Hey everyone, today’s topic in my “Blogger Life” series is about copyright infringement on Instagram. I just want to share with you what happened when I found my content being reproduced without my permission on Instagram.
It started when I published my original video from a my visit to Dazzling Cafe on my own Instagram account.
Within a few hours, another Instagram account reposted the video and tagged me in it. I sent that account a direct message on Instagram and politely asked them to remove the video. Since I did not get a response and I saw that the account made new postings, I posted a more aggressive comment on their post of my video to ask them to remove it and mentioning that I would report them to Instagram. I waited for them respond but they didn’t. I then decided to report a copyright infringement claim to Instagram. This all happened within 24 hours of me posting my video.
While other Instagram accounts have reposted by images without my permission, I do let them slide because those accounts tend to have a small following. I don’t find them particularly impactful so to speak. However, in this particular case, the account that reposted by video did so within the first 24 hours that my video my published. In that sense, they were stealing my views. Further to that, that account had a significant following (whether real or unreal) of over 900k followers. Needless to say, my video on their account was racking up more views than on my own.
The Reporting Process
The process of reporting copyright infringement on Instagram was really simple and didn’t take too long. They do suggest that you first try to resolve the issue on your own with the person who posted your content. If there is no resolution, you can submit an online form which is what I did. They ask for your personal details (name, address), the place where you found your content violated, and the place where the original work is found. If you’re reporting a post on Instagram, be sure to use a web browser to find the exact URL of the post.
After submitting the form, I received an e-mail confirmation. Within a day, Instagram sent me a standard e-mail saying that they had taken down my post on the other person’s account. The issue was resolved.
Bottom Line
The intention of my post is just to share with you what you can do when you see others reposting your original content without your consent. I am very impressed with how Instagram handled the matter in such a timely manner. I would encourage others to go through the process if they encounter a similar situation.
For more information on Instagram’s copyright policies, visit here.