Before we begin, an important disclaimer: I am not a lawyer, and the following does not constitute legal advice. Seek legal counsel if your company is dealing with any kind of lawsuit.
“Hey, this was on the Internet, we can use it as long as we give credit, right?”
Few sentences in the English language have started more lawsuits or cost companies more money than this one. Copyright law governs content, and failing to understand copyright law can expose your company to significant legal damages. How much? At a former company I was at, an intern used a photo from a major stock photo service that they found via Google Images on the company website. We received a legal notice that said if we do not pay $60,000 in damages and remove the photo, we would be sued for significantly more and our Internet Service Provider would shut down our company website for piracy, which would cost millions of dollars in lost revenue.
All of that from one misused photo.
Copyright 101: Basics of Avoiding Content Marketing Lawsuits
