If you don’t think celebrities can be sued over sharing their likeness then take it from Jessica Simpson, who’s being sued for posting a shot taken by paparazzi on Instagram, they can be. It seems a little ridiculous to think that a person couldn’t possibly share a picture of their likeness with anyone they wanted, but it would violate the copyright of the company that took the picture in this case. It could potentially lose them revenue and it could even damage their reputation somehow. So when it was found out that Simpson had posted this alleged picture to her Instagram and then shared it with her millions of followers Splash News was quick to file a lawsuit against the actress/singer.
I’m slowly massaging my temples over this one because it stands to reason that paparazzi are shooting dozens of shots at a time if not more as they continually try to get the best shot of the celebs that they are always hovering around like buzzards. Sometimes I can’t believe it’s not an invasion of privacy how close they get but apparently it’s not that big of a deal unless someone’s sticking a camera literally right into a celeb’s face. The fact that they can surround someone, surround their car, make it difficult to get anywhere, and even just disorient the celebs is one big reason why I’m glad I’ll never be famous. Chances are I’d be broke after smashing a camera or three. It doesn’t even seem to matter if the celebs ask the paparazzi to please take a hike it’s not a good time, because it’s always a great time for the camera. Whether they’re in good spirits or bad celebs don’t have much in the way of a private life when they’re out and about sometimes.
But back to the photo. You would think that with all the photos that a news service like Splash News takes on an average basis, I’m just guessing but I’m betting that there’s a lot, they would be able to find another photo that would work just as well and forego a lawsuit. Otherwise it kind of looks like they want to be petty and get whatever they can to make a point. Seriously, one photo out of how many? Let me guess, it’s the principle of the thing. No judgment, I just happen to think it sound’s kind of odd that another photo out of the bunch would have worked just fine.
In one sense I can understand the need to hold onto property that’s yours even if you won’t use it. Simpson might not have known the picture was copyrighted, which makes me wonder now if she received a warning to take it down and didn’t or they went straight to the lawsuit. Considering that lawsuit could get spendy for both sides I would hope that they gave her a warning and it was disregarded. At least then they’d be able to state that they did do everything in their power to contact her.
Or maybe that’s not how it works in these cases.
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