In our technology driven society, it is pretty safe to say that most people who own a computer or a smartphone, are a
member of some sort of social media network.
The two most prevalent networks are Facebook and Twitter with Pintrest
not to far behind. Anyone who has an account
on either one of these sites usually posts pictures to be shared with their
“friends,” “followers” or fellow Pintrest followers. I just happen to be a member of all three
social networking sites.
I have on several occasions posted
pictures of my favorite sports teams and players. I never really considered that there might be
copyright infringement issues with my photos as well as the photos that many of
my friends post as well. For example, if
I attend a baseball game and take a picture of my team and post it to
Pinterest, I own the rights to that particular photo. But, if one of my followers copies my photo
and pins it to their board or posts it on Facebook or Twitter, they have in
essence stolen my property and there are committing copyright
infringement. According to an article written
my Meredith Yoeman, “the chance of someone actually
being sued for copyright infringement is slim because most people want their
product pinned. After all, it is free advertising and promotion.”
But copyright infringement is a serious
issue. In 2011, the owner of the website
HDHOCKY.TV was indicted for copyright infringement. According to the Department of Justice, the
website was selling “DVDs containing recordings of
copyrighted television broadcasts of hockey games and other copyrighted works
such as team and player profiles, from the National Hockey League (NHL) and
other professional hockey leagues.” The
website did not have permission from any league to reproduce or distribute
these recordings.
Another issue affecting the
Sporting Industry is the sale of counterfeit merchandise. Anti-Piracy agents seized $6.2 Million worth of sports merchandise. The seizure was a
part of a nationwide effort called “Operation Fake Sweep.” Officials targeted stores, flea markets,
street vendors and websites selling counterfeit sports merchandise. One man arrested for copyright infringement
operated 16 websites that would stream live pay-per-view sporting events. After reading these articles about copyright
infringement indictments, a person may think twice about posting a picture of
their favorite sports team.
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