HomeTerms and conditions

Terms and conditions [view summary version]

Last updated: 9 April 2016

Contents

1. Application of these terms and conditions

The following terms and conditions apply to all users of the FreeDigitalPhotos.net website: its visitors and its contributors (referred to in these terms and conditions as "You", "Your" or "Yours" as the context requires).

2. Use of the FreeDigitalPhotos.net website

By using this website and/or downloading or uploading any material, You agree to be bound by this agreement. This agreement applies to You and, if You are using this website on Your client's behalf, to You and Your clients. We reserve the right to change this agreement at any time without further notice. We reserve the right to update and/or change Our pricing structure as needed. Your use of the site will be subject to the most current version of the terms and conditions published on the site at the time of Your use. By using this site and downloading, uploading or using any images listed under the FreeDigitalPhotos.net domain You agree to be bound by this agreement. Should You disagree with anything stated here please discontinue Your use of the site and erase all data You have downloaded.

All images provided by FreeDigitalPhotos.net are owned by Our Contributors (photographers / graphic designers). All rights in the images are protected by international copyright laws.

FreeDigitalPhotos.net may immediately revoke all licences granted to You without notice if You fail to comply with any provision of this agreement. If a licence is revoked, You agree to immediately stop using this site and the images, delete all images and all copies from all media and destroy all other copies. Your use of this site and any images shall comply with all applicable laws in the country in which You operate.

You are solely responsible for determining whether Your use of any image requires the consent of any third party or the licence of any additional rights, and You should not rely solely on the information provided by FreeDigitalPhotos.net or its Contributors. If You are unsure whether additional third-party rights are needed for Your use, You are responsible for consulting with competent rights management professionals or legal advisors.

FreeDigitalPhotos.net makes reasonable efforts to comply with and solve all issues regarding potential copyrights and trademarks available on the international market. The responsibility for the images uploaded is entirely the Contributor's, he/she being the one who holds all copyrights over the content submitted.

If you have found a file that represents such an infringement please notify us, in order that We may take the appropriate measures.

3. Acknowledgements, representations and warranties

By using the website or any other of Our services, You acknowledge and agree with the following statements:

  • FreeDigitalPhotos.net provides access to an online service comprising information and materials created and posted by its Contributors
  • images on the website that are available for licence are stored on FreeDigitalPhotos.net's servers at the direction of FreeDigitalPhotos.net's Contributors
  • any review of uploaded images that may be performed by FreeDigitalPhotos.net before making such images available to the public is cursory and only intended to identify immediately obvious violations of these terms. Accordingly, and despite any such vigilance, the Contributor uploading an image shall be deemed the party at whose direction that image resides on FreeDigitalPhotos.net's servers
  • FreeDigitalPhotos.net requires that its users never upload images that infringe upon any right belonging to a third party. Uploading images that infringe on third party rights constitutes a direct and material breach of these express terms and will subject the uploading Contributor's account to suspension and/or termination, at the discretion of FreeDigitalPhotos.net
  • the Contributor, by uploading an image, asserts and confirms that he/she is the sole holder of all exclusive rights to that image
  • where an image has no obvious proprietary marking that indicates an exclusive owner, FreeDigitalPhotos.net cannot be deemed to have actual knowledge that the image infringes upon any third party's rights
  • FreeDigitalPhotos.net has no right or ability to control the activities of Contributors who create and upload images to the website. In the event that a Contributor infringes upon a third party's rights by creating or uploading an image, that Contributor is the sole responsible party for such infringement, and FreeDigitalPhotos.net has no control over such activity
  • apart from identifying an obvious proprietary marking in an image that indicates an exclusive owner (such as a watermark or copyright notice), FreeDigitalPhotos.net has no other ability to determine whether the rights appurtenant to a particular image may belong to a party other than the uploading Contributor. As its only other means of identifying images that may infringe upon a third party's rights, FreeDigitalPhotos.net relies entirely on properly presented notifications from third parties claiming that their rights have been violated
  • all fees collected by FreeDigitalPhotos.net are collected by them as agents for the Contributors to whom FreeDigitalPhotos.net account for the payment and deduct a handling charge.

