Question about protecting digital image products

[FreeStar Houston]

I have a question about protecting work products in the digital age. Any insight is greatly appreciated.

The vast majority of my business is event photography, and my product is typically a photo CD of high resolution jpegs that customers can take to a lab to get prints done. The CDs are printed and include all the necessary copyright and business information, so labs usually know to ask for the license that is included with each order. Each image also has a small logo stamp in the corner.

Aside from trusting labs to not print images without a license, is there any way to put some sort of obstacle in the way of a customer burning off a bunch of copies and distributing them? I don't really think it has been too huge of a problem, but some of the event coordinators I work with have started advertising the photos as photo CDs, which I am afraid will lead people to decide in advance that they will just procure a burned copy from someone else.

I do suppose that if there was a sure-fire way, the record companies would have been all over it by now.

Am I overthinking this?

[Dakinetx]

Record companies DO have a way, it's called copyright. Problem is tracking and prosecuting all offenders.
With your question it should be simpler.
Am sure you have a "contract" that your client signs before the shoot? If so you probably have a "useage" clause in it.
Apart from this, and enforcing it, I know of no other way of protecting work in the way you describe.

[FreeStar Houston]

Basically what happens is the event coordinator sells photo CDs as a part of the event. After the event I produce and ship all the CDs.

Sometimes I produce a master disk for a client, which includes a usage clause and goes for a much higher flat fee.

[Dakinetx]

Hmm, basically then you want a way to stop re-burning of the CD's? not sure that exists. Even music CD's with the encrytion software can be overridded easily.
I guess it comes down to "trust" and the "contract", unless I don't know somthing.
Also, Abel has an article going about how one of his photographs was ripped off by a big concern. And one about copyright. Neither seem to have satisfactory conclusions as yet :(

[FreeStar Houston]

I looked at a new type of CD that is allegedly copy-proof, but they are massively expensive at somewhere around $2 or 3 EACH, and I cannot afford to up my production cost that much.

I also looked at going with a digital watermark, but the firms I found that license them wanted upwards of $2,600 a year. It's a real pain for us small time guys who don't do tons of business.

My goal is not to make it impossible, just to make it inconvenient to the average user. It could mean a few hundred dollars more sales, and at my level, a few hundred dollars is a lot.

[bpjones]

I looked at a new type of CD that is allegedly copy-proof

This sounds like snake oil to me! It also sounds like a challenge that hackers cannot refuse. Besides the cost, these will undoubtedly be compromised as soon as they become widely available.

[FreeStar Houston]

Originally Posted by bpjones

This sounds like snake oil to me! It also sounds like a challenge that hackers cannot refuse. Besides the cost, these will undoubtedly be compromised as soon as they become widely available.

Yeah, the cost alone was enough to keep me away. It was also an overseas software company based in Israel. Not so sure I would know where my money would be going ... Israel isn't exactly at the top of the IT world.

[photosteve]

Make them a "photo cd" in a flash based album then at least its going to be hard to make a hard copy of the print.

PhotoSteve

[bpjones]

Originally Posted by photosteve

Make them a "photo cd" in a flash based album then at least its going to be hard to make a hard copy of the print.

Noel said he was trying to prevent the duplication of CDs- not prints.

[Dobick]

Originally Posted by FreeStar Houston

Basically what happens is the event coordinator sells photo CDs as a part of the event. After the event I produce and ship all the CDs.

Sometimes I produce a master disk for a client, which includes a usage clause and goes for a much higher flat fee.

I think you are onto the right model here, because at least for me, I just want to be fairly compensated.

I have never liked having to burn multiple disks. It has always been drudgery, and pure labor having to sit there and mind such a repetitive task, so any pricing model that would move away from that side of the business, I am all for.

Unless event coordinaters absolutely refuse to accept the idea of the "master disk", then I would be pushing for that model, as it gets you compensated on the front end, and takes the worry away that someone is stealing your work.

Just my .02

[futurshox]

Originally Posted by FreeStar Houston

Israel isn't exactly at the top of the IT world.

You'd be surprised... Intel has a major facility there.

[FreeStar Houston]

Dobick-

My shop is set up to do production quite well, actually. I don't just handle disk production, but I do all of the shipping, etc. That's why my services were so appealing to my client ... he literally has to do nothing except take in payments and provide me with an order list. Thsi is where my business model is a bit different for a lot of guys, though. I don't charge a minimum trip charge. All my revenue is from sales. In theory, it is possible for me to make absolutely nothing from an event, but it all works out in the end.

futurshox-

That is surprising to learn. I knew they were huge on physical security, btu I had no idea about electronic security like this.

[Dobick]

Originally Posted by FreeStar Houston

Dobick-

My shop is set up to do production quite well, actually. I don't just handle disk production, but I do all of the shipping, etc. That's why my services were so appealing to my client ... he literally has to do nothing except take in payments and provide me with an order list. Thsi is where my business model is a bit different for a lot of guys, though. I don't charge a minimum trip charge. All my revenue is from sales. In theory, it is possible for me to make absolutely nothing from an event, but it all works out in the end.

I really like the idea of setting yourself apart with excellent service, and based on that fact, you are kinda in a hard spot with no easy answers.

I went back and re-read the original post though, and it would seem that the end result that you are hoping the buyers get out of your product is prints, and not so much a photo cd, so why not control that aspect of the production too. As easy as scanners can be, they do not quite match the ease of a cd burner. You could set up with a professional lab (or maybe get a web portal like smug mug or zenfolio) and have the images posted online for a period of time, and sell the prints that people want, and if need be, give a cut of sales to the event coordinator? I know that smugmug and zenfolio will both handle orders and payment processing for you and ship to where ever you want them shipped to. It really is easy.

Once again, this is just a suggestion, and I know that there are some problems with going that route as well.

I do like the original model you have set up, and as long as you are being fairly compensated for your time and skill, then I wouldn't lose too much sleep too much over the crooks in the world.