Licensing
Part of Sourcing genuine customer contributions
Handling customer content featuring other people
Identify other people in customer photos and videos, assess the proposed brand use and record a use-specific decision.
Before a brand reuses a customer photo or video, check who else could reasonably be identified and how publication would affect them. Consent from the person who sent the file does not settle every other person’s position. If a material concern remains, hold the asset, make an edit that genuinely removes the person, or choose another contribution.
Inspect the complete asset
Watch the original and the proposed cut. A face is only one identifying detail: a voice, name tag, distinctive clothing, address, school sign or caption may identify someone alone or alongside other information. Also check the thumbnail and final crop, because a background figure in one version may become prominent in another.
The OAIC explains that photos and videos are personal information under the Privacy Act 1988 if a person’s identity is clear or could reasonably be worked out. Whether the Act applies to a particular organisation or use depends on the circumstances.
Separate the decisions
| Question | What to establish |
|---|---|
| Who made the material? | Whether the contributor can authorise use of the work and any included creative elements. |
| Who can be identified? | Which people are recognisable in the proposed version and context. |
| What use was explained? | Whether those people understand the proposed channel, audience and any paid use. |
| What does the edit imply? | Whether a crop or caption changes who appears to endorse the product. |
The right to use a photograph and the treatment of a person shown in it are different questions. Ask the contributor about others in the asset, but where appropriate consider a direct, clear response from a person who is central to a proposed ad.
Record what was explained and answered for that use. A soundtrack or artwork may need its own rights check.
Take particular care with children
A genuine family photo can still be unsuitable for a brand campaign. Consider whether the child needs to appear to answer the buyer’s question.
Where publication of a child’s image is proposed, assess the child’s understanding and involve a parent or guardian as appropriate. Do not assume that sharing a family photo privately covered later public or paid use.
If a product-only crop will work, inspect it for remaining identifying details. A hidden face does not necessarily remove a child’s name, voice or distinctive setting. State and territory rules may also matter for particular recordings or circumstances.
Record a use-specific outcome
Record the proposed placement and one of three outcomes for each material concern about a person: resolved for that use, removed in an inspected edit, or held. Keep the original for the review record and name the exact version cleared for consideration.
For example, a customer’s storage-box video might include a friend speaking off camera. If the voice adds nothing essential, a silent product sequence may work. Review it for remaining identifying details and accuracy: removing the voice must not remove a condition needed to understand the demonstration. If the friend’s contribution is essential, resolve that proposed use before publishing it.
Recheck a later ad or crop. A new presentation can make a person more prominent or imply an endorsement the original version did not.
