Artful Bandit Terms and Conditions and Asset Licences

Effective date: 7th August 2024

Publication details

Artful Bandit operates as a division of The Raccoon The legal operator of Artful Bandit and The Raccoon is [full legal name of individual, partnership or registered company], trading as  Artful Bandit (“we”, “us”, “our”). Your contract is with that legal operator.

Email for support, licencing and complaints: ip@theraccoon.co.uk
Website: artfulbandit.com

These terms cover purchases and licences of downloadable photographs, illustrations, artwork and other digital visual assets offered by Artful Bandit. They do not cover physical product purchases or bespoke commissioned work unless we expressly agree otherwise in writing.

1 Agreement and definitions

An Asset is an individual digital item identified in your order. An End Product is a finished publication, design, video, advertisement or product incorporating an Asset. The Licensee is the person or organisation named in the order. A consumer is an individual acting wholly or mainly outside their trade, business, craft or profession.

Before ordering, you must have the opportunity to read and save these terms, review the Asset description and select a licence. Your order is an offer to purchase. We accept it when we issue an order confirmation accepting the order and identifying the Asset and licence. An automated acknowledgement of receipt alone is not acceptance.

The licence begins when the order has been accepted and the agreed payment received. If we cannot fulfil an order, we will notify you and refund any payment for the unfulfilled part.

The order confirmation, Asset description, any restrictions disclosed before purchase and these terms form your agreement. A separately agreed written licence variation takes priority only to the extent it expressly changes these terms. An Asset marked Editorial Use Only remains subject to section 7 unless the separate written agreement expressly authorises a specified non-editorial use and the necessary permissions have been secured.

2 Ownership and general licence grant

Purchasing a licence gives you permission to use the Asset within the selected licence. It does not transfer copyright, ownership or exclusive rights. Copyright and other rights remain with their respective owners. We grant only the rights we own or are authorised to license.

Subject to payment and compliance, each licence is worldwide, non-exclusive, non-transferable and perpetual, and permits repeated uses within its scope without an additional royalty for each use. This is subject to the termination provisions below and any specific limits agreed before purchase.

One purchase covers one Licensee. Employees may access the Asset solely for that Licensee’s permitted projects. Contractors, printers and production providers may receive it only as necessary to complete those projects, must be bound by equivalent restrictions and must delete source files when their work ends. They acquire no independent licence.

An agency may purchase in a named client’s name and work on that client’s behalf. Otherwise, a licence purchased in the agency’s own name does not cover independent use by its clients. Each client requiring independent use must have its own licence. No licence allows an onward sale of the underlying Asset rights.

3 Licence comparison

The limits below apply per Asset, per Licensee. Print limits are cumulative across all projects, sizes and editions using that Asset; they do not reset for each project or purchase of another copy of the same tier.

No licence tier overrides an Editorial Use Only label. “Unlimited” removes the stated quantity cap; it does not remove other restrictions or grant copyright ownership.

4 Standard Licence

The Standard Licence permits personal and commercial incorporation of an eligible Asset into websites, social media, presentations, advertisements, marketing campaigns, packaging, brochures, books, magazines, digital publications and audiovisual productions.

You may crop, resize, recolour, add text and incorporate the Asset into a wider design, subject to sections 7 to 9. Digital audience size, views and advertising impressions are not capped.

You may produce up to 500,000 physical copies in total incorporating the Asset, including copies of publications, packaging and free promotional material. A multipage publication counts as one copy even if the Asset appears more than once within it. Separately distributed items count separately. Obtain an Enhanced or Extended Licence before exceeding the cap.

You may sell a genuine book, magazine, film or other finished publication incorporating the Asset where the Asset is part of the wider substantive content. You may not sell items whose principal value is the Asset itself, such as art prints, posters, illustrated mugs, clothing or decorative products. Those uses require an Extended Licence.

5 Enhanced Licence

The Enhanced Licence includes all Standard Licence permissions and removes the 500,000-copy physical reproduction limit. It allows unlimited copies of permitted publications, packaging and promotional materials, subject to the remaining terms.