4. Use of images downloaded from FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Our terms apply equally to personal, corporate, educational and charitable use. Images can be used subject to the terms of the appropriate licence set out below and subject to the relevant law of the state in which the image is used worldwide, in perpetuity, and with no time limitations.

We offer two types of licence for Our images - a Standard Licence and an Extended Licence. In most cases the Standard Licence will be sufficient.

4.1. Standard Licence

A Standard Licence is a royalty-free licence which gives You the right to use the image for Yourself, or on behalf of Your client, but not to sell on the image or to sub-license it to anyone else. Under this licence images can be acquired in two ways: "Free" and "Purchased". A Free image is subject to the terms specific to Free images set out below which importantly require that You must publish an acknowledgement to FreeDigitalPhotos.net and the image creator adjacent to where the image is used. Please click here for more information about publishing an acknowledgement. Purchased images do not have this requirement. Both Free and Purchased images are subject to the limitations set out in the table below (see 4.3 Acceptable and prohibited use).

4.1.1. Editorial images

Editorial images are supplied with our Standard Licence, but they may only be used for non-commercial and non-promotional purposes. In most cases no legal releases have been signed by the people within these images or on behalf of any property or designs featured. This means that the images may not be used for any purpose which will result in You making money. No Extended Licence is available for editorial images. All Our terms and conditions still apply to editorial images.

You are responsible for any changes You make to an editorial image and any claim made against You as a result. We strongly advise that You do not adjust an editorial image in any way which could change the perceived message or context of the image.

Please note that images which are available for commercial use (not marked as an ‘editorial image’) may still be used for editorial purposes.

4.2. Extended Licence

An Extended Licence is a royalty-free licence which gives You the right to use the image for all purposes and to sell or distribute the image on any merchandise or products produced by You but expressly excludes the right to use the image in any way on any print-on-demand website like, but not limited to, Zazzle or Cafepress. Usage is subject to the limitations set out in the table below.

4.3. Acceptable and prohibited use

The table below provides an overview of what is allowed under each licence. If Your intended use is not listed below, please contact us for advice.

How you intend to use the image Type of licence you need
Websites (unless it is a template for mass distribution). Eg websites for business (for yourself or a client), personal, educational or charitable use, plus blogs, forums and Facebook/Twitter/Google+ pages. Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
Printed media (eg newspapers, magazines, newsletters, booklets, flyers, advertising and promotional material). Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
DVD, Blu-ray, CD and digital music covers. Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
Book or eBook covers and inner pages (including books which are published through a print on demand service such as Amazon). Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
Television broadcasts. Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
Films (eg video productions and YouTube or Vimeo videos). Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
Facebook profile or cover pictures (unless it is a template for mass distribution). Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
Twitter avatars or backgrounds (unless it is a template for mass distribution). Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
Software, apps and video games – incidental use where the image is not important to the functioning of the software. Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
Emails (eg business, marketing and personal emails). Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
School or college projects. Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
PowerPoint presentations, Word documents and other end-user applications (unless it is for mass distribution). Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
Desktop wallpaper (unless it is for mass distribution) Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
Artists reference and canvas/framed artwork – where the resulting artwork is for personal use. Standard Licence
(free* or purchased images)
Artists reference and canvas/framed artwork – where the resulting artwork is for sale. Extended Licence
Flash cards, language courses and online learning systems etc - where the images are integral to the functioning of the system, eg a picture is shown and has to be indentified. Extended Licence
Product packaging or labels. Extended Licence

Products or printed merchandise for mass distribution where the image is the sole, or a main, reason the product would be chosen; whether the item is distributed free of charge or sold. This includes, but isn't limited to:

  • Greeting cards, mugs, T-shirts, calendars, jigsaws and other puzzles.
  • End user application templates, eg PowerPoint presentation or Word document templates.
  • Desktop wallpaper.
  • Facebook profile or cover pictures.
  • Twitter avatar or backgrounds.
  • Web templates, eg templates distributed via Theme Forest or Template Monster.

This excludes distribution on merchandise sites, see below.

 Extended Licence
Products or printed merchandise for resale on merchandise sites such as Zazzle and CafePress. Prohibited – no licence available
Logos and other corporate identity devices which may acquire trademark or copyright protection. Prohibited – no licence available
Pornographic, unlawful or defamatory uses. Prohibited – no licence available
Infringement of copyright, trade name, trademark or service mark. Prohibited – no licence available
Redistribution or resale as a digital or printed image. Prohibited – no licence available

* If You use a Free image You must publish an acknowledgement to FreeDigitalPhotos.net and the image creator on the same page or screen where the image is used. Please click here for more information about publishing an acknowledgement. Purchased images do not have this requirement.

