After the announcement of Instagram's New Use agreement this week, users took to their blogs, Facebook feeds, Twitter accounts, Pinterest pages, and even Instagram albums to blast the company for a few lines that would enable the licensing and sale of photos.
Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom responded this afternoon with a concession or two, and a reassurance that Instagram would not be selling its users photos, but would
"'I'm writing this today to let you know we're listening and to commit to you that we will be doing more to answer your questions, fix any mistakes, and eliminate the confusion. As we review your feedback and stories in the press, we're going to modify specific parts of the terms to make it more clear what will happen with your photos."
See also: - Where the F#*k Do I Post This? (A Social Media Flowchart) - Nine Things You Can Stop Posting on Instagram. Right Now. - Five Reasons Why You Should Really Calm Down about the "New" Facebook News Feed
Systrom outlines the actual changes that will be made to the Instagram model, including:
5. Instagram will not sell your photos:
Advertising on Instagram From the start, Instagram was created to become a business. Advertising is one of many ways that Instagram can become a self-sustaining business, but not the only one. Our intention in updating the terms was to communicate that we'd like to experiment with innovative advertising that feels appropriate on Instagram. Instead it was interpreted by many that we were going to sell your photos to others without any compensation. This is not true and it is our mistake that this language is confusing. To be clear: it is not our intention to sell your photos. We are working on updated language in the terms to make sure this is clear.
4. Your photo will not be used in an advertisement for the new dog food for pugs:
"The language we proposed also raised question about whether your photos can be part of an advertisement. We do not have plans for anything like this and because of that we're going to remove the language that raised the question. Our main goal is to avoid things like advertising banners you see in other apps that would hurt the Instagram user experience. Instead, we want to create meaningful ways to help you discover new and interesting accounts and content while building a self-sustaining business at the same time."
3. Your photos will not be owned by instagram:
"Ownership Rights Instagram users own their content and Instagram does not claim any ownership rights over your photos. Nothing about this has changed. We respect that there are creative artists and hobbyists alike that pour their heart into creating beautiful photos, and we respect that your photos are your photos. Period."
2. You're not going to have to share your photos with everyone:
Nothing has changed about the control you have over who can see your photos. If you set your photos to private, Instagram only shares your photos with the people you've approved to follow you. We hope that this simple control makes it easy for everyone to decide what level of privacy makes sense.
1. You're using a free service that's owned by Facebook. Your opt out of any free service in which you create, upload, and publish the content is simple. Stop.
