We must not forget that sites like Pinterest only become popular and profitable because they have a large member base, high referral of incoming/outgoing traffic; and interesting content…what we say with our words and actions, matters.
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“What you do speaks so loud that I cannot hear what you say.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
One of my favorite quotes about integrity and character is by Ralph Waldo Emerson, “What you do speaks so loud that I cannot hear what you say.” How do we determine the character and/or integrity of a person or business…do we listen to what they say or do we pay attention to what they do?
Because so many of our daily interactions now take place online through forums, social networking sites and shopping venues, words have taken on a whole new level of importance. The small print that is presented upon joining a new social website or purchasing an item can no longer be glossed over and tossed into a virtual trashcan.
“ms. understood” ©kellyangard
Anything we are asked to “agree” to online needs to be examined and questioned, because these contractual agreements “tend to end up being one-sided in the service provider’s favor and are often designed to be beyond any judicial scrutiny”, according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). In an article titled, Terms of (Ab)Use, the EFF states, “using a TOS, online service providers can dictate their legal relationship with users through private contracts rather than rely on the law as written.” The EFF‘s message is loud and clear…we must pay more attention to the words a website chooses to represent itself and its services, especially when we are asked to “agree” to said words.
When people pay more attention, change happens. Take Pinterest for example: after an influx of complaints and loud, unhappy voices peppering internet forums, blogs and tweets, Pinterest has announced they are making some changes to their Terms of Service. A few of these changes relate to what I am most concerned about…copyright infringement.
You can read about all the changes Pinterest is making to their TOS on their blog; I’ve included three changes which have to do with what I am most concerned about…copyright infringement:
(1) Removal of the word SELL from their Terms of Service (TOS) in reference to their rights with uploaded content: “Our original Terms stated that by posting content to Pinterest you grant Pinterest the right for us to sell your content. Selling content was never our intention and we removed this from our updated Terms.”
(2) Expanded explanation of consequences for repeat offenders of copyright infringement (found in “Copyright” section of the TOS): “It is Pinterest’s policy, in appropriate circumstances and at its discretion, to disable and/or terminate the accounts of users who repeatedly infringe or are repeatedly charged with infringing the copyrights or other intellectual property rights of others” and are asking those who believe their copyrights are being infringed to “please report alleged copyright infringements taking place on or through the Site by completing the following DMCA Notice of Alleged Infringement and delivering it to Pinterest’s Designated Copyright Agent”.
(3) Addition of a simple tool (on-site form) for reporting alleged copyright violation which when filled out, becomes a valid DMCA statement. (Unfortunately however, a photograph which has been pinned and repinned a number of times requires the copyright owner fill out a form for EACH member who repinned the image.)
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These changes are a good start; I give credit to Pinterest not only for listening, but for taking action. This being said, I believe we MUST continue being a positive force; we must be relentless when it comes to educating others who participate on social networking/image-sharing/creative sites. And we must not forget that sites like Pinterest only become popular and profitable because it has (1) a large member base; (2) high referral of incoming/outgoing traffic; and (3) interesting content, demonstrating that what we say with our words and actions, matters.
