User:Ashleyvh

Subject: Request for permission to use a photograph of Ryan Sampson to update Wikipedia

Dear Sir,

I am writing with regard to your help in providing a promotional image for Ryan Sampson and in my capacity as one of the many volunteer editors of the English Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org), the free encyclopedia. Wikipedia is among the most-visited sites on the Internet, ranking near the top ten according to the estimates of Alexa Internet ( alexa.com), and it is likely that many people visit our article about Ryan each day (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryan_Sampson ). Unfortunately, our article currently does not have the advantage of a pubic domain image.

I am aware that there is a publicity image available on your website (http://www.hattonmcewan.com/actors/), but since Wikipedia aims to be reproduceable even for profit and even in nations where generous United States "fair use" provisions in copyright law are inapplicable, we cannot use an image that is not released under a so-called "free license". Essentially, the copyright holder of any image that we use must irrevocably permit anyone else to use it, modify it, or sell it, with the only permissible requirements being that the author be named and that any modifications be released under an identical license.

I have included below a proforma email release. You are under no obligation to release any material under such licenses, but I thought that for public-relations purposes, you might want to consider it given Wikipedia's great popularity.

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,
<wikipedian>

-- Start of pro forma email --

I hereby assert that I am the creator and/or sole owner of the exclusive copyright of WORK [ insert link ].

I agree to publish that work under the free license LICENSE [choose at least one from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Copyright_tags ].

I acknowledge that I grant anyone the right to use the work in a commercial product, and to modify it according to their needs.

I am aware that I always retain copyright of my work, and retain the right to be attributed in accordance with the license chosen. Modifications others make to the work will not be attributed to me.

I am aware that the free license only concerns copyright, and I reserve the option to take action against anyone who uses this work in a libelous way, or in violation of personality rights, trademark restrictions, etc.

I acknowledge that I cannot withdraw this agreement, and that the work may or may not be kept permanently on a Wikimedia project.

DATE, NAME OF THE COPYRIGHT HOLDER

-- End of pro forma email --

Hi <name>,

Thank you for sending me Simon's portrait. In order to satisfy the
wikipedia administrators I do need to supply a clear statement of the
release of the image that directly refers to the free license.

They suggest using the text below which you could cut & paste into an
email back to me. You will note that at the time of writing the image
is being used on a provisional basis on Simon's wiki page
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_Callow ]

----

To permissions-commonswikimedia.org

I hereby assert that I am the creator and/or sole owner of the
exclusive copyright of the Simon Callow portrait photo dated 3
November 2007 [http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Simon_Callow_Nov_2007.jpg
].

I agree to publish that work under the free license Creative Commons
Attribution [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ ]. I
acknowledge that I grant anyone the right to use the work in a
commercial product, and to modify it according to their needs.

I am aware that I always retain copyright of my work, and retain the
right to be attributed in accordance with the license chosen.
Modifications others make to the work will not be attributed to me.

I am aware that the free license only concerns copyright, and I
reserve the option to take action against anyone who uses this work in
a libelous way, or in violation of personality rights, trademark
restrictions, etc.

I acknowledge that I cannot withdraw this agreement, and that the work
may or may not be kept permanently on a Wikimedia project.

DATE, NAME OF THE COPYRIGHT HOLDER

----

Yours,
<wikipedian>.