AI-powered search platform Perplexity has signed a multi-year licensing deal with Getty Images. The deal allows Perplexity to officially feature images from Getty’s photo archive in its AI-powered search and discovery tools.
The move is seen as a significant turning point for the company, as Perplexity has been embroiled in allegations of content theft and plagiarism in recent months. The new deal is seen as the company’s first step toward formalizing its content partnerships.
Perplexity and Getty have reportedly been working together for more than a year, but the partnership has not been made public. According to a source familiar with the matter, Getty was initially part of Perplexity’s “Publisher Program,” which gives publishers a share of advertising revenue from their content in search results.
The current deal, however, is a completely new one. According to the sources, this is not a traditional “one-time fee” licensing deal, as Perplexity does not train its core AI models. The exact terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The new agreement also legitimizes Perplexity’s previous use of Getty stock photos. The company has faced accusations of plagiarism from several media outlets in the past year. For example, an article in the Wall Street Journal noted cases of unauthorized use of a Getty photo.
Previously, many media outlets considered Perplexity’s use of these images to be copyright infringement. Although a source who spoke to TechCrunch last year said that Perplexity was working on a deal with Getty, this information was not officially confirmed at the time.
It should be noted that Reddit also filed a lawsuit against Perplexity in October of this year. Reddit accused Perplexity of “unlawful data collection on an industrial scale” and accessing user data in violation of technical restrictions.
Perplexity says that the new Getty Images agreement will ensure that images displayed in search results are accompanied by attribution and links to the original source.
Getty’s vice president of strategic development, Nick Unsworth, said of the deal:
“This agreement recognizes the importance of proper attribution and consent in AI-powered products.”
Jessica Chan, head of content and publishing partnerships at Perplexity, said:
“Attribution and accuracy are fundamental principles in how people understand the world in the age of AI. We’re improving the process of finding answers through visual storytelling, while also ensuring that users know where the content comes from and who owns it.”
Perplexity’s move is seen as part of the company’s defense strategy against copyright claims. The company says its use of open-source data falls within the “fair use” principle, which means that publicly available facts are not protected by copyright.
