So everything's all right, then, is it? Lan's been paid, his copyright respected and an apology given for the unintentional oversight? Pity we didn't hear that in Podtech's public announcement there.
I guess John was responding just to Jay's comment that "The lack of communication is a real problem." For me, the real problem is that Lan - an individual artist - has been kept waiting for payment by a company that apparently has money in the bank, after they apparently used his image without permission. Being a freelancer waiting on an invoice from someone who can easily pay it is bad enough - and typical business practice for many big companies, unfortunately - but waiting on payment after the company has already wronged you, is about as annoying as it gets. Perhaps there's a reason they're not paying - maybe since they first agreed to pay, Podtech has decided they have legal issues with Lan's claim and are working these out with their lawyers. But not to say that here, and just to say "There's not a problem - we've been talking since the beginning." is a bit naive, to put it politely. This was their PR opportunity to say, "We didn't intend to... blah blah blah... we will pay as soon as... blah blah blah... we are sorry for our... blah blah blah... we share your values and are good guys, yours in internet love, blah." - or, if they're not intending to pay, to say "There are legal reasons we haven't paid that I can't go into here, but I'm sorry if it appears blah blah blah...". I mean, not everybody would immediately believe that they're knights in shining armor - but that's what you say, right? It shows you want to mean well, even if your corporate policy is sometimes in conflict with that. But to me, what he just wrote felt more like, "Lan's a liar. We did what we do. I will not discuss it in public. Mind your own business. " I just edited out the bad language from that sentence. The sad thing is, I like Podtech - I think they're all right, generally. Maybe they just need to smarten up their awareness of public perception online and pay their bills a bit quicker. That's the great advantage of the internet for both sides. Individuals get to air their grievances if they feel badly treated, and the other side gets to answer back. Contrast with your options in the old days: Steve, the CFO at my last company told me a story about when he was working for Philip Morris (i think) as head of credit control. A small businessman that they owed money for months and months turned up, got through security somehow, walked up to Steve's desk and put his baby on it. "There," he said, "you fuckin' feed her - 'cause I can't." He said he's never written a cheque so fast in his life :) Rupert http://twittervlog.blogspot.com/ http://www.twitter.com/ruperthowe/ http://feeds.feedburner.com/twittervlog/ On 19 Jun 2007, at 14:23, John Furrier wrote: Jay, Lan portrays a completely different picture in public. We have been in communication with him since he contacted us months ago. Lan has had access to PodTech in many different ways from 1 degree of separation to having our direct phone numbers and emails. He has not been treated badly but in fact we have been in contact with him from the beginning. John ________________________________ From: [email protected] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Jay dedman Sent: Monday, June 18, 2007 8:53 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [videoblogging] Re: Hey PodTech - What's up with Lan's image? > This smells like so much Business As Usual, that its a perfect news piece > for a Monday at the office.... all the way down to the typical buck-passing > to Podtech's accounting dept. > The more things change, the more they stay the same. > There are a bunch of people on this list who get funding from Podtech-- is > this a typical reflection of how they work? ryanishungry.com content partners for Podtech where we've license our videos to them for a year. our experience with Podtech has been totally hands off. we make the video, they keep up their end of the bargain. No problems at all. Ive talked to Lan about Podtech using his photo without permission, and the treatment he's received since. It's superbad way to treat people, especially really noisy bloggers in a tight community. And the money involved is minuscule compared to what they have. The lack of communication is a real problem. podtech needs to join the conversation. Jay -- Here I am.... http://jaydedman.com Check out the latest project: http://politicalvideo.org 500 hours of George Bush speeches!! Search, download, remix!! [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