It does not permit merchandise or downloadable artwork whose principal value is the Asset, standalone file resale, editable templates or stock-library distribution. For merchandise, choose an Extended Licence.

6 Extended Licence

The Extended Licence includes all Enhanced Licence permissions and additionally permits the Asset to provide the principal visual value of products offered for sale or free distribution. Examples include art prints, posters, greeting cards, calendars, mugs, clothing and homeware. There is no numerical production cap.

Print-on-demand fulfilment is permitted only for your own finished products. You may provide a production file to a fulfilment provider solely to make those products. You may not make the Asset available for other sellers or customers to download, reuse or create their own designs.

Finished digital artwork may be sold only as a flattened, non-editable composition combining the Asset with substantial original design content. Adding only a border, filter, colour change or short caption does not meet this requirement. Selling the original Asset or a substantially equivalent digital copy remains prohibited.

The Extended Licence does not permit resale of source files, sublicensing, editable templates, stock distribution or use as a logo or trade mark. Editorial Use Only Assets remain excluded from commercial merchandise unless separately authorised as set out in section 7.

7 Editorial Licence and Editorial Use Only Assets

The Editorial Licence permits use only in connection with events or topics that are newsworthy or of public interest, including newspaper and magazine articles, news blogs, documentary reporting and comparable editorial media. Uses must have a genuine editorial relationship to the subject shown and preserve the Asset’s context and integrity.

These restrictions also apply to every Asset labelled Editorial Use Only, in addition to all other applicable restrictions, regardless of whether a Standard, Enhanced or Extended Licence has been purchased.

7.1 No commercial or promotional use

Editorial Use Only Assets must not be used in advertisements, promotions, endorsements, advertorials, sponsored promotional content, commercial marketing blogs, merchandise or other commercial promotional material. Purchasing an Enhanced or Extended Licence does not remove this restriction.

Any proposed non-editorial use requires prior written consent from the Asset’s copyright owner, together with any additional model, property, trade mark or other permissions necessary for that specific use. Artful Bandit’s consent is sufficient only where we own the relevant rights or are authorised to grant that consent. Silence or acceptance of payment is not permission for an otherwise prohibited use.

A newspaper, documentary, subscription publication or news website may earn income while publishing genuine editorial reporting. That fact alone does not make the use promotional. A monetised news blog may qualify; a sales-focused business blog or sponsored advertorial does not. The purpose and context of the particular use determine whether it is editorial.

7.2 Limited modifications

Editorial Use Only Assets must not be modified except for minor adjustments for technical quality or slight cropping or resizing. Such adjustments must maintain the editorial context and integrity of the original. Do not add or remove people or objects, change expressions, create misleading composites, or use generative tools to alter the depicted event.

7.3 Mandatory attribution

Every editorial use must include the credit specified on the Asset’s listing and in its IPTC Credit Line field, where supplied. Example: “Artful Bandit / [Contributor Name]”.

Place the credit beside the image, in a clearly associated caption, or in a clearly identifiable credits section for audiovisual use. Include it with each separate publication or use. If the listing and metadata differ, or no credit has been supplied, contact us for the correct credit before publication.

7.4 Editorial quantity and distribution

The Editorial Licence has no audience, viewing, impression or editorial publication-copy cap. It does not permit syndication or supply of the standalone Asset to other publishers. Each independent publisher needs its own licence unless a separate written agreement expressly provides otherwise.

8 Restrictions applying to all licences

You must not:

• Sell, share, upload, give away or redistribute an Asset as a standalone file, source file, stock item or substantially equivalent downloadable copy.
• Make it available in an editable template, design tool, asset library or other product from which others can extract or reuse it independently.
• Claim authorship or ownership of the underlying Asset, or register it as your copyright, logo, trade mark or exclusive brand identifier. You may own rights in your original contributions without acquiring ownership of the underlying Asset.
• Register the Asset, or an End Product containing it, with an automated rights-enforcement system in a way that claims exclusive rights over the Asset or blocks other lawful users.
• Use it unlawfully, deceptively, to defame or harass someone, or in a way that falsely implies a depicted person or organisation endorses a product, service, belief or activity.
• Use a recognisable person in sexual content or misleadingly associate them with criminal activity, a medical condition or another sensitive personal characteristic. Accurate, lawful editorial reporting remains subject to section 7.
• Remove watermarks from previews or use an unlicensed preview in a final End Product. Ordinary cropping of a licensed file is allowed where the applicable licence permits it; deliberately removing embedded ownership or licensing information is not.
• Use Assets to train or fine-tune AI or machine-learning models, create training datasets, or distribute Assets as NFTs or comparable tokenised collectibles without separate written permission.
• Circumvent download controls or provide access to people who have no permission under your licence.

