Copyright and intellectual property

1. Scope of this notice

This notice applies to material published on or supplied through the UNP website, Picture Desk, image-delivery systems and related communications.

Protected material may include:

• photographs, illustrations, graphics and other visual works;
• video, audio and multimedia material;
• headlines, captions, descriptions and image metadata;
• articles, case studies, research, service information and other written content;
• logos, trading names, visual identity and brand elements;
• page designs, original layouts and user-interface elements;
• software and source code created specifically for UNP;
• collections, catalogues, archives and databases; and
• documents, downloadable files and presentation material.

Rights may belong to United National Photographers Ltd, an individual photographer, another creator, a client, a supplier or a third-party licensor. The relevant ownership and licensing position depends on the material and the applicable agreement.

2. Ownership of photography

Copyright in a photograph normally belongs initially to the photographer who created it, subject to statutory rules concerning employment and any subsequent written assignment of copyright.

Photography supplied by UNP may therefore be owned by:

• United National Photographers Ltd;
• the photographer who created the image;
• a photographer or agency that has licensed rights to UNP;
• a client or commissioning organisation under a specific written agreement; or
• another identified copyright owner.

Where UNP coordinates a freelance photographer, the photographer may remain the copyright owner while authorising UNP to administer, distribute and license the work.

Payment of a photography fee does not automatically transfer copyright. A client ordinarily receives the licence recorded in the quotation, booking confirmation, invoice, delivery terms or other written agreement.

3. Website and written content

Original written content, research, editorial presentation, page copy, graphics and other material created by or for UNP may be protected by copyright and other intellectual-property rights.

UNP does not claim ownership of standard WordPress, Astra, plugin, library, browser or third-party software components merely because they are used to operate the website. Those components remain subject to their respective ownership and licensing terms.

Bespoke material created specifically for UNP may be owned by UNP or used under an appropriate licence, depending on the applicable contract.

No person may reproduce substantial parts of the website, recreate its original editorial content or publish a misleading imitation of UNP’s presentation without permission.

4. Third-party material

Some pages may contain or refer to material owned by clients, publishers, public bodies, photographers, designers, technology providers or other third parties.

The appearance of third-party material on the website does not mean that UNP owns it or can grant unrestricted permission for its reuse.

Third-party material may include:

• client logos and brand assets;
• commissioned campaign artwork;
• screenshots, publication extracts and media references;
• embedded videos, maps or social-media content;
• software, typefaces and technical libraries; and
• photography supplied under a restricted licence.

Anyone seeking to reuse third-party material must obtain any permission required from the relevant rights holder.

5. Copyright protection

Copyright arises automatically in qualifying original work. Registration is not generally required for copyright protection in the United Kingdom.

Depending on the work and circumstances, copyright may control activities including:

• copying or reproducing the work;
• publishing or distributing copies;
• making the work available online;
• communicating the work to the public;
• adapting, editing or materially altering the work;
• authorising another person to carry out a restricted act; and
• using a substantial part of the protected work.

Copyright exceptions may permit limited uses in specific circumstances. Their application depends on the facts, purpose and applicable law. This notice does not restrict a use that is lawfully permitted without the rights holder’s permission.

6. Moral rights and attribution

Photographers and other creators may hold moral rights separately from ownership of copyright.

Depending on the circumstances, these may include rights relating to:

• being identified as the creator of the work;
• objecting to false attribution;
• objecting to derogatory treatment of the work; and
• privacy in certain photographs and films commissioned for private and domestic purposes.

Moral rights may need to be asserted and may be subject to statutory qualifications, agreements or waivers.

Where the photographer’s right to be identified has been asserted, or where a photographer credit forms part of the agreed licence or delivery terms, the client should retain and reproduce the supplied credit where required and reasonably practical.

Credits must not be deliberately removed, replaced or used in a manner that falsely attributes the work to another person.

7. Database rights and metadata

UNP’s image archives, catalogues, assignment records, structured collections and other databases may be protected by copyright, database rights, contractual restrictions or a combination of these protections where the applicable legal requirements are met.

Image metadata may include:

• creator and copyright information;
• captions, descriptions and keywords;
• dates, locations and assignment references;
• licensing and usage information;
• technical and embedded metadata; and
• contact or rights-management information.

Users must not knowingly remove or alter copyright, creator, attribution, licensing or rights-management information in a way that conceals ownership, facilitates unauthorised use or misrepresents the origin of the material.

Extraction or reutilisation of all or a substantial part of a database protected by database right is not permitted unless authorised or otherwise permitted by law. Repeated extraction of insubstantial parts may also be restricted in circumstances covered by applicable law.

8. Permitted use

Material may be used where:

• UNP or the relevant rights holder has granted an express licence;
• the use falls within the scope of an existing client agreement;
• the material is clearly identified as available under a separate licence;
• the use is authorised by an applicable statutory exception; or
• the relevant rights have expired.

