Instagram, the popular photo sharing application for smart phones recently purchased by Facebook, caused quite a stir among their legion of aspiring amateur photographers. A vague change to the Instagram terms of service suggests the company now has the right to sell your photos.
Unlike many other leading social media outlets, the popular photo streaming service has yet to really turn a profit. In a move to likely push the company in such direction, the language on the terms of service was altered, leading many to believe their personal photos could be claimed as assets to Instagram.
The company has since backtracked on the change in service language, saying their intent was never to exploit users personal photos for profit. The move has not come with a lack of heavy criticism, prominent public figures using Instagram like Kim Kardashian, the most followed user overall, threatening to drop the free service altogether.
As the company continues to research options to make the service more lucrative, it appears they’ll have a public relations battle to contend with going into 2013.