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Zillow has begun removing the images at the center of CoStar’s copyright infringement lawsuit from its site this week.
A Zillow spokesperson confirmed that the listing portal giant is only removing images that are of issue in the lawsuit and that it is notifying partners of the removals. Additionally, the spokesperson noted that actions like this are routine procedure during copyright litigation.
Filed in late July, CoStar’s lawsuit accuses Zillow of “rampant” copyright infringement of listing photos. The complaint claims that Zillow’s unauthorized use of CoStar images amounts to one of the largest real estate image infringement cases in history.
“Zillow’s theft of tens of thousands of CoStar Group’s copyrighted photographs is nothing short of outrageous,” said Andy Florance, founder and CEO of CoStar Group, in a statement. “Zillow is profiting from decades of CoStar Group work and the billions of dollars we have invested.”
According to CoStar, it holds the largest collection of real estate photographs in the world, producing more than 2 million original images annually through a network of in-house and contracted photographers.
Although Zillow said the removal of these photos from its site was standard procedure for a copyright lawsuit, CoStar had some strong words to share.
“When caught red-handed, some companies issue apologies — but Zillow tries to hide its wrongdoing,” Gene Boxer, CoStar Group’s general counsel, said in statement. “This belated scramble also proves that Zillow has always had the power to decide what shows up on its sites. It chose to infringe because it made money doing so. Before CoStar sued, Zillow knowingly displayed tens of thousands of CoStar’s watermarked photos and monetized them on its rental platform and partner network. We look forward to holding Zillow to account for its mass infringement.”
Zillow was previously involved in another copyright infringement suit brought by real estate photography firm VHT. Zillow was found liable by a jury and was ordered to pay millions of dollars in damages by the court.
