Taking a longer view of images
Search for an image on Google, click on the thumbnail of the image you are interested in, and you will notice that the View Image button has disappeared.
One of the world's largest photo libraries, Getty Images, had complained to regulators in both the US and EU that Google's inclusion of high-resolution images and the View Image button made it easy for users of its image search to rip off the image, often unaware that in doing so they were committing intellectual property theft.
This removal of the View image button is part of the legal settlement which will allow Google to continue to show Getty Image photographs in its search results, and is intended to encourage people to visit the website hosting the image where they will see it in context and, in the case of an image library, be reminded that it is a licensed image, not public domain.
A statement from Gettty Images says: "Google has agreed to make changes in Image Search, including making the copyright disclaimer more prominent and removing the view image button. In addition, we are announcing that Getty Images and Google have embarked on a global strategic partnership that will see deeper integration of Getty Images' world class imagery across Google's suite of products and services."
In one way this is a good thing. Photographers are as entitled to earn from their skills as any other creative, but ever since the advent of the world wide web, many computer users have clung to the self-serving idea that if its on the web, its free for anyone to use, that no-one will mind, and they simply refuse to listen to any other viewpoint. Those users tend to be the same ones who recoil in horror when they receive a demand for fees for unauthorised use of images and swear no-one had ever mentioned copyright to them. So if this move increases the public awareness of intellectual property rights, that is a good thing.
However, I feel there is a downside to this too, in the "deeper integration of Getty Images with Google". Searching for information by looking at images is a powerful tool, but inclusion of stock photographs in the search diminishes this ability. You might, for example, be searching for an article you once read where you cannot remember the name of the person involved, but do remember there was a photograph of her dancing by her desk. The human brain is very good at remembering those sorts of associations.
However, use Google Image Search to look for "woman dancing by desk" and chances are you will get dozens of stock photos in the results from the likes of Getty, Alamy, Shutterstock, iStockPhoto, and so on, of models posing in offices. That would be great if you just wanted to find a stock photo to illustrate your own web site or to pop into a powerpoint presentation, but pretty useless if you are trying to find specific information and using the image as a waypost and recognition factor.
You will find a new option in Image Search under Tools, to limit the search to certain types of usage rights. Unfortunately, there is nothing under Tools to exclude photo libraries from search results.
27th February 2018
This article comes from the SKILLZONE email newsletter, published monthly since January 2008, and covering topics related to technology and the internet. All articles and artwork in the SKILLZONE newsletter are orignal content.