Digital Content Enforcement
Your content is being stolen. We build enforcement programs that find unauthorized use, demand compliance, and generate licensing revenue from infringers who will not stop.
Do You Actually Need This?
Infringement ignored is infringement encouraged. These four situations tell you when to build a real enforcement program.
You regularly find your photos, videos, or written content used without credit or compensation.
Systematic unauthorized use of your content is not just a moral violation — it is copyright infringement. Each unauthorized use is a separate infringing act. Rights holders who build systematic enforcement programs consistently recover licensing fees and deter future infringement more effectively than those who pursue claims reactively.
A brand, business, or publication is using your creative work commercially without a license.
Commercial use of copyrighted content — in advertising, marketing, or monetized publications — is among the most actionable form of infringement. Commercial infringers have the ability to pay licensing fees and are highly motivated to resolve claims quickly to avoid reputational and financial exposure.
Your software, code, or digital product has been pirated or redistributed without authorization.
Software piracy and unauthorized redistribution of digital products are enforceable through copyright law and software license agreement terms. The combination of copyright registration, clear license terms, and active enforcement creates a deterrent that reduces piracy and supports legitimate licensing revenue.
You have sent informal requests that are being ignored.
Informal requests to stop infringement are often ignored because the infringer calculates that the cost of non-compliance is lower than the cost of compliance. A legal demand letter from an attorney — citing specific statutes, identifying specific violations, and stating specific remedies — changes that calculation immediately.
What You Get
- Legal Demand
Cease & Desist Letters
Attorney-drafted cease and desist letters citing the specific copyright violations, applicable statutes, and required remedies — including takedown, attribution, accounting for profits, and payment of licensing fees.
- License Demand
Retroactive License Demands
Demand letters to commercial infringers offering to resolve the violation through retroactive licensing — converting infringement into revenue and avoiding litigation by offering a commercially reasonable path to compliance.
- Enforcement Program
Ongoing Content Monitoring & Enforcement
A managed content enforcement program — systematic monitoring for unauthorized use across platforms, coordinated DMCA and legal demand responses, and regular enforcement reporting.
Flat Fee. No Surprises.
C&D Letter
From $1,200per letter- Attorney-drafted cease and desist
- Specific violation identification
- Stated legal remedies
- Follow-up demand if ignored
- Recommended
License Demand
From $1,500per demand- Infringement assessment
- Retroactive license demand
- Fee calculation and justification
- Settlement negotiation support
Enforcement Program
From $800/momonthly retainer- Monthly infringement monitoring
- Up to 3 enforcement actions/mo
- Demand tracking dashboard
- Quarterly enforcement report
Your Questions Answered
You can demand they remove it (takedown), demand attribution, or demand payment of a licensing fee for the unauthorized use. If the photo is registered with the US Copyright Office, you can sue in federal court for statutory damages up to $150,000 per work for willful infringement. An attorney demand letter is typically the fastest and most cost-effective first step.
Copyright infringement requires: (1) you own a valid copyright in the work, and (2) the infringer copied protected expression from your work. Proof typically includes a screenshot of the infringing use with metadata (URL, date), documentation of your original creation (file metadata, publication records), and, ideally, a copyright registration certificate establishing the date of creation.
A retroactive license resolves a past infringement by granting a license for the period of unauthorized use — in exchange for a licensing fee. It converts the infringement from a legal claim into a commercial transaction. Retroactive licensing is often preferable to litigation for both parties: the rights holder receives compensation, the infringer avoids a lawsuit.
You can, but a letter from an attorney citing specific statutory violations — including 17 U.S.C. § 106, the specific infringing acts, and the available remedies — carries significantly more weight than a personal request. A professional cease and desist also documents your enforcement efforts, which matters if you later pursue litigation.
In the US, the statute of limitations for copyright infringement is 3 years from the date you discovered (or reasonably should have discovered) the infringement — not the date the infringement began. In Canada, the Limitations Act provides a 2-year limitation period from the date of discovery. Acting promptly preserves your full range of remedies.
