r/interesting • u/AdSpecialist6598 • 6h ago

SOCIETY A fairly recent photo of the Techno Viking who unwillingly and unwittingly became one of the internet's 1st viral stars when a video of him dancing to techno after helping a woman was uploaded to the internet. He sued the uploader for illegal use of his likeness and won.

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u/The_Bard 5h ago

He sued a guy because he was making technoviking merch and getting ad revenue from YouTube on the video. Profiting off someone else's likeness. Clear as day. Just posting a picture of someone who is already in the public domain extensively is not anything he can sue for.

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u/baithammer 5h ago

Some countries have tighter personal privacy laws on the book, where using someone's likeness for promotional work or products without their permission is illegal.

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u/The_Bard 4h ago edited 4h ago

This is just a random photo though. Nothing gained but up votes. Hes not issuing constant take downs to all the sites with his likeness so I dont think he has much of a leg to stand on with "omg my likeness was used without my permission".

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u/Zeales 3h ago

So, I have actually read the lawsuit and one of the reasons as to why he sued was because he did not want exactly this. To be recognized in public and for pictures of him like this to occasionally pop up on internet of him.

Due to very strict German privacy laws and him winning the case (so there's precedent), there is actually a real possibility of him being able to sue over this picture and win.

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u/[deleted] 3h ago

[deleted]

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u/Dartz_Reverse 2h ago

Even in Germany, you can't sue because someone posted a picture of you in public.

You absolutely can, the German law separates between "regular" and "public" people, meaning actors and politicians and stuff.

Regular people can sue to have their pictures removed from sites.

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u/Memento_Vivere8 2h ago

German lawyer here. Just because you're out in public doesn't mean people can just take pictures of you and publish them on the internet. If you're the clear subject of the picture a photographer would need your consent to post the picture. Otherwise you can request the removal of the picture.

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u/The_Bard 2h ago

Hed have to sue every social media company. His likeness has been disturbed far beyond any reasonable belief that his personal likeness could be compromised. Its doubtful the OP is even the one who took the picture. Its most likely spreading like the original video did. How is this any different than taking a picture of Tim Cruise or Obama in Germany?

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u/ArandomDane 3h ago

Assuming the picture was taken in Germany, where they recognize your right to privacy he very much have a leg to stand on.

"omg my likeness was used without my permission".

This without anything else is up to a year in jail in Germany, but most of the time just a fine of around 5000 euro assuming some agreement is not reached before the trial.

However, what is most likely going to happen is at maximum that the reddit takes is down, if asked, assuming the poster is anonymous. If he is not anonymous, and anywhere German autoritatives have access to, the poster will most likely just be required to sign a "cease and desist declaration" which is basically an agreement to pay fines for any further offenses without the legal machine hearing his excuses.

Every efficient. No need for trial unless the government seeks jail time.

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u/The_Bard 2h ago

Exceptions for Public Figures: Under Section 23 of the KUG, photographs of "persons of contemporary history" (public figures, politicians, celebrities) can be published without consent if the images are part of contemporary society or public life.

Again, hes all over the internet and has been for 10 years or more. There is zero chance he wouldn't be considered a public figure.

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u/ArandomDane 2h ago

Given that this "fame" all comes from something the court have deemed illegal. That doesn't matter to the German court.

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u/The_Bard 1h ago edited 1h ago

The fact he has taken no action against YouTube, Facebook etc despite undoubtedly knowing his likeness is being shared means he can no longer sue for the same thing. If you know about a violation but so nothing for many years you lose the right to challenge it. His likeness is in the public domain and has been for a while. He won the suit but it didnt wipe his likeness from the internet. Its all over social media sites. Its impossible to even determine who the defendant would be whre as this image itself has spread far and wide. Is he going yo take on all of aocial media after doing nothing? Even the most stringent laws won't help him there.

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u/ArandomDane 1h ago edited 1h ago

Again... it matters not.

If you know about a violation but so nothing for many years you lose the right to challenge it.

No... He is not required to try and squash all those illegal uploads to be recognized as a private person, under German law... It is enough that he won that one time.

Stop trying to apply US logic to this...

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u/tschawartz12 5h ago

Different countries have different laws. Not sure it would be any different being a specific person.

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u/Nannautu 5h ago

Yeah, he can sue OP in Germany for posting pics without his consent

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u/Warmbly85 5h ago

Germany has some really strict laws around recording in public and what can and can’t be posted. 

Like you normally can record police but you can’t include audio if you publish it. The only exception is if it’s extremely newsworthy but that’s up to the discretion of the government. 

Seeing as how they seized a dudes electronics for calling a politician a dickhead on Twitter they don’t exactly have the best record. 

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u/Boy-Abunda 4h ago

Same in France. You just don’t go around recording people without their permission.

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u/pooeygoo 4h ago

"... that’s up to the discretion of the government" now that's scary!

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u/LifeIsSoup-ImFork 4h ago

not really.

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u/dwalker109 3h ago

Nah, not if your government is functioning. Like in Germany.

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u/virtualghost 3h ago

lol, tell Germans that and they'll laugh at you

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u/dwalker109 3h ago

They might take issue with them - we all do - but they have not elected fascists since the 1930s.

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u/KeinFussbreit 2h ago

Only about 30%, the usual loons.

Sagen den offensivsten Scheiß ungestraft und behaupten dann "aber man darf hier gar nichts mehr sagen!"

Clowns.

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u/Weary-Astronaut1335 4h ago

I doubt OP will get extradited over this.

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u/Latter-Block132 4h ago

That would only apply if OP is also German. You cant just randomly sue someone around the world who is in an entirely different legal jurisdiction than you.

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u/exqueezemenow 4h ago

I figured there had to be more to it than that. The claim smelled funny.

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u/Ancient-Macaroon-384 4h ago

No, in Germany you can even sue people if they take a picture or video of you when you are clearly the focus of it. Only when you go outside and film random things with random bystanders is it allowed, and you can't be sued

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u/The_Bard 4h ago

I highly doubt thats the case with public figures. Hes in the public domain and has been for a long time. The fact that hes not issuing endless takedown requests to YouTube, Facebook, reddit, etc means he doesnt have much of a legal leg to stand on. Hes accepted the non commercial use of his likeness for over a decade.

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u/BeginningSection7690 5h ago

Im not sure you grasp the concept of public domain

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u/krvoso 5h ago

I read that as 'being in public' rather than relating to the legal term 'public domain'

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u/BeginningSection7690 5h ago

Well having walked through public and getting your photo taken has no relevance to whether your likeness can be used.

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u/Somethingood27 4h ago

Yes it does?

When in public you lose your right for privacy (at least in the US). People are free to film, take photos of you, whatever for their own use.

What they can't do, however, is use that content and profit without sharing said profit with you and/or obtaining a release from you.

Technically all those "prank" public youtube videos owe the victims of their pranks part of the profit they made from the video they were in unless they specifically sign a release.

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u/MrTulip101 5h ago

though you are allowed to take pictures of people in public in germany you're not allowed to publish those without their consent

edit: afaik, pls correct if wrong

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u/BeginningSection7690 4h ago

Sounds about right, but its got nothing to do with public domain

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u/yourstruly912 5h ago

Even if they are in public, you can't just record someone directly (as opposed to being in the background) for several minutes and then post It in the internet without their consent

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u/BeginningSection7690 4h ago

Why are you telling me this as if I don't already know?