If a business in another country uses your photo without paying, Pixsy can go after them for you. We work with 30 local copyright law partners around the world, so your case runs under the laws and courts of the country where the use happened. You don't pay anything upfront. If we recover money, our fee is 50%. If we don't, you owe nothing.
The short version
- We work with 30 local copyright and IP law partners across North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, including the US, UK, Germany and Australia.
- A real person reviews every case. We never send automated mass demand letters.
- Most cases settle without going to court. When one doesn't, our partner firm can take it to a local court.
- No win, no fee: no upfront cost, and a 50% fee only on money we recover.
- We've handled more than 250,000 cases of unauthorized image use since 2014.
Why a local lawyer matters
Copyright law isn't the same everywhere. Damages, deadlines and court rules change from country to country, and a letter from a foreign company is easy to ignore. A letter from a law firm down the road is not.
So we don't try to enforce your rights from afar. We bring in a firm that knows the local courts, speaks the language and has handled image cases before.
"Most photographers assume a thief in another country is out of reach. It isn't. You need the professional support in the right place, and that's what we've spent 12 years building: an end-to-end post-licensing and legal enforcement solution on a no win, no fee basis." Kain Jones, CEO and co-founder, Pixsy
How a case moves from a match to a court
Software finds the matches. People decide what happens next. Here's the path a case takes.
- You find a match and submit it. Pixsy's monitoring scans the web for your images. You look through the matches and send us the ones that are unauthorized commercial use.
- A case manager reviews it. A person on our team checks who owns the image, how it's being used, which country the user is in and whether the image is registered. Cases that don't hold up stop here.
- We try to settle. We contact the business and offer a retroactive license or a settlement. Most cases end at this stage, without lawyers.
- A local law firm steps in. If the business refuses or goes quiet, we pass the case to a partner firm in their country. The firm sends a formal legal demand under local law.
- Court, if needed. If the demand doesn't work and the firm thinks the case is strong, it can file in a local court. We handle the paperwork with the firm and keep you updated.
You deal with one case manager the whole way through. They handle the law firm, the other side and the documents, so you don't have to.
What we handle for you
We sort out the evidence, filings, translations, signatures and payments with the law firm. Where you live doesn't matter. A photographer in the US can have a case in the UK, and one in the UK can have a case in Australia. We match each case to the right firm and the right process for that country.
Pixsy in numbers
- 250,000+ cases of unauthorized use handled
- 30 local partner law firms
- US$10,000 to $50,000: typical US legal settlement for large commercial use by an international business
- $0 upfront cost to you
- 50% of what we recover is our fee, only if we win
Every case is different. What a case settles for depends on the country, the photo's license history and how big the use is.
What photographers say
Real reviews from photographers who've used Pixsy to get paid.
Escalated to our legal partners
"Pixsy helped me resolve several cases of copyright infringement... They even escalated a case through their legal partners and I received big bucks." Alec M., Trustpilot
Faster than going it alone
"I love Pixsy... It really takes the headache out of going the long route as I currently have a case outside of Pixsy that has dragged on for almost a year." Cheryl W., Facebook
4 cases settled, $2,000+ recovered
"Pixsy is the absolute best! Since signing up I have had 4 cases settle and have netted over $2000 in fees for unauthorized usage." Tony C., Facebook
Easy to work with, quick to pay
"The Pixsy team is outstanding! Easy to work with, successful in resolving copyright infringement, and quick to pay." Laura J., Facebook
Questions photographers ask
Can Pixsy go after someone who used my photo in another country?
Yes. We send the case to a partner law firm in the country where the infringer is based, and it's enforced under that country's laws. Your home country doesn't matter.
Which countries do you cover?
We have 30 partner law firms across North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, including the US, UK, Germany and Australia. If you're not sure your case is covered, submit it and we'll tell you.
How much does it cost?
Nothing upfront. If we recover money, our fee is 50% and you keep the rest. If we recover nothing, you pay nothing. This is often called a contingency or "no win, no fee" model.
How much could my case be worth?
It depends on the country, the photo's license history and how big the use is. As a guide, legal settlements in the US for large commercial use by international businesses usually range from US$10,000 to $50,000.
Does Pixsy send automated demand letters?
No. Software finds possible matches, but a person reviews every case before we contact anyone. Neither Pixsy nor our partner firms send automated mass letters.
Will I have to go to court or testify?
Very rarely. The law firm handles the case for you. Most cases (99%) settle before court, and in the ones that go further, the firm will tell you early if they need anything from you.
Do I need to register my copyright?
In most countries, no. Your rights exist as soon as you take the photo. The US is different: you generally need to register with the US Copyright Office before the infringement, or within three months of first publishing the image, to claim statutory damages and legal fees (17 U.S.C. § 412). We can help with registration.
What if the case can't be settled out of court?
The partner firm decides whether the case is strong enough for court. If it is, the firm files in a local court and we coordinate the paperwork with you.
How long does it take?
Most cases that settle with us directly take a few months. Cases that go to a law firm or to court can take longer, sometimes a year or more.
Do I have to sign anything with the law firm?
It depends on the laws of that specific country. In most cases, our agreement covers all the authority needed. If any local documents are needed, we will reach out to you to collect and manage those.
What if the infringer is in a country you don't cover?
We can usually still get the image taken down. Pixsy sends takedown notices to websites and hosts around the world.
Found your photo somewhere it shouldn't be? Submit a case. It's free to start.