do I have permission to use their picture on my landing page? I'm going to get in touch with the merchant but thought it would be quicker to ask here.
No, I don't think you can just assume that you can use their photo. Im no expert though but I think there may be a few legal issues with that.
I'm still waiting for them to contact me. The last thing I want is to get sued, maybe I should just remove the picture. I'll wait till I get a reply first though... the thing is this celebrity has endorsed the product publicly, it's a bit like Gary lineker endorsing Walkers crisps and then putting a picture of him on my site.... I thought if a celebrity endorsed a product publicly then there shouldn't be any problems if I stick their picture on my site as I'm not actually misleading customers. If I stuck a picture of a celebrity who was caught unawares in a pic eating crisps that I wanted to promote then I could totally understand why that would be wrong but if they have officially endorsed the product then surely I should be able to use their picture?
The issues are the same as with any picture and nothing to with what they are or are not endorsing - you don't own the copyright to that picture.
If the merchant provides marketing materials that include the celebrity image, then you're okay, but beyond that, you're heading into troubled territory. In general, using images that you do not have a license/rights to use is theft. You might actually be safer with the candid you described, since it would be a photo you own (assuming you took the pic of the unsuspecting celeb).
Ok thanks for your input. The problem with this merchant is they have barely any material for affiliates to use so I am having to find ways to fill up the page and make it look good. So if I contact the owner of the site (where I found this picture) and ask for their permission, if they allow me to use their picture is that ok?
You need to get permission from the owner/rights-holder of the image itself. It is possible that the site you have seen the picture on is not using it with permission or they do not have the rights to grant it's use elsewhere. If you are contacting the person who is using the image, you will want to find out if they own it first. I am not a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV, but "fair use" may also come into play here. However that is a subject better suited for the legal-eagle types
they wont contact you, they'll suddenly sue you so expect a court letter kidding. maybe youll have to contact them
This is what they've replied. 'Hello, I really can't answer this question because I don't want to give you advice that could land you in trouble.' I'll buy a stock photo instead so I'll own the rights to it.
Make sure that your website has a contact page. Most of the time they will write you a letter demanding that you remove copyrighted material. If you do so, they wont sue you. Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. Contact an attorney if you are unsure about what to do.