Pinterest's Terms of Service, Word By Terrifying Word

Pinterest is surely a rising star. For those of you not in the know, it’s the online equivalent of a bulletin board – a slicker, cleaner way to put together collages of your favorite styles, photographs, design ideas, or dino art. But lately, Pinterest’s terms of service have been garnering a lot of criticism for stating in no uncertain terms that anything you “pin” to their site belongs to them. Completely. Wholly. Forever and for always. Here’s the offending paragraph:

Read the whole story at Scientific American

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Comments

[joemac1114]

01:59 PM on 03/25/2012

Well glad I haven't signed up and now I will not.

[chemister7]

07:11 PM on 03/23/2012

This seems to be another pileofcrap to avoid.

[VapeGirl]

01:44 PM on 03/23/2012

That is why these so called social media websites are so bad. They want to own you. You have no privacy. They are nothing more than mass marketing tool- that is all they are. Haven't any of you figured that out yet? Now they are going after your very thoughts and creativity. Want to be socially connected to friends - family? Pick up the phone and talk to them - go for lunch - go to a movie and stop relying on social media websites to socialize.

[yukti]

01:34 PM on 03/23/2012

You just need to post responsibly, if you fear that work is creative and you want it to be only yours - don't post it on Pinterest or some website like that. Simple! There is no need to feel horrified about anything. There is no ignorance from the fact anymore that whatever you post online stays on google, FB or whatever-it-is server.

[traveler291]

01:30 PM on 03/23/2012

pinterest is harboring the theft of intellectual property and claiming it as their own. this is the most egregious form of theft there is and an insult to those working in the craft of photography.

just because work is posted on the internet on a personal or business site does not make it fair game for one to freely take it and give ownership rights to others.

[J0E1]

12:38 PM on 03/23/2012

Oh I get it, I keep mentioning A O eL in my comment and it keeps getting flagged for review.  Nice HPo.

[J0E1]

12:38 PM on 03/23/2012

Why was my comment deleted?  This is a non-story and has been the wording in every user agreement on every media site and chat room for over a decade.  I remember the outrage back in 2002 when someone actually read the user agreement on AOL instant messenger.  It specifically stated that everything, every comment, every file, and every photo sent over AIM was the property of AOL.  Nothing has changed.  I love when there is "new outrage" over the same thing every few years.

[traveler291]

01:20 PM on 03/23/2012

while pinterest gives that same appearance they actually go beyond in claiming rights-ownership of intellectual property.

they knowingly strip the copyright data within the imaging upon hosting the submitted content on their servers by those pinning" content not owned. you like my photography, you use it to pin and give rights to pinterest you don't have.

such theft and data stripping makes it a nightmare for the actual owner to make claim for infringement.

the "no pin" metta tag on a personal web site is also not due diligence on the part of pinterest in thwarting theft. unacceptable and meaningless as if every site did the same then such keywording would become an exercise of whack-a-mole against intellectual property theft.

[emily00011]

12:24 PM on 03/23/2012

about time you guys stopped raving about pinterest and pointed out the fine print. I was thinking about it, but I just became convinced to add the nopin meta tag to my websites.
I'm reconsidering all the photo sharing places I post to also, since those have no protection.

I've already had someone rip off one of my photos to promote their an online class with which I wasn't associated without giving me credit. THat wasn't at all nice.

It's just a matter of time before they start sending the traffic to people who give them money using YOUR photos.

[thoughtsandshots]

11:17 AM on 03/23/2012

What happens when you pin someone else's work?

[emily00011]

12:12 PM on 03/23/2012

You open yourself to a lawsuit where you have to pay your own costs, Pinterest's costs and the plaintiff's should you lose.

[J0E1]

11:03 AM on 03/23/2012

Just like every other website on the internet.  Heck, this same article came out over a decade ago about AOL Instant Messenger LOL.  They also said that anything and everything, pictures, comments, attachments, ect sent over AIM was the property of AOL.  Here we are, TEN YEARS later, still talking about it like it's some new and unique thing.

[Treehuggindirtworshiper]

10:55 AM on 03/23/2012

Well I'm glad I don't "pin" any original ideas.

[Hardy Blacklord]

10:43 AM on 03/23/2012

When the product is free, you’re not the customer. You are the product.
Same with Facebook, Google, Twitter, Pinterest,.....

[TruEngineHearing]

10:14 AM on 03/23/2012

...the copyright fish just crawled ashore on brand new legs, and is learning how to scoot up to your front door and into your home; declaring the right to license anything and everything you think you own - and anything they don't want, they'll steal and sell back to you.

[traveler291]

01:25 PM on 03/23/2012

i don't think i know what i own, i know exactly what copyright material i own. pin that work and (pinterest) is harboring the theft of intellectual property and claiming it as their own.