Concert Producer Steals Filipina Blogger’s Photo

I’m a huge fan of people sharing information through fair use and attribution, but this clearly abides by neither. Philippine event organizer Dimitri Productions stole a photograph of Filipina gamer Alodia Gosiengfiao by Filipina photographer Tricia Gosingtian. They replaced Alodia’s head with a globe and used the photo in posters for their Earth Day Jam concert. No attribution, no notification, no compensation, nada.

Yes, it’s pretty damn hideous. The story’s gotten as far as CNet, yet Dimitri still ignores both Alodia and Tricia. Alodia is a rich girl, and Tricia seems familiar with modern intellectual property practices. Dimitri will probably get sued, and will probably lose. The PR damage will be more extensive than Dimitri realizes: both girls are bloggers with loyal followings in the company’s geographically tiny market. The cluetrain is stopping at Dimitri’s very doorstep, but no one’s taking delivery.

Longtime readers of my blogs know that there are few things I hate more than offline media scumbags treating online media publishers like shit, just because the former happen to be offline and the latter happen to be online. I can’t stand that sort of “oh-we’re-a-real-business-and-you’re-just-some-Internet-weirdo” hubris, especially from a penny-ante outfit like this Dimitri racket.

It figures, really. Dimitri Productions is run by washed-up old Filipino musicians Lou Bonnevie and Toto Gentica — you know, the kind of musicians who still blame the music industry’s woes on “piracy”. Hah! Look who’s talking.

Lou and Toto are about to learn the cost of old media arrogance. Take ’em down, ladies.

(Horrible poster via Ed Arevalo.)

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