Pure Digital (maker of the Flip video camera) reverses terms of service on content ownership

Pure Digital, maker of the popular Flip digital video camera that has sold millions of units worldwide, realizes that no, they don't own the video content that customers create using their product and, like Google and Facebook before them, reverse their TOS to reflect so.

It all started with a simple enough concept. As a leading digital marketing agency, we wanted to empower our clients and prospective clients to learn more about the power of user-generated content and social media marketing, one of our core agency offerings. At the same time, we wanted to create brand awareness for our agency, The New Group. What better way to do this than to order a few dozen of the new Flip handheld digital video cameras and wrap the body of the camera with a colorful design and agency logo and send them as gifts?

During the pre-purchase stage we ran into a barrier that was a dealbreaker. Like many companies before them, Pure Digital had used a blanket legal template from some corporate law firm as their Terms and Conditions for usage of their product and its associated software. In fact, it was such a general and broad TOS that it could easily be interpreted that anyone who purchased and used a Flip to record digital video was made to agree that Pure Digital owned the content that the user generated, with full distribution rights. Users of the Flip must agree to this TOS just to be able to transfer videos from the camera to a desktop or laptop computer the first time they use the product. If a user doesn't agree to the TOS the product is virtually unusable other than to record and view videos on the 2" camera screen.

Seeing as how the majority of prospects that we were considering gifting these to were going to be VP Marketing or C-level executives, we felt strongly that they would understandably object to granting Pure Digital such a broad license to use privately-created video content. In fact, we had packaged the sample unit up and were ready to send it back to the company when we decided to ask them if this was truly their intention - to own all content created by Flip users. 

Initially Pure Digital's response was that yes, it was necessary to include such a blanket statement of content ownership for "legal purposes". After a few levels of customer support and after careful consideration from their legal team however, Pure acknowledged (see the email chain) that no, they did not own all content generated on Flip cameras worldwide and they would soon be updating their TOS to clarify this.

This is a wonderful example of how user input can (and should) be able to effect change. It's also a lesson to other companies large and small that they should carefully review any boilerplate TOS that their legal department hands them and vet it by those who actually will be using their products. It's reassuring to know that as indicated by the Flip-Flop of the Flip, consumers are very much in the drivers seat right now.

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Adam Boettiger is a 14-year digital marketing veteran working as Digital Strategist for The New Group, a digital marketing agency based in Portland, Oregon. 503.248.4505