Copyright advice

Question

Law in IT

Need advice on copyright or precedents from your experience.
There is a certain individual entrepreneur who buys raw materials from the Supplier and produces the final product.
On the website of the IP, photographs of raw materials were posted, taken from the Supplier from his website, by oral agreement on the availability of an external link. On July 11, a letter arrived claiming copyright infringement and demanding compensation in the amount of 200,000 rubles. (10,000 per image). The claim contains screenshots of the site dated June 3 with posted images (at the moment there are no more images - more than a month has passed).

The claim came from a certain Lady who owns the competitor's website and was the only consumer of the Supplier (and she owns the photos). The lady apparently did not like our low prices for products. After the conclusion of the IP agreement with the Supplier, the Lady repeatedly made false orders, asked for contracts, details, etc.

The claim came by registered letter, which contains the name of the notary, but there is neither his signature nor seal.

The question is what to do? The first thing that comes to mind is to consult a notary.
The IP site domain is registered to an individual, but not to the one to whom the IP is registered - that is, is it possible to transfer responsibility for copyright infringement to an individual, and there already (1500-2000 per image)?

Answer 1

The Civil Code (part 4) will help you.
firstly, without panic, and secondly, the Lady will have to work hard to recover something from you.
For this to happen, the Lady must provide evidence:
1. Proof of ownership of the property copyrights to these photographs. Namely: a written contract with the photographer, which contains a clause: The photographer transfers to the Customer all property rights to the photographs, which depict this and that. Evidence, among other things, can serve as a copyright posted on the photos themselves. If there is no such copyright, it is very difficult to prove that the photographer photographed specifically these photos and transferred the rights to the photo to a specific Lady or legal entity, an examination will be needed.
2. Evidence of the transfer of these particular photographs, for which there are property rights, to the Supplier for posting on the site. Namely: A written agreement for the transfer of related copyrights for the use of photos between the Lady and the Supplier, which indicates: the geography of distribution of the photo (only Region, Country), the period for which the related rights are transferred (maximum - 5 years), distribution conditions (on the site , in printing, once, many times, for a fee, for free). Often they write in contracts - you can use it everywhere, for free, but be sure to indicate a link to such and such a site. Or - you can use it, but pay XX rubles to the cashier.
If there is no agreement between the Lady and the Supplier, then the main claim may be against the Supplier for illegal use, but you were not notified that the photo is copyrighted, and if you violated something, then unintentionally.
3. Proof of damage. The most difficult. The lady is obliged to prove in court not only the fact of using the photo anywhere, but also the fact that the use of the photo caused her damage in the amount indicated. She suffered losses, or lost profits. If the photo of the raw material is mega unique and there is no way to repeat it, they arranged a trip to the moon for the sake of these photos, etc. then we can talk about such figures.
If the Internet is full of such photos, then the maximum damage is the cost of the photographer’s work, and even that still needs to be proven.
4. You can refer to Article 1274 Free Use of a Work for Informational, Scientific, Educational or Cultural Purposes. 1. It is allowed without the consent of the author or other right holder and without payment of remuneration
, but with the obligatory indication of the name of the author whose work is used, and the source of borrowing:
You quoted the photo for informational purposes. The photo was lawfully published on the Supplier's website. For the fact that the name of the author is not affixed - oh, sorry, let's put it.
From practice, the courts are very bad at accepting screenshots from websites as evidence, because it is difficult and expensive to prove at what time the photo was taken, and many judges do not even know what a screenshot is.
Also, the court will not like the fact that you were not notified of the violation. If you were notified by a good letter - I ask you to remove the photo, but you did not remove it, then you can prove that you intentionally violated the law.
I summarize. Your actions.
1. Remove conflicting photos from your site.
2. Get familiar with copyright law base.garant.ru/10164072/71/#40071
3. Throw the letter in the trash.
Note. A notary is a person who certifies the signature of an individual. It does not have the authority to demand anything from anyone.
Approximately the same force could have a letter from Cheburashka.

Answer 2

In any case, you need to consult a lawyer (I think not even a notary, but a lawyer. consultant, lawyer).
This case is more about copyright than informational. Referring to what articles of laws is the compensation claim motivated? What does the notary, how exactly appears in the letter, if the name is simply mentioned, then this does not mean anything in essence.
As an option, talk with the supplier so that they confirm the verbal agreement (but most of all they will not agree, since then the claim will pass from you to them and, moreover, this is their main (only) buyer).
A lot more depends on the photo and how the author of the photo will argue the amount indicated in court, since the court decides what compensation should be.
In any case, a copyright specialist should be involved in clarifying the situation.

Answer 3

The cost of one photo is inadequate, the plaintiff will have to document it somehow. If there is no such price tag for photography and processing (and there is none), then the court will definitely reduce the cost of the photo to 1500, or even to 600 rubles.