Uploaded And Stored Photos

[Baboonboy]

Can photo print websites use your photos? I seem to remember some website a few years ago doing this and I thought it was some online data storage website. Photobox are now offering free unlimited photo storage but I'm concerned they'll be able to pinch them. I can't find anything related to this on their website in T&Cs.
Thanks
BB

[Buenchico]

Photobox doesn't have a fixed storage limit but, if you're considering lots of images there, they might still restrict the amount of storage available to you. Quote:
"We provide Image Storage at no cost principally in order to facilitate Users’ creation and purchase of personalised Products bearing their Images
Accordingly, we do not intend or invite Users to store their Images other than for those purposes
We do not currently apply a fixed limit to the volume of Images which may be uploaded provided you comply with our reasonable fair use requirements
Those fair use requirements would be breached by, for example:
The automated or scripted uploading of Images or other User Content;
The uploading of Images or other User Content on a high-frequency basis; or
The inclusion of very large volumes of Images or other User Content in an individual album"

With regard to copyright, their policy document doesn't appear to be written in proper English! Quote:
"You acknowledge that all copyright, trade marks, and other intellectual property rights in and relating to Photobox (including, without limitation, User Content associated Users other than you) are owned by, or licensed to, us"
However, as far as I can make sense of that, you're not assigning copyright in your images to Photobox by uploading them.

Further, Photobox is a trusted company which wouldn't risk losing customers (both from its own site and from its associated activities, such as Moonpig) through the bad publicity they might get if they stole someone's pictures.

However if you're still not satisfied with their policy, there are dozens of other photo storage sites for you to consider, such as PhotoBucket, Flickr, ImageShack and Webshots. If you use Google's Picasa software you can also upload to Picasa web albums. You don't even have to use an English-language website. It's not hard to work out how to use sites in other languages. (For example, here are some of my own pics on a Czech site: http://ukcatlover.rajce.idnes.cz/Patches_and_Her_Kittens/ )

Whichever you use though, never rely on them as the only way to store your photos. In the past many people have lost all of their images (because they'd got no other copies) when certain sites have closed down.

[Baboonboy]

A very comprehensive answer! Thank you very much Buenchico.
BB

[Baboonboy]

PS Ironically the Photobox website is currently having technical problems and I can't upload anything at present.

[hc4361]

I don't know if it's of any interest but I've been using PhotoBucket for years.