The marketing and communications departments of organizations are managing ever-increasing volumes of media. These media are linked not only to copyright, but also to image rights. How do you find your way around and organize yourself to deal with them?

Copyright

Media-related legal information 

Managing copyright for multimedia content can be a complex business. Depending on the type of content produced and the contracts signed with creators, managing rights can be a real challenge.

It's essential to provide information on reproduction rights for images, videos and other media. To enable users of your DAM to use the media without risk of dispute, the conditions of use, negotiated with the creators, must be clear. This includes the duration of rights, authorized media of use, and territories covered by rights.

Indication of the correct copyright is a must, so that rights holders can be properly credited.

Media can also have several authors: the photo of a work of art, for example (the author of the work and the author of the photo). The DAM must be able to handle this kind of information.

The same applies to video. A film may include additional levels of rights: in addition to the director's rights, you may also have, for example, the rights to the music used (for commercials in particular).

Each of these copyrights may have a different duration, medium and territory. They therefore require very detailed rights management in the DAM.

Copyright and user generated content (UGC)

On social networks, influencers and user communities produce their own content, often of excellent quality. It's tempting for brands to want to use these images and videos. However, it is first necessary to negotiate the use and possible remuneration of the authors. 

Indeed, even if the authors of the images or videos share them publicly on social networks, they remain the owners of the copyright. The people depicted also own the image rights. As with conventional copyright, a written agreement is essential. This agreement must specify the intended distribution media, duration and territories covered.

Image rights

Rights of represented persons

French law stipulates that the photographer/videographer must obtain the written consent of the persons represented before distributing their image. Their agreement must be precise, and in particular indicate the duration and media of distribution. Consent is also required if the person's image is to be reused for a purpose other than that for which it was first used.

It is therefore necessary to obtain authorizations for image rights signed by the persons represented.

Employees may, however, be filmed or photographed as part of their professional activity, without their consent. This is only valid if there is no commercial exploitation of the media created. An article in Archimag magazine provides detailed information on image rights in the workplace.

Models' rights

Models recruited for photos or films also have rights, generally bequeathed for a given period, territories covered and precise distribution media.

Care must be taken, as the use of a model's image after its rights have expired is prohibited, even if the photographer's or director's copyright is still valid.

Property releases

Similarly, a property release must be obtained from the owner of any recognizable property used in a photo or video for commercial use. When images contain buildings, monuments or works of art, a property release protects against legal claims by the property owner.

DAM and rights management

Legal data management

The DAM allows each asset to enter specific data concerning its rights: copyright, expiration date of rights, media covered, territories included, etc. This information must be customized to adapt to each type of content (particularly if there are several categories of rights to manage for the same media) and to the specificities of the multimedia assets managed in the DAM. This information must be customized to suit each type of content (particularly if there are several categories of rights to manage for the same media) and the specific features of the multimedia assets managed in the DAM.

For example, a food company won't have the same image rights issues as a textile company.

Managing access rights to ensure proper use

DAMs like Keepeek can restrict access to content by user profile. This allows DAM users to see only the content they can use in the context in which they work. These restrictions can be based, for example, on the media covered, the territory or the expiry date of rights. These rules make it possible to limit unauthorized use of the media offered by the DAM.

> Restrictions on covered media

This involves defining user categories according to their use: advertising, press, social networks, etc. 

For example, someone in a press relations department will only be able to access content authorized for press use.

> Restrictions based on geographical criteria

Another standard is to restrict the access of users from one country or continent to content negotiated for their territory. 

For example, a user from Argentina will only be able to search and download content for which the rights have been acquired for Latin America. 

> Restrictions on rights expiration dates

A widespread best practice is to prevent any access to media once usage rights have expired. Media is then automatically archived and inaccessible to users. 

> Status restrictions

It is also possible to define special statuses for media categories.

For example, certain photos may be highly confidential prior to the launch of a brand's flagship product. Of course, these images must be accessible to marketing teams to prepare for the launch. On the other hand, other teams, partners or service providers must not have access to them. In this case, media can be assigned a status that makes them invisible to the majority of users. Media automatically switches to a standard status at the exact time of the product reveal, making it accessible to all. 

Empowering users

However, it is advisable to raise users' awareness of these issues, to make them more responsible in their use of the media. 

> Validation of conditions of use

For example, a good practice is to get them to validate the conditions of use of a medium before downloading it. By giving active consent, the user undertakes to use the media within the limits of its permitted uses. 

> Notifications of media no longer to be used

Users who have used media whose rights have since expired should be warned to stop using it. You can set up automatic notification mechanisms. These inform anyone who has downloaded media whose rights have expired that they must stop using it.

> Download request validation step

In some cases, it is preferable not to allow certain categories of users to download media directly. In such cases, the DAM can set up a system of download requests, sent to validators in charge of checking that the intended use complies with acquired rights.

These validation workflows are optimized to facilitate the work of validators, who can process a download request in a minute.

Solutions and services to facilitate rights management

There are a number of solutions and service companies that can help you manage your rights. Here are three examples in common use today.

Mobile applications for image rights authorizations

Until recently, obtaining the consent of those being photographed or filmed was a tedious business. It generally involved getting paper documents signed. These authorizations, stored separately from the photos and videos, were then difficult to access should the need arise.

This process has been facilitated, as many have been, by the arrival of mobile applications. Easy release and Model releaser allow you to generate image rights authorizations from a smartphone, and obtain consent in just a few minutes.

Today's DAMs make it possible to link these digital documents directly to photos or videos of people. This makes it very easy to find the necessary supporting documents in the event of a dispute.

User generated content (UGC) rights management platform 

Applications such as Stackla or Taggbox offer functionalities dedicated to UGC. They make it easy to obtain and manage copyright and image rights for content created by influencers or brand customers. Workflows can be set up to request permission from content creators. Once permission has been obtained, their media can be used in marketing campaigns.

These applications can be integrated with the DAM. For example, Keepeek automatically retrieves content negotiated with creators by Stackla from the DAM.

Rights clearance services

Some companies specialize in the clearance of intellectual property used in films, series, music videos, documentaries, audiovisual projects or commercials. This may involve elements protected by trademark, copyright, image or name rights. This is the case, for example, with I Mediate Clearance, whom we interviewed a few years ago to find out more about media rights. 

Rights and DAM Keepeek

Keepeek can help you set up effective rights management for your media. Contact us to talk to our experts and get an online demo!

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