Attribution is Still Important, Even on Social Media

Attribution is Still Important, Even on Social Media

Copyright and attribution seem like quaint concepts if you’re browsing the Internet these days. While finding and sharing images has never been easier, a lot of users and accounts take a fairly complacent approach to letting you know where the image is from.

 In an effort to persuade users to attribute content properly, Tumblr updated its Terms Of Service for the first time in two years. “Make sure you always give proper attribution and include full links back to original sources,” the new TOS says. There’s also a warning to users asking them to stay clear of posting content that’s copyrighted or trademarked because Tumblr will comply with DMCA takedown requests.

Tumblr also doesn’t want users to create accounts with “confusing” URLs, i.e. URLs that could easily be confused for the official account of a corporation, a Tumblr user or a celebrity. Parodies are ok, no free speech will be undermined, but impersonation will not be tolerated. It’s a holistic approach to ensuring truth in blogging.

See here the initial post as well as related posts about the issue of copyright and attribution.