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Ricoh Pentax update: confidence restored, resolution and conclusion

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Ming Thein Official Letter

Firstly – and a lot of you will probably consider this ironic – I’d like to attempt to retain some objectivity in this matter. Here are the facts:

  • The developer/ agency at the instruction of the locally appointed Indonesian representative, and without any protest from them, used one of my images without permission or licensing.
  • The Indonesian representative – or claimed representative of Ricoh Pentax – was clearly aware of the matter and removed the image together with an unacceptable reply of “The decision to used your picture are my decision to fulfill my target to make my company’s website looks wonderful, therefore please accept my deepest apology.”
  • Ricoh Pentax HQ was informed through every possible channel I have had access to. Though they were not directly responsible, an agent claiming to represent their brand and acting as their brand was. However, it is the responsibility of the principal as any person who sees that representation would assume in good faith that it is affiliated with the principal.

There is no distinction between ‘our brand’ and ‘your brand’: marketing 101. I continue to defend my decision to use social media because in the past, infringements met with a polite letter and bill for licensing have gone completely ignored, especially to Indonesia. On top of that, if camera companies get the message that there are no repercussions to images without permission, this sets a very unhealthy precedent.

This brings me to another disappointing observation: there are a lot of web observers who think I overreacted. I have not threatened anybody, I have stated facts. I have used channels not usually available to most, only because I’ve put the time and effort into cultivating them. You might not like it, but I’m defending your rights, too. You cannot call yourself a photographer if you do not value your own work – and if you don’t, nobody else will.

And yes, it’s personal. I care about what I do; there are a lot of things – this site, for instance – that are done for free in my own time simply because I want to do them. Yes, this gives me visibility and a platform. But it also gives me responsibility: in this case, defending the rights of photographers. Those who have the forum but say nothing and accept it are no better than the perpetrators. Somebody has to say something on behalf of the people who can’t or will never be heard; or even worse, those who never find out their images were taken. I was only made aware of this because of one of my readers. We have witnessed the professional market eroding to the point where it’s very, very difficult to make a living, especially in Asia. One of the reasons this site exists is to educate: be it through technique, philosophical discussion, or example.

But there’s no point in doing any of that if pervasive general perception is that it’s okay to take images for free. It isn’t. By doing so, one has no respect for the effort and equipment put in by the photographer; yet there is obviously sufficient appreciation for the work want it. If we do not defend our collective rights as photographers and the value of our images, nobody will. And sooner rather than later, that will be the death of the industry.

Use of images without permission is theft, regardless of who does it. If a person takes something from a store without because it ‘makes their house look wonderful’, do you think the proprietor would just write a nice letter and wait for a response? More likely the alarm would be raised and police called. On top of that, the offending page was last updated eight months ago – which means that HQ or the local principal has had at least that long to do something about it.

I could have gone the legal route, but all it would have done is given the offending party a private slap on the wrist. It does nothing for photographers’ rights, nor does it discourage similar thefts from occurring in future. On top of that, it is unclear whether the case would have had much strength because of the cross-border nature of the infringement. In the end, the only people who will have won are the lawyers.

It appears Pentax Ricoh HQ Japan shares my views on this, and accepts responsibility for their agency in Indonesia because they represent the main brand, but also acknowledges that it was the unsanctioned rogue action of the distributor. Furthermore, they plan to increase QC to prevent something like this happening again – well done.

Here is the reply from PR HQ:

Ming Thein Official Letter

This has never been about money: it’s about respecting the photographer, and their customers. No compensation was offered and none was asked for. Many have said that I should have gotten paid, or pushed for it. I believe the publicity is a fair tradeoff against awareness for intellectual property rights of the photographer: look at it this way: I took one for the team.  All I wanted was a public apology and acknowledgement of photographers’ rights. This has been duly given, and I am both satisfied with the outcome and impressed with the response of the Ricoh senior management. If anything, my confidence in the leadership of the company is increased because they handled a potentially disastrous situation very well.

Special mention must be given to Rissa and her team at DSC World Malaysia, who are the local distributors here for Pentax Ricoh. It was clearly not their responsibility, but they intervened with HQ without my knowledge because they were smart enough to see that it would affect the brand as a whole for all regions. They took initiative to address the situation and furthermore went out of their way to keep me informed; this is deserving of commendation and restores my confidence in local support for the 645 system.

It is a relief to me, as I’ve long believed that Ricoh was one of the last bastions of a ‘photographer’s camera maker’ – you will all recall my enthusiasm for their products, especially the last GR; I’ve never had any relationship with them until this point. I only wish contact could have been made under happier circumstances. In any case, it is good to see that this belief is not unfounded, though they really need to take better care of their brand image internationally. I am happy to say that I consider this matter closed to satisfaction and we can go back to making images. Thank you all for your support.

And yes, I’m still eagerly awaiting my 645Z. MT

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