Chang v. Virgin Mobile

Description

Flickr photo licensed under CC BY 2.0 unported used in an Australian phone advertisement

Case summary

BACKGROUND

An Australian mobile company used a Flickr photo of a minor subject licensed under CC BY 2.0 unported as part of its advertising campaign launched in 2007. In September 2007, Plaintiffs brought suit against the mobile company under a number of causes of action, including invasion of privacy, copyright infringement and breach of contract. They also brought suit against Creative Commons alleging CC had negligently failed to sufficiently warn creators that CC licenses only address copyright and not privacy and publicity rights.

RESULT

Plaintiffs voluntarily dismissed CC from the lawsuit in November 2007. In January 2009, the Texas district court dismissed the case against the mobile company for lack of personal jurisdiction.

TAKEAWAY

Creative Commons licenses only address the creator's copyright. It does not affirmatively affect publicity or privacy rights. Users of CC-licensed material should make sure to clear the publicity and privacy rights of any works containing human subjects before reusing CC-licensed works.