4.3.1. Editorial images

Editorial images have additional restrictions because they cannot be used for commercial or promotional purposes. Below are some examples of acceptable and prohibited use for editorial images, which apply when used in either printed or electronic formats:

Acceptable use of editorial images Prohibited use of editorial images
To illustrate truthful articles within:
  • Websites
  • Magazines
  • Newspapers
  • Blog posts
  • News broadcasts
  • Documentary broadcasts
  • Books
  • Newsletters
  • Advertising (through any medium)
  • Advertorials
  • Commercial brochures
  • Commercial websites
  • Product packaging

4.4. Terms specific to Free images

If You use a Free version of an image (that is, an image for which You do not make payment) You must publish an acknowledgement, on the same page or screen where the image is used, to FreeDigitalPhotos.net and the image creator. This is mandatory and forms part of the user agreement. Please click here for more information about publishing an acknowledgement.

If You are unable or unwilling to comply with this term then You must purchase the image in order to use it. Publishing an acknowledgement is optional for Purchased images.

Downloading an image (whether Free or Purchased) does not transfer the copyright, merely a licence to use the image for the purposes stated above. You may not claim that the image is Your own.

Unauthorised use of these images constitutes copyright infringement and shall entitle FreeDigitalPhotos.net and/or its Contributors to exercise all rights and remedies under applicable copyright law, including an injunction preventing further use and monetary damages against all users and beneficiaries of the use of such images. The foregoing is not a limiting statement of FreeDigitalPhotos.net rights or remedies in connection with any unauthorised use.

4.5. Manipulation of images

Manipulations, deviations and modifications of FreeDigitalPhotos.net images are allowed as well as including images in composites to achieve a desired effect.

You may not sell or redistribute images where the original FreeDigitalPhotos.net image used in the image is distinguishable in the compilation as a primary component UNLESS the use is specifically granted under the terms of the Extended Licence.

Images used in manipulated, modified or deviated form in a composition that are so thoroughly incorporated that they are not reasonably identifiable are not subject to these restrictions.

Ownership of the copyright of manipulated, deviated and modified FreeDigitalPhotos.net images remains with the FreeDigitalPhotos.net contributor and may not be assumed by any other person if the original image is still identifiable in part or in whole.

4.6. Model and property releases

Where indicated, Our Contributors have provided Us with a model release or property release which authorises them to sell images of that person or property. Please note that releases are usually not required for images sold for editorial use only.

4.7. Sensitive subjects

Any licence granted by FreeDigitalPhotos.net shall not constitute a representation that that image is compatible for use with any other material. You are solely responsible for the use of any image in combination with any other material, and You agree not to use images in sensitive topics without FreeDigitalPhotos.net’s separate written agreement. Such sensitive topics include, but are not limited to: models with mental or physical health issues, social issues, sexual activity, sexual orientation or related, substance abuse, crime or other subjects that can be considered to be offensive or unflattering to any of the models included in the image.

You must contact FreeDigitalPhotos.net for additional information prior to any use of an image in a sensitive topic.

4.8. Availability of images

Any image you have downloaded (either Free or Purchased) may be downloaded multiple times at no extra charge so long as that image remains available on the FreeDigitalPhotos.net website.

4.9. Refund policy

If You have downloaded an image that has technical flaws please contact us and at Our discretion We will either replace the image at no extra cost or refund any sum You have paid for the image. At no time will We be liable to You for any other losses whether direct, indirect or consequential arising out of an image with any technical or other flaws.

