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well, pictage (as well as several other photographers) lost a lawsuit today against VPS, LLC. VPS, LLC was the plaintiff, suing Pictage and others for patent infringements. (i'm still unclear about the details.)
according to the email i received, this may affect pictage's pricing. but this definitely affects my opinion of using pictage. and while i love their products and the client convenience, i'm not sure if it's worth the costs. i will continue looking into alternative options. if that happens, the weddings that are currently on pictage will be moved to a new online location, and remain available for proofing and purchasing.
all the more reason i want to get proofology up and running!
UPDATE:
as it turns out, pictage, kodak, shutterfly, flikr, and many other online sites and photographers have been victimized by VPS, LLC. VPS is claiming to have patented the IDEA of proofing and selling images online. (U.S. Patents: 6,321,231 and 6,332,146). this lawsuit is simply appalling! and, it is making adam and i question if there would be a viable future for proofology. it seems as though VPS is going after every single (deep pocket) company or photographer who proofs and sells images online. and their settlements aren't shutting these companies down, but making sure they pay a hefty fee for the use of "their" idea.
for the time being, i will stay with pictage, because it seems as though they have done nothing morally or ethically wrong. they were just too BIG at the wrong time.
6 comments (don't be shy...i LOVE comments!):
Hi! I just found your post after googling this (I'm a member of Pictage also) check out what the case was about (if you're ever on the Pictage forum there's a thread about it) before you look into doing other proofing sites. They could sue you too. They claim they have the patent on the concept of images being in online galleries where the images are sold online using the digital file.
Hi Marcia.
Your blog is blast! I too use Pictage. I just hope all goes well. I'm finally getting the hang of it all and the thought of changing won't excite me. I do love their interface and product and proofing service.
~A.Hope
thanks hope! i'm glad enjoy the blog!!
i agree with you guys! after hearing the details about the lawsuit, i really feel like pictage did nothing wrong! so there's no reason to leave them. in fact, they probably need their photographers now more than ever!
Wow. That's pretty much the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. Unbelievable!
Thank you for posting this
WOW! Unbelievable...this is going to make life interesting!
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