for using the image, when you knew nothing about it, is that it in a 'nutshell'?
                        Yes, that is right.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          I have taken a look at Pixsy, and signed up for the service it provides photographers. If Pixsy is pursuing your company, it is because the photographer has asked them to.

                          I can understand photographers' unhappiness at their work being taken without their knowledge or payment and being used for commercial purposes. Just because an image can be downloaded from the web does not make it free to use.

                          I understand that this situation is not the OP's responsibility. He can check whether the designer signed any agreement undertaking that there would be be no infringement of IP rights; perhaps his company can seek indemnity from him or her.
                          Lawyer (solicitor) - retired from practice, now supervising solicitor in a university law clinic. I do not advise by private message.

                          Litigants in Person should download and read the Judiciary's handbook for litigants in person: https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/..._in_Person.pdf

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            The story so far is riddled with unanswered questions such that I would be telling Pixsy where to go and not paying them a penny until they have proven that their client actually has a valid claim (even then I might call their bluff).

                            Here are my issues (and there are probably more than this):

                            1. The freelance designer hired the photographer, presumably under a contractual arrangement to take certain image(s). What is not clear is whether that contractual arrangement transferred copyright ownership from the photographer to the freelance designer. In many countries, the starting point is that the creator of any works is the owner unless otherwise agreed. The freelance designer needs to prove ownership because without it, the freelance designer may only have a licence to use the image. No proof of ownership = no claim.

                            2. Despite you living in Japan, you haven't mentioned what law governed the use of the image and where you sourced it from. The reason I mention this is that if the law governing the use of the licence was not Japan, then any legal action would become very, very costly, because a Japanese court may want to have any contractual terms translated into local language, legal experts may need to be hired to explain contract and intellectual property laws relating to that country and then there's the question of whether or not the courts of Japan are best placed to determine a dispute based on foreign law. There is also the added problem for the freelance designer who may not have the financial means to pursue something that I consider to be of low value.

                            3. I would want Pixys to explain how they have arrived at the $750 compensatory amount. Does this cover the licence fee only and if so, consider whether this amount is higher than the usual licence fee. If so, why? I suspect it might include added admin or recovery fees that Pixsy spend chasing these licence fees from people allegedly using images without a licence. Otherwise, I would argue that the freelance designer's real loss is merely the licence fee, whatever that is. You may want to then consider paying a fee for the use of that image moving forward, and complying with any terms associated with it. For example, some licences require you to name the owner of the images but others do not.

                            Whether you choose to pay them any sum of money or nothing at all is entirely up to you, but my gut instinct tells me that the amount of legal proceedings Pixys issue against someone for breach of copyright or other intellectual property infringements are slim, even more so when those people are in a different country to the owner.
                            If you have a question about the voluntary termination process, please read this guide first, as it should have all the answers you need. Please do not hijack another person's thread as I will not respond to you
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                            Please be aware that this is a public forum and is therefore accessible to anyone. The content I post on this forum is not intended to be legal advice nor does it establish any client-lawyer type relationship between you and me. Therefore any use of my content is at your own risk and I cannot be held responsible in any way. It is always recommended that you seek independent legal advice.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              I had the impression that the freelance designer is not the photographer.

                              If they are the same person, then the OP can say that he/she was paid by his company - hopefully he has the invoice or other evidence.

                              If they are not the same person, then there may have been an infringement of the photographer's copyright.

                              Having looked at the Pixsy site, it seems likely that the $750 figure has been selected by the photographer. Basically you sign up as a photographer, upload images you want to monitor, and Pixsy scours the web for them. If it finds a match, it asks you what you want to do about it, the options include ignoring the particular use. It then asks how much you would normally charge to licence images. It didn't find any of mine, which is a blow to my ego as a photographer ;-)
                              Lawyer (solicitor) - retired from practice, now supervising solicitor in a university law clinic. I do not advise by private message.

                              Litigants in Person should download and read the Judiciary's handbook for litigants in person: https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/..._in_Person.pdf

                              Comment

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