Why ditch Instagram?
1. [A]s of January 16th, any photos you upload to Instagram can be used in advertising. You will not be notified, you will not earn royalties, you do not have to give consent. If you agree to their new terms & conditions, you have already given your consent. [Source].
2. There's no guarantee that private accounts will remain private.
3. The fact that there wasn't even a clearly-worded announcement about these changes, rather they were embedded in the new terms & conditions. That's pretty shady, hmm?
Since the eruption of users' and media's outrage, Instagram has posted this blog, stating:
"Instagram users own their content and Instagram does not claim any ownership rights over your photos. Nothing about this has changed. We respect that there are creative artists and hobbyists alike that pour their heart into creating beautiful photos, and we respect that your photos are your photos. Period".
Privacy Settings Nothing has changed about the control you have over who can see your photos. If you set your photos to private, Instagram only shares your photos with the people you’ve approved to follow you.
So now it sounds like they're backpedaling?
Even if that's the case, I have a hard time trusting a company that would feel no remorse about snatching peoples' photos and made a pretty penny for themselves.
I understand that businesses want to make money (I run a business. I want to make money). However, transparency is essential. If a business keeps vital information from users (or tries to hide it from them, or doesn't explicitly disclose it), that's as bad as lying.
For this reason, I'm moving to Flickr. And the fact that there's a gorgeous new Flickr app, complete with filters, editing and easy scrolling, doesn't hurt either!
Join me on Flickr.