Normal publication through a platform is permitted where the platform’s terms require only the limited technical rights necessary to host and display your permitted End Product. You must not upload where the platform would acquire broader independent reuse or stock-resale rights over the Asset.

9 Third-party rights and asset descriptions

An Asset licence does not automatically provide permission to use a person’s likeness, private property, artwork, trade mark, design or other protected material appearing within it. Any model or property release available for an Asset will be expressly identified in its description. Do not assume one exists because a commercial licence tier is offered.

We will accurately describe the Asset, material usage restrictions and release information known to us. You must select a use compatible with that information and secure any additional permissions your particular use requires. We remain responsible for supplying what we have promised and for obligations that cannot lawfully be excluded.

Where an Asset is identified as AI-generated or AI-assisted, that description forms part of the order information. We license only rights we can lawfully grant; we do not promise that every AI-generated element qualifies for copyright protection or is unique. Synthetic illustrations must not be presented as authentic photographic evidence of real events.

10 Prices payment and delivery

The total price, currency, applicable taxes, file format, dimensions, delivery method and any download-access period will be shown before purchase. You are responsible for checking compatibility against those disclosed specifications.

Files will be supplied by the method and within the timeframe stated at checkout or in your order confirmation. If a file is corrupt, inaccessible or materially different from its description, contact us with your order details so we can investigate and provide an appropriate remedy.

Keep a backup and your order confirmation. We do not promise permanent download hosting unless expressly stated, but any access period promised at purchase remains binding. We may correct pricing or listing errors before accepting an order; after acceptance, changes require agreement or another lawful basis.

11 Consumer cancellation and remedies

If you are a UK consumer buying downloadable digital content, you normally have 14 days after the contract is made to cancel without giving a reason, subject to the rules below. Any longer cancellation period required by law remains available.

We will begin supply during that period only after you expressly request immediate supply and acknowledge that you will lose your cancellation right once supply begins. We will confirm that consent and acknowledgement in a form you can save. Accepting these general terms alone does not provide that separate express consent.

If you do not give that consent, supply will be delayed until the cancellation period ends. Your cancellation right is not lost merely because you have paid. If the required consent, acknowledgement or confirmation is missing, your rights remain as provided by law.

To cancel, send a clear statement to the contact email above identifying your order. You may use the optional form below. Where cancellation is valid, we will refund the applicable payment within 14 days of receiving notice, using the original payment method unless you agree otherwise and without a refund fee.

After the cancellation right has lawfully ended, we do not offer refunds solely because you change your mind. This does not affect rights where content is faulty, misdescribed, not supplied or otherwise fails to meet legal requirements. Digital content must meet applicable standards, including satisfactory quality, fitness for a purpose made known and accepted, and conformity with its description. Statutory remedies may include repair or replacement, a price reduction or refund, as applicable.

For business purchases, there is no contractual change-of-mind cancellation right after supply unless agreed in writing. Remedies for our breach remain available.

12 Breach suspension and termination

If we reasonably believe your use breaches these terms, we may request relevant evidence of licensing and ask you to correct the use. For a remediable material breach, we will explain the issue in writing and allow 14 days to remedy it before terminating the affected licence. We may terminate immediately for deliberate unauthorised redistribution, fraud or unlawful use, explaining the reason where lawful.

Termination affects the relevant Asset licence, not unrelated compliant licences. Following valid termination for your breach, you must cease using the affected Asset, remove it from channels you control and stop new manufacture or distribution of affected products. You must take reasonable steps with your contractors to end further use. Copies already lawfully supplied to end customers need not be recalled unless required by law or a court order.

