Do Not Panic Instagram Is Not Selling The Photos You Upload of Your Cat

Getfused Marketing

A recent update to Instagram’s Terms of Use has their users in an uproar from a misunderstanding about their content being sold to third-party advertisers. The update is slated to go into effect January 16th, 2013 which is giving Instagram an opportunity to receive feedback from users about the clarity of their legal jargon. And plenty of feedback they received. The new terms originally stated:

“Some or all of the Service may be supported by advertising revenue. To help us deliver interesting paid or sponsored content or promotions, you agree that a business or other entity may pay us to display your username, likeness, photos (along with any associated metadata), and/or actions you take, in connection with paid or sponsored content or promotions, without any compensation to you.”

This was greatly misunderstood by the Instagram community as everyone thought their photo content could be sold and used in advertisements. Refuting this claim in a recent blog post, Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom states:

“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.”

What this really means is that Instagram wants to help users and brands promote their photos and accounts to grow their audience. Similarly to how it’s done in Facebook, who recently bought Instagram, your profile photo and accounts you follow can be used when brands are being promoted. Your uploaded photos, however, will not be used in the advertisements. For more clarification, the new terms state:

“In order to help make a more relevant and useful promotion, it would be helpful to see which of the people you follow also follow this business. In this way, some of the data you produce — like the actions you take (eg, following the account) and your profile photo — might show up if you are following this business.”

You still own the photos you’ve uploaded to Instagram, and they can’t be used for ads. Nothing changes about ownership as well as privacy settings. Having your account and photos set to private will still only be shared with users you approve. If you’re really fed up with the advertisements everywhere, instructions on deleting your account are readily available.

And most importantly, although we strongly think our Instagram picture of Geoffrey the Giraffe (Getfused’s mascot) is a work of art; it’s safe to say it won’t be used in any advertisements. Although we all did have high hopes it would be picked up by a wildlife magazine for a feature on the best wild animals as office pets.