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Reading: Snapchat Says Sorry After Accusations Of Plagiarism
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B&T > Media > Snapchat Says Sorry After Accusations Of Plagiarism
Media

Snapchat Says Sorry After Accusations Of Plagiarism

Erin M Doyle
Published on: 20th June 2016 at 11:37 AM
Erin M Doyle
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5 Min Read
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Snapchat has apologised and said it will review its approval systems after several artists have accused the photo-sharing app’s staff of copying designs.

A popular feature on Snapchat is the ever-changing Lens filters which users can overlay over their selfies. One of the most popular Lens is a rainbow stream that pours out of your mouth like vomit.

There is always seven lenses to choose from, the often rotate and disappear for good. Despite its popularity, Lenses have caused a bit of a headache for Snapchat; a Bob Marley filter was accused of blackface, a recent promotion for X-Men: Apocalypse wasn’t received well and a ‘beautifying’ lens was also accused of racism.

Make-up artist Argenis Pinal posted a comparison image on Instagram of a zombie pattern he claims Snapchat copied. Pinal told pop culture site The Ringer:  “I came across it and I was like, ‘Um, this is exactly the same drawing I did of myself a couple months ago. And it was weird, because I literally just reposted a picture of it a week ago on Instagram. Sort of a re-shout-out to it.”

#snapchatstolemylook Oh Hey GUYs look what #snapchat New filter is ?? My Joker face Paint. Immmmm soooo flattered they chose my face paint design since they are clearly running out of Filter Ideas to do BUT At Least Ask the Artist for the filter Idea and give them credit- wouldn’t you Think ????? I Did it better Sorry ? __________________ And clearly it’s not the first time they do it, I just found out they took @mykie_ Look too and many artist, they need to stop because we spend a great amount of time creating looks and deserve the credit as an artist !!! #buzzfeed #hudabeauty #vegas_nay #laurag_143 #wakeupandmakeup #makeupfanatic1 #cosmopolitan #snapchatnoswiping

A photo posted by Argenis L❤️Comics (@argenapeede) on Jun 13, 2016 at 6:56pm PDT

Back in May, another makeup artist ‘Mykie_’ accused Snapchat of copying her designs. After Snapchat acknowledge the similarities, she called the apology “a win for the artists”. 

Not sure how to feel about the newest snapchat filter ? UPDATE: Please see other post about this from two months into the future. TL;DR Snapchat admitted to this being an issue after 3 other artists were copied.

A photo posted by mykie (@mykie_) on Apr 28, 2016 at 2:58am PDT

A couple months ago I posted a side by side of an old makeup look I did and a snapchat filter that had curiously similar details. Three more cases of curiously similar Snapchat filters and stickers compared to the work of three other artists, many snaps and tweets later, and people finally started to see it was unlikely these were all coincidences. The Ringer & Teen Vogue wrote articles on the issue and Snapchat has FINALLY acknowledged this is a problem. I’m sad it’s taken so many rip offs of artists’ work and articles for Snapchat to finally say this; I wish they had said it to those artists directly, but I’m glad they’ve said it at all. I hope they mean what they say about things changing going forward to avoid this from happening again. Thank you to those who understand the nuance of this issue, who spoke up about this, and supported me as well as the other artists effected (@argenapeede is another!). It’s ONLY because of that support that Snapchat is finally admitting that copying won’t be tolerated. Today is a win for the artists ☺️? Edit: To those saying what’s the big deal? There’s many reasons but for one, copyright infringement is illegal. You’ve probably been keyboard warriors over less. DOUBLE edit (what does it mean?!)??: I’m getting serious enjoyment out of the people in the comments who can’t read or are butthurt that 4 artists actually got some acknowledgement. Keep the lolz comin’

A photo posted by mykie (@mykie_) on Jun 17, 2016 at 7:25pm PDT

Snapchat has released a statement saying it will add additional layers of review to curb copycat claims. The statement said: “The creative process sometimes involves inspiration, but it should never result in copying. We have already implemented additional layers of review for all designs. Copying other artists isn’t something we will tolerate, and we’re taking appropriate action internally with those involved.”

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Erin M Doyle
By Erin M Doyle
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Erin Doyle is an experienced digital marketing specialist and comms expert.

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