Termination does not remove accrued rights or statutory remedies. We do not revoke a compliant perpetual licence merely because we later remove the Asset from sale or change our prices. If a rights claim requires us to request withdrawal of a licensed Asset, we will explain the issue and offer an appropriate replacement or refund, without restricting any further legal remedy available to you.

12.1 Unauthorised or prohibited use and infringement compensation

Where an Asset is used without permission, or outside or contrary to the permissions granted by its licence, Artful Bandit, a division of The Raccoon, will seek infringement compensation of £1,300 per separate unauthorised use: one use represents one charge, where we have the legal right to bring the claim. This includes inappropriate usage that infringes copyright by falling outside the permissions granted. The amount is separate from our ordinary licence prices and is not a licence price for permitted use.

For this purpose, one use means one Asset incorporated into one separately published item or placement, such as one webpage, social media post, video, advertisement or printed publication edition. Use of the same Asset in a separate item or placement counts as another use, including a separate upload to another platform. Each different Asset used without permission is counted separately. Repeated appearances of the same Asset within the same item count as one use. Individual views, impressions, downloads by viewers, days online, and identical physical copies within the same print edition do not each create another charge. For example, one Asset used without permission in three separate videos represents three uses, with a stated total charge of £3,900.

Our right to pursue copyright infringement does not depend on the infringer having purchased a licence or agreed to these terms. However, £1,300 is the compensation we will seek, not a statutory fine, an automatically binding contractual debt or a guaranteed court award. If liability or the amount is disputed, it must be resolved by agreement or determined by a court under applicable law. A breach of these terms that does not constitute copyright infringement does not, by itself, establish entitlement to infringement damages.

We may require removal or cessation of the unauthorised use and pursue legally available remedies. Where justified by the circumstances, including flagrant infringement, we may seek additional damages. Interest and legal costs will be sought only where legally recoverable or agreed. We will not recover twice for the same loss.

Removing the Asset or buying an ordinary licence after the event does not by itself settle a claim relating to earlier infringement. Any settlement must identify in writing the uses and claims it resolves. Payment of a compensation demand does not grant permission for continued or future use unless expressly included in the written settlement.

No compensation demand under this policy applies where the use is permitted by a valid licence, permission from a person authorised to grant it, or an applicable copyright exception. Describing a use as inappropriate does not override those rights.

13 Responsibility and liability

We are responsible for losses caused by our breach or failure to use reasonable care and skill to the extent required by applicable law. For consumers, this includes foreseeable loss and damage caused by our breach; we do not exclude statutory digital-content rights.

For business Licensees only, to the extent lawful, we are not liable for indirect or consequential loss or loss of profit, and our total liability arising from an affected order is limited to the fees paid for that order. This business limitation is subject to the exceptions below and to any applicable legal requirement that it be reasonable.

Nothing excludes or limits liability for fraud, fraudulent misrepresentation, death or personal injury caused by negligence, our right to supply the digital content where liability cannot be limited, or any other liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited. The infringement compensation policy in section 12.1 is subject to the qualifications stated there; nothing in these terms imposes an unlawful penalty or limits mandatory consumer protections.

14 Privacy and complaints

We handle personal information as explained in our separate Privacy Notice. These terms do not themselves authorise optional tracking or replace any consent required by law.

Send complaints and licensing queries to the contact email above with your order reference and relevant details. We will acknowledge complaints within five working days and aim to resolve them within 20 working days, or explain any delay. Contacting us does not prevent you from exercising your legal rights.

15 Changes governing law and other terms

The version accepted when you purchase governs that order. Future changes apply to future purchases and do not retrospectively reduce existing licence permissions without your agreement or a legal requirement.

These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales. Business disputes are subject to the courts of England and Wales. Consumers retain mandatory protections of their country of habitual residence and any right to bring proceedings in their local courts that applicable law provides.

If a provision is unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue so far as lawful. A delay in enforcing a right does not waive it. No person other than the contracting parties has a right to enforce these terms under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999. Nothing limits rights or exceptions independently available under copyright law.