Content Disclaimers
SnapMediaApp Content Disclaimers.
Thank you for being a part of the SnapMediaApp community. Although we do our best to handle issues of intellectual property, we want you to be aware of a special circumstances and limitations. For educational purposes only, we’ve outlined some of those limitations below. Please contact us if you have any questions at info@SnapMediaApp.com.
Your clip – why someone else might have intellectual property rights to it.
What you might not know is that someone else could have intellectual property right to your clip – even though you shot it yourself. We’ve outlined a few problem areas as examples, but you’ll want to do your own research as well or talk to a lawyer if you are unsure.
Examples:
Their likeness. If you take a video and a person is in it and identifiable, you need that person’s permission to use the video. (Intellectual property law considers that people in general own their “likeness.” That is, images and videos of themselves. If you want to use their likeness, you need their permission. Pretty straightforward.)
Their intellectual property is in the background of your clip. If you take a video at a local fast food restaurant, and their logo, menu, uniforms, etc. are all visible and identifiable, the fast food restaurant could enforce their rights to those items of intellectual property and not allow you to use that clip. It’s their right, because they own all of the intellectual property that you are showing in the background. Bottom line – don’t use other people’s intellectual property, even if it is in the background of your video and not the main feature. You could be forced to take that video down. Even worse, you could be sued.
Using Editorial Content.
Sometimes, you’ll come across content that does not display a model release form in the video. An identifiable person must point to, display, or somehow acknowledge the form in the last one second of the 15 second video. If there is no form displayed this means that you cannot use it for commercial purposes. In other words, you can’t sell it, license it, or imbed it in your video and sell it or license it. Think of it as off-limits.
Examples:
Public domain clips with a person but no model release. Without that person’s permission, you can’t make money off of their likeness. The clip is still part of the public domain, but it can only be used for editorial purposes – e.g., the news.
Public domain clips showing intellectual property of another. Our fast-food video example above would probably fall into this category, if the video were part of the public domain. This video could only be used for editorial purposes, because the owner of the intellectual property has not consented to its commercial use.
Bottom line – when in doubt, don’t use it!
While it might seem confusing at first to understand international intellectual property law, it’s really quite simple if you remember this rule – when in doubt, don’t use it! Ask yourself, “did I get permission from each person in this video? Do I have those rights? What’s in the background that could be owned by someone else?” Take each item one at a time and make sure you’re in the clear. And, of course, contact an attorney if you are unsure.
Version: 12-19-2019