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A federal judge has ruled that Pearson Education must face claims it printed and distributed thousands of photos in textbooks without permission.
Minden Pictures Inc (MPI) is bringing five lawsuits against Pearson in New Jersey, US, for globally distributing photos by 12 photographers it didn’t possess the correct copyright approval for.
The publisher is accused of obtaining limited licenses to print copyrighted photographs in the US, but distributing them in textbooks globally via its international rights management group.
The publisher moved to dismiss the claim, but US District Judge Faith Hochberg has refused to dismiss it, according to the Court House News Service in the US.
In a separate case against Pearson in San Francisco, a judge ruled that Minden lacked standing under the Copyright Act. However, Minden is appealing the San Francisco case.
The fact that Minden lost in San Francisco does not preclude the photo firm from bringing suit in New Jersey, Judge Hochberg ruled. He said: "…The photographers can freely sell or transfer their copyrights, and any subsequent buyer should be able to exercise those preserved causes of action as if they were the original copyright owner."