Dua Lipa is the latest celebrity to face legal action after posting a paparazzi photo of herself on Instagram.
According to Billboard, the eight-page copyright infringement complaint was filed by attorney Craig Sander and alleges that the British artist posted the photo owned by Integral Images “without permission or authorization.” The company further stated that Lipa utilizes her social media account to receive more profit, “The Account is monetized in that it contains content designed to accumulate followers who are directed to, via link and/or advertisement, consume and purchase Defendant’s content, Defendant profits from these activities.”
Integral Images is now seeking either $150,000 USD in damages or “an award of actual damages and disgorgement of all of Defendant’s profits attributable to the infringements,” whichever is a larger amount. The company is also requesting for an order urging the artist from “further acts of infringement, as well as litigation costs and attorney’s fees.”
The now-deleted image was shot by paparazzi and posted on the British artist’s Instagram account in February 2019. It supposedly sees Lipa in an airport queue sporting an oversized hat, and her Instagram caption read, ”I’ll be living under big fluffy hats until further notice.”
Lipa isn’t the first celebrity to receive complaints over posting photos taken by paparazzi. Big names such as Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber and Jennifer Lopez have also faced similar legal problems.
Photo| Reuters – Peter Nicholls
