Over time, gossip and entertainment blogs have been using people’s tweets to create articles, usually in a way that is undesirable to the author of those tweets. This has led to debates online as to if it is allowed for tweets to be used without an author’s express approval.
Here, I dug into Twitter’s policies to find out what the social network’s stand is on the issue.
In Twitter’s terms of service (TOS) which every Twitter user agrees to when signing up, the user retains the rights to all tweets and content in general posted on the platform. However, the terms go on to say,
By submitting, posting or displaying Content on or through the Services, you grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license (with the right to sublicense) to use, copy, reproduce, process, adapt, modify, publish, transmit, display and distribute such Content in any and all media or distribution methods (now known or later developed).
…You are responsible for your use of the Services, for any Content you provide, and for any consequences thereof, including the use of your Content by other users and our third party partners. You understand that your Content may be syndicated, broadcast, distributed, or published by our partners and if you do not have the right to submit Content for such use, it may subject you to liability. Twitter will not be responsible or liable for any use of your Content by Twitter in accordance with these Terms. You represent and warrant that you have all the rights, power and authority necessary to grant the rights granted herein to any Content that you submit.
This in plain English means that once you put up content, Twitter is free to use it as it sees fit – Twitter is free to distribute that content.
When a website (or another third party) quotes, puts a screenshot image or embeds a tweet containing your content, is it within that website’s right?
Well, in the second paragraph of the quote above, Twitter makes it clear that content can be distributed by third party partners. When a website embeds a tweet, the embed uses Twitter’s API so it is very clear that this falls into the third party partner category, and the website is well within its rights. Fortunately, if a user notices this, s/he can delete that tweet or set his account settings to private, thereby blocking the tweet from showing up on the third party.
A screenshot or a copy and paste quote, or a download of a Twitter photo and uploading it, does not fall under the TOS and though it is not illegal (yet), it is at least inappropriate. The Nigerian Constitution does not have a stand on Internet rights but if we go by “fair use” exceptions, copyright may still protect you depending on the circumstances, if you prove it.
Source: Twitter Terms of Service, Poynter