A licence may be limited by:

• purpose or campaign;
• media or publication type;
• territory;
• duration;
• audience or circulation;
• exclusivity;
• advertising spend;
• named organisation or end client; and
• other conditions recorded in writing.

Permission for one use does not automatically permit another. Please contact the Picture Desk before extending, transferring or repurposing an existing licence.

9. Prohibited use

Except where expressly licensed or otherwise permitted by law, material must not be:

• copied, downloaded, reproduced or republished;
• distributed, sold, sublicensed or supplied to another organisation;
• used in advertising, packaging, merchandise or paid media;
• submitted to an image library, stock platform or syndication service;
• altered in a misleading, defamatory or derogatory manner;
• used outside the context, territory, duration or media covered by the licence;
• used to imply endorsement, partnership or approval that does not exist;
• stripped of identifying copyright or rights-management information;
• included in a competing archive, database, directory or content service;
• obtained through automated bulk extraction or circumvention of access controls; or
• used for artificial-intelligence or machine-learning purposes contrary to section 10 of this notice.

10. Artificial intelligence and machine learning

UNP reserves all copyright, database and other intellectual-property rights available to it under applicable law in relation to its photography, written content, metadata, archives, databases and other protected material.

Unless UNP or the relevant rights holder has granted permission, protected material must not be copied, extracted, reproduced or otherwise used in a manner that infringes those rights, including in connection with artificial-intelligence or machine-learning systems.

Depending on the circumstances, restricted uses may include:

• training, developing or fine-tuning artificial-intelligence models;
• creating or supplying machine-learning or computer-vision datasets;
• generative image, text, video or multimodal systems;
• automated extraction or analysis of substantial parts of protected databases;
• commercial data-mining or content-replication services; and
• other computational uses that require permission under applicable intellectual property, database, contractual or other legal rights.

This applies whether material is collected manually or through automated technologies such as crawlers, bots, agents or scrapers, subject always to applicable law and any statutory exception.

Nothing in this section is intended to restrict an activity that is lawfully permitted without the rights holder’s consent. Organisations wishing to use UNP material for artificial-intelligence development, research, datasets or related computational purposes should contact the Picture Desk to discuss licensing.

11. Linking, framing and hotlinking

Ordinary links to public UNP pages are generally permitted provided that they:

• lead users to the genuine UNP page;
• do not imply a partnership, endorsement or association that does not exist;
• do not misrepresent UNP, its photographers or its services; and
• do not bypass access controls or licensing restrictions.

Permission to link to a page does not grant permission to copy or display the photography or other protected material contained on that page.

Images and website content must not be hotlinked, framed, embedded or presented within another service in a way that reproduces protected material, conceals its origin or creates a misleading impression of ownership.

12. Licensing UNP material

UNP can advise on licences for press, editorial, public-relations, corporate, internal, commercial, advertising and other professional uses.

To request a licence, please provide:

1. Identify the material Supply the image reference, webpage address, screenshot or sufficient information for us to identify the required work.
2. Describe the intended use Explain where, how and why the material will be published or distributed.
3. Confirm the audience and territory Tell us the relevant publication, organisation, circulation, locations and geographic markets.
4. Provide the duration State whether the use is one-off, campaign-based, time-limited or ongoing.
5. Identify paid or commercial media Confirm whether the material will be used in advertising, sponsored content, paid social media, packaging, merchandise or another commercial placement.

UNP will confirm whether the requested rights are available and, where applicable, provide the licence terms and fee.

13. Rights management and infringement

UNP and its photographers may use image-search, metadata, monitoring and rights-management services to identify apparently unauthorised uses.

Where a potential infringement is identified, UNP or the relevant rights holder may:

• request information about the use;
• require removal or correction;
• seek an appropriate retrospective licence or settlement;
• recover fees, losses or other remedies available under law;
• request preservation of relevant records;
• refer the matter to a rights-management representative or legal adviser; or
• commence legal proceedings where proportionate and necessary.

The appropriate response will depend on the circumstances, including ownership, the nature and duration of the use, whether a licence existed and whether a statutory exception applies.

Nothing in this notice predetermines the legal remedy available in a particular case.

14. Reporting a rights concern

Please contact UNP if you believe that:

• material on the UNP website infringes a right that you own or represent;
• an image has been attributed incorrectly;
• copyright or creator metadata is inaccurate;
• UNP material is being used without permission; or
• a licence requires clarification.

Please provide enough information to identify the material, the rights concerned and the location of the disputed use.

A report should not include unnecessary confidential information or identity documents unless requested through an appropriate method.

15. Contact the Picture Desk

Contact the UNP Picture Desk to request a licence, extend an existing licence, report a potential infringement or ask about the ownership of particular material.

External copyright guidance

• UK Intellectual Property Office — copyright overview
• UK copyright guidance for digital images and photographs
• UK guidance on ownership of copyright works
• UK guidance on copyright licences and transfers
• UK guidance on protecting intellectual property

Related governance documents