The line of property rights becomes vague when dealing with matters inside the realm of social media. One nationally profiled case via Twitter may however be the first example of where such a line begins.
Morel initially uploaded the photos to Twitter depicting the devastation following the catastrophic earthquake in Haiti. Just recently a US District Court ruled in favor of photographer Daniel Morel in a personal issue of copyright infringement.
Morel filed later filed suit against the AFP and the Washington Post for using his images.The lawsuit alleged the AFP and Washington Post had violated his rights under the Copyright Act of 1976, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and the Lanham Act.
Although Morel won his legal battle, the presiding judge ruled he would be ineligible to collect damages for each use of his thirteen photographs. Instead, Morel will only be eligible to collect upon statutory damages for the photos utilized in the lawsuit.
The case is considered significant as it settles the dispute over what happens when a large company utilizes images posted by any respective user. It also ensures companies such as Twitter do not lose partial ownership in these specific circumstances.