4.10. Notification of copyright infringement

FreeDigitalPhotos.net may terminate the accounts of Contributors who upload images onto the FreeDigitalPhotos.net website which may infringe the intellectual property rights of others. If You believe that Your work has been used or copied in a way that constitutes copyright infringement and that such infringement is occurring on the FreeDigitalPhotos.net website, complete the "Report a problem with this image" form accessible from every image on the website. Alternatively, send FreeDigitalPhotos.net a notice containing: (i) a physical or electronic signature of the copyright owner or person authorised to act on behalf of the copyright owner; (ii) a description of the copyrighted work or works that You claim have been infringed and identification of what material in such work(s) is claimed to be infringing; (iii) a description of where the material that You claim is infringing is located on the FreeDigitalPhotos.net site; (iv) information sufficient to permit FreeDigitalPhotos.net to contact You, such as Your physical address, telephone number, and email address; (v) a statement that You have a good faith belief that the use of the material You identified is not authorised by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and (vii) a statement by You that the information in Your notice is accurate and, under penalty of perjury, that You are the copyright owner or authorised to act on the copyright owner's behalf. Our address is Hing Yip Commercial Centre, 272-284 Des Voeux Road Central, Hong Kong.

4.11. Indemnity

You agree to fully and effectually indemnify, defend, and hold harmless FreeDigitalPhotos.net against all claims, liability, damages, costs and expenses, including all reasonable legal fees and expenses, arising out of or related to any breach of this agreement, the use of this site and the use of any image either alone or in combination with any other material, Your failure to abide by any restriction regarding the use of an image, or any claim by a third party related to the use of an image, alone or in combination with any other material.

4.12. Exclusion of liability

FreeDigitalPhotos.net provides images supplied by the Contributors in good faith but without any responsibility that the Contributor is entitled to place the image on the website.  You are responsible for ensuring that Your use of any image complies with all laws and regulations which apply in the area where You publish or make use of the image.

5. Contributors

5.1 Registering for a Contributor's account

To upload any images, You have to apply for a FreeDigitalPhotos.net account and You agree to provide complete, true and accurate information in Your application. FreeDigitalPhotos.net reserves sole discretion over whether to grant You an account, and You agree to access the authorised sections of the website and Your account only by using the email address and password chosen.

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of Your password and You shall not distribute this access information or allow others to use this access information to gain access to this site. You agree to take reasonable steps to prevent others from obtaining Your access information and to notify FreeDigitalPhotos.net of any unauthorised access or need to update or remove access for any of Your employees or agents.

At anytime, You may request Your account access to be restricted or terminated, but FreeDigitalPhotos.net reserves the right to delay or deny any final payment due if suspicious activity is suspected.

5.2. Contributor responsibility

As a Contributor You are entirely responsible for the images You upload. By uploading files You confirm You are the sole copyright holder for the image. When an image includes a recognisable person You must provide an appropriate, signed model release form for that person. This includes children, deceased persons, speakers of another language; cases in which a parent, a guardian or another authorised person should provide explicit consent.

FreeDigitalPhotos.net will not be held responsible for any of the images You upload to the site.

In cases where images include elements of other people's work, it is Your sole responsibility to provide an appropriate, signed property release form to show that You have obtained authorisation to include those elements in the new work which is being uploaded for sale.

5.3. Copyright

You as the Contributor acknowledge that FreeDigitalPhotos.net prohibits any image or any other material that infringes on any patent, trademark, copyright, right to privacy, right to publicity, or any other applicable law or proprietary right to be uploaded to its website located at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

By uploading Your image, You as the Contributor are warranting that You own all intellectual property rights, including copyright, in and to the image. Where You do not own all intellectual property rights You will provide an appropriate property release form signed by the intellectual property rights owner.

When You upload an image for editorial use only it is Your sole responsibility to provide an appropriate, signed release form if the intellectual property rights for subjects within that image extend to editorial use.

You confirm that all information provided by You at submission date and during the time that the file is hosted on FreeDigitalPhotos.net's servers is true and accurate. FreeDigitalPhotos.net reserves the right to verify the information and to take the appropriate measures in case of spam or any inaccurate information.

You as the Contributor hereby grant FreeDigitalPhotos.net a non-exclusive licence to post the image on its website and to deliver it to its audience, affiliates or other representatives, through different media channels, and further grants FreeDigitalPhotos.net and its representatives the right to sublicense the image to their customers in accordance with the terms of the FreeDigitalPhotos.net licence agreement, a copy of which You as the Contributor acknowledge reviewing and agreeing to.

