Is using a screenshot of a website illegal?

[NicoleMarie]

I'm planning to have a blog page on my website where users can discuss their experiences with art marketplaces. I'd like to have a screenshot of each website as the main picture. From what I've found, that doesn't violate copyright as long as I'm not directly making money from it and as long as the picture is unaltered. Can anyone confirm this?

 

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[AllenCrawley]

I don't know off hand but it would be simple enough to contact them for permission. I doubt they would mind if the image also linked to their site.

 

[NicoleMarie]

Ok, I'll be sure to contact the website and link to it. Thanks!

 

[Deleted20833]

"In its most general sense, a fair use is any copying of copyrighted material done for a limited and “transformative” purpose, such as to comment upon, criticize, or parody a copyrighted work. Such uses can be done without permission from the copyright owner. In other words, fair use is a defense against a claim of copyright infringement. If your use qualifies as a fair use, then it would not be considered an illegal infringement."

 

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[Mattie]

I would just ask permission before you use it. I know some people that don't like stuff used without consent, and have reported to Google and the sites taken down in a few hours.

 

[Y.B.]

You are free to use their screenshot

 

[whiteeclipse]

As I understand website screenshots are public records, therefor it's no not illegal.

 

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[gstarr]

Screenshots are ok....you will find many reputable websites that take screenshots for both highlighting good websites and to critique them.

 

[Marvinyo]

It really relies on how you promote it. Illegal or not, it won't stop someone from trying to take those screenshots down. Someone can always file a DMCA report on your host, and ask you to take it down. In my opinion, just blur out the content and make sure things don't go wrong.

 

[NicoleMarie]

Thanks guys!

It really relies on how you promote it. Illegal or not, it won't stop someone from trying to take those screenshots down. Someone can always file a DMCA report on your host, and ask you to take it down. In my opinion, just blur out the content and make sure things don't go wrong.

Hmmm, well it's going to be an "open for discussion" post so that could go wrong. Maybe I'll just skip the screenshots and talk about/link to it.

 

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[NicoleMarie]

Alright, as an update, I emailed Etsy. They said, "You are more than welcome to use a screenshot of the Etsy homepage as a picture for your blog post. We have no intention of requesting that your blog post is removed should someone express their opinions about Etsy." I guess messaging each place beforehand is the way to go. If they don't reply, that means their customer service is probably not good enough to mention their site haha.

 

[H. Palmer]

Using someone always else's text, images, art, source code and all other creative expressions, ALWAYS violates copyright.

However, that doesn't mean you will get into trouble.

As some have suggested, contact the owners of the productions.

But don't use stuff when you don't have permission to do so.

 

[redsfaithful]

Using someone always else's text, images, art, source code and all other creative expressions, ALWAYS violates copyright.

Simply not true. Fair Use is fuzzy and too open to interpretation right now (it needs clarified further I believe), but it absolutely does exist.

Not to mention, there are plenty of times someone else's text, images, etc. are open to use under Creative Commons. Many copyright holders are fine with their work being used.

I've used screenshots of website's plenty of times, never had a problem. That doesn't mean YOU won't have a problem, but just putting it out there.

I will also say, you can really paralyze yourself worrying about this sort of thing. Just move forward and use common sense.

If you are potentially going to have negative information/reviews about their site, then it probably pays to be cautious. When I have used screenshots it's always been in a flattering manner.

 

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[H. Palmer]

Simply not true. Fair Use is fuzzy and too open to interpretation right now (it needs clarified further I believe), but it absolutely does exist.

Fair use does not comprise commercial intent.

 

[Silverhawk851]

you never really know until you get a cease and desist...

 

[redsfaithful]

Fair use does not comprise commercial intent.

You pretty clearly can claim fair use in commercial works. Plenty of criticism/reviews are sold, have commercial intent, and contain quotes or clips of what they are reviewing. That's just one example.

From copyright.gov:

Section 107 contains a list of the various purposes for which the reproduction of a particular work may be considered fair, such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Section 107 also sets out four factors to be considered in determining whether or not a particular use is fair.

1. The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes
2. The nature of the copyrighted work
3. The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole
4. The effect of the use upon the potential market for, or value of, the copyrighted work

The distinction between what is fair use and what is infringement in a particular case will not always be clear or easily defined. There is no specific number of words, lines, or notes that may safely be taken without permission. Acknowledging the source of the copyrighted material does not substitute for obtaining permission.

The 1961 Report of the Register of Copyrights on the General Revision of the U.S. Copyright Law cites examples of activities that courts have regarded as fair use: “quotation of excerpts in a review or criticism for purposes of illustration or comment; quotation of short passages in a scholarly or technical work, for illustration or clarification of the author’s observations; use in a parody of some of the content of the work parodied; summary of an address or article, with brief quotations, in a news report; reproduction by a library of a portion of a work to replace part of a damaged copy; reproduction by a teacher or student of a small part of a work to illustrate a lesson; reproduction of a work in legislative or judicial proceedings or reports; incidental and fortuitous reproduction, in a newsreel or broadcast, of a work located in the scene of an event being reported.”

Copyright protects the particular way authors have expressed themselves. It does not extend to any ideas, systems, or factual information conveyed in a work.

The safest course is to get permission from the copyright owner before using copyrighted material. The Copyright Office cannot give this permission.

I've helpfully bolded three uses that are usually commercial in nature.

 

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[H. Palmer]

I think you are reading the law in the wrong way.

Exploitation of a blog with commercial intent is not what the law means with criticism, comment, news reporting.

Although a news company has commercial intent, the law makes the fair use exception for activities that directly serve the public good, like news reporting, public debate, education and research. Do you think a commercial blog belongs in any of these categories?

This doesn't mean she is in trouble if she doesn't ask for permission. Her approach of making money in an indirect way could be enough to circumvent copyright infringement claims.

Her asking for permission clears her from everything.

 

[H. Palmer]

Btw NicoleMarie, is that Francoise Hardy in her younger years in your profile picture or are you her granddaughter?

 

[NicoleMarie]

Ah shoot, now I don't know. The money making isn't going to be because of the blog and it's going to simply be a discussion/review post for the users to discover more platforms to sell on. I will be making money from artists posting artwork if that helps. Etsy giving me their permission would hopefully solve this.

@Amschel Lol nope neither, just me.

 

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[H. Palmer]

@Amschel Lol nope neither, just me.

You could have fooled me!