Hi, I have asked this question in another forum as well but would like to gather as many opinions as possible. I am just slightly confused by the way one stock photo site is formulating their license. http://www.stockxpert.com/info.phtml?f=help&s=12_4 Quote: Quote: So, if I make a free wordpress theme that will be distributed free (with sponsored footer links that are not disclosed as sponsored), I can't use the images I downloaded from them or not? Should I give credits to the original photographer in this case..? I just dont have much experience with that site and will appreciate an advice. Thanks!
Upon reading Stockexpert's terms, I really think that you can't use any of their image as part of your free template. Even if you don't intend to sell the template, still you are bound to their terms. What Stockexpert is protecting is the rights of their freelance photographers who would still earn out of the photos that you purchased. Having a Royalty Free license doesn't give you the right to distribute the image to other persons, although you can use it in as many ways as you want so long as the use doesn't involve distribution (such as using a photo for an ebook, an article, a number of sites that YOU own). What the license does is that it gives you the opportunity to use the photo at a low price. If you want to distribute the photo to N number of people, you have to buy the photo with full rights attached to it; but it doesn't come cheap if you do. We can compare royalty free images with PLR articles. The only difference is that some PLR sellers give master resell rights to buyers. With photostocks, it's not the same. I suggest that you use images from FREE image repositories, such as SXC.hu (I think this is the free counterpart of stockexpert) for your web templates.
bruewrite is correct, though even free sites usually have terms that govern how images are used in web templates. Free images are govered by site-specific licenses and you have to abide by those terms, just like purchased images. We granted a specific exception that allows for template use, but requires a linked credit in the footer. It's the only application that we require credit. http://www.freerangestock.com/news_details.php?id=102
Yes, for paid templates as well as free. I'm guessing an arrangement could be made to remove the link - it would be negotiated on a photographer by photographer basis.
Royalty-Free does not mean "free". You still pay an upfront fee but don't pay ongoing royalty fees (IE: monthly or annual fees).