The parties agree that all rights, including title and copyright, in and to the uploaded images, shall be retained by You as the Contributor, unless otherwise mentioned by the licence agreement. You acknowledge that no monetary or financial compensation is owing or required to be paid to You as the Contributor by FreeDigitalPhotos.net or any of its directors, officers, employees partners, agents or members for the rights granted herein by You other than to account to You for the payments received from visitors to the website.

While FreeDigitalPhotos.net acknowledges that its policy is to provide the Contributor with certain payments whenever an image uploaded by that Contributor is downloaded and paid for by a visitor, the parties agree that FreeDigitalPhotos.net may amend such policy from time to time, as reasonable business objectives may require.

5.4. Pricing policy

FreeDigitalPhotos.net reserves the right to set sale prices for all image sizes and formats. Contributors will be given at least 30 days notice of any change to the pricing policy.

5.5. Payment

FreeDigitalPhotos.net pays its Contributors an agreed percentage of the revenue resulting from sales of their images. FreeDigitalPhotos.net reserves the right to change the percentage payable at any time. Our Contributors will be notified of any changes to the agreed percentage; and the changes may apply to any sales on and after the date of notification.

The percentage payable is based on the price which the customer pays for the image, not on any 'standard' price. Therefore if the customer purchases an image at a discounted price then the percentage payable is calculated using the discounted price paid, not the undiscounted price.

FreeDigitalPhotos.net shall pay to each Contributor any sum due to the Contributor when the balance due to the Contributor equals or exceeds US$10. The payment will be made to the Contributor through their PayPal account as specified by the Contributor within their FreeDigitalPhotos.net account management area. FreeDigitalPhotos.net may deduct from any payment refunds that have been made to customers in respect of the Contributor's images.

FreeDigitalPhotos.net is entitled to carefully analyse all details and logs of the Contributor's sales on the website. If any suspicion exists, FreeDigitalPhotos.net has the right to delay the payment until all details are cleared or to refuse the payment.

You acknowledge that FreeDigitalPhotos.net is under no obligation to You to continue to display Your image on its website. FreeDigitalPhotos.net shall not be responsible to You in any way for the loss of any potential sales during any period when either the website is not functioning or one or more of Your images does not appear on the website.

5.6. Indemnity by Contributors

You as the Contributor agree that neither FreeDigitalPhotos.net nor any of its directors, officers, employees, partners or agents shall be liable for any damages, whether direct, indirect, consequential or incidental, arising out of the use of, or the inability to use, the image. You further acknowledge that You are responsible for any challenges made by any third party regarding copyrights in the image.

You agree to fully and effectually indemnify, defend, and hold harmless FreeDigitalPhotos.net against all claims, liability, damages, costs and expenses, including all reasonable legal fees and expenses, arising out of or related to any breach of this agreement of this agreement by You, Your use of this website and the use of any image either alone or in combination with any other material, Your failure to abide by any restriction regarding the use of an image, or any claim by a third party related to the use of an image, alone or in combination with any other material.

You as the Contributor agree that FreeDigitalPhotos.net is entitled to use any image supplied by You without charge solely for the purpose of advertising and marketing the FreeDigitalPhotos.net website and the services supplied by it.

If You have chosen not to permit high resolution versions of images supplied by You to be used in this way, then only small, medium or large sized versions shall be used by FreeDigitalPhotos.net for the purpose of advertising and marketing the services supplied by it.

5.7. Use of images by customers

Customers who download Contributors’ images, whether Free or Purchased, agree to use the images in accordance with our terms and conditions. FreeDigitalPhotos.net is not responsible for use or misuse of images in breach of our terms and conditions, and no liability is accepted in such circumstances.

5.8. Removal of Your images from the website

You may request deletion of Your images from the website at any time. Images that have been downloaded by customers prior to their removal from the website will remain properly licensed; we are unable to revoke licences which have previously been granted.

5.9. Termination of accounts

You may request termination of Your account at any time, for any reason. Images that have been downloaded by customers prior to their removal from the website will remain properly licensed; we are unable to revoke licences which have previously been granted.

We may terminate Your account at any time, for any reason, for example, but not limited to: deception, copyright infringement, continual submission of poor quality images.

Any monies owed to You at the time of termination will be paid, except where we suspect unusual activity on the account, in which case we may delay payment indefinitely while We investigate.

6. Proper law and jurisdiction

This agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the law of England and Wales and each party agrees to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Hong Kong.