Intellectual property & copyright policy

This policy explains how intellectual property works on FreelancerPeople: who owns the work that is listed, commissioned and sold here, how rights move between buyers and sellers, and how to report content that you believe infringes a copyright, trademark or other intellectual property right. It applies across the whole marketplace, covering freelance orders (SERVEs, custom contracts and hourly work) as well as digital products sold through seller stores.

FreelancerPeople (also "the Platform") operates from India. Our complaint and takedown process follows the Copyright Act, 1957 and the Copyright Rules, 2013, together with the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the intermediary rules made under it. This is not a "DMCA" process, because the DMCA is a United States statute, but we accept complaints from rightsholders anywhere in the world, including DMCA-style notices from outside India, and we handle them under the process described below. Please read this policy alongside our Terms of Service, Community Guidelines, Prohibited Uses policy and Trust & Safety overview. Nothing on this page is legal advice: if you are unsure about your rights, speak to a qualified professional in your jurisdiction.

1. Our role as an intermediary

FreelancerPeople is a marketplace intermediary. Sellers on the Platform are independent professionals and independent stores, not our employees or agents. The contract for any order forms directly between the buyer and the seller; the Platform provides the venue, the tools and the payment protection around that contract. We do not initiate the upload of seller content, we do not select who receives it, and we do not select or modify the information contained in listings, product files, portfolios or deliverables. Because of that, we are not in a position to review every file for ownership before it is published.

What we do instead is act on notice. When a rightsholder tells us, through the process in this policy, that specific content on the Platform infringes their rights, we review the complaint and disable access to the identified material where the complaint supports it. That notice-and-takedown process is the backbone of this policy.

2. Who owns what on FreelancerPeople

Three layers of ownership exist on the Platform, and it helps to keep them separate.

• Seller content stays the seller's. Listings, product descriptions, previews, portfolio samples, store branding and profile content remain the property of the seller who created them. By publishing on FreelancerPeople, sellers grant the Platform a non-exclusive licence to host, display, reproduce and promote that content as needed to operate and market the marketplace. That licence does not transfer ownership to us or to anyone else.
• Order deliverables and product files follow the rules in Sections 3 and 4. Rights in commissioned work and in purchased digital products move, or do not move, according to those sections and to the terms shown on the order or product page.
• The Platform itself belongs to us. The FreelancerPeople name, logos and brand assets, and the design, interface, code and copy of the Platform, belong to FreelancerPeople or our licensors. You receive a personal, limited, revocable licence to use the Platform for its intended purpose. You may not copy, scrape, frame or build a competing service from our content, and you may not use our name or brand assets in a way that suggests endorsement, partnership or affiliation without our prior written permission.

3. Freelance orders: rights in deliverables

For freelance work ordered through the Platform, the default rule is that rights follow payment and acceptance.

• Before acceptance: the seller retains ownership of the work they produce. Deliveries may be presented as protected previews (for example, watermarked files) until the order is accepted.
• On acceptance and full payment: the rights in the final deliverables created specifically for that order transfer to the buyer, unless the order, package description or custom contract clearly says otherwise. From that point the buyer may use, adapt, reproduce and publish the delivered work.
• What does not transfer: a seller's pre-existing tools, templates, frameworks, code libraries and general know-how remain the seller's property. Where such components are embedded in a deliverable, the buyer receives a licence to use them as part of the delivered work, not ownership of the components themselves.
• Third-party assets: where a deliverable includes stock media, fonts, plugins or other licensed material, the buyer's right to use that material is governed by the third party's licence. Sellers must hold valid licences for everything they include and must tell the buyer about material terms that affect the buyer's intended use.
• Cancelled or refunded orders: no rights transfer. If an order is cancelled or refunded, the seller keeps the rights to the work, and the buyer must not use deliverables they did not ultimately pay for and accept.

If you need something different from these defaults, for example an arrangement where the seller keeps ownership and grants a licence, agree it in the order before work begins. Whatever is clearly stated and agreed at order time prevails over the defaults above.

4. Digital products: licences, not ownership

Buying a digital product on FreelancerPeople gives you a licence to use it. It does not make you the owner of the underlying work; the seller retains ownership of the product itself.

• Your licence matches the tier you bought. Products are offered under licence tiers such as personal, commercial and extended, and the exact scope of each tier is displayed on the product page before you buy. A personal licence does not include the rights of a commercial or extended licence; if you need broader rights, purchase the corresponding tier.
• Seller terms can differ. The Platform provides standard licence summaries, but a seller may attach their own licence terms to a product. Where the seller's terms differ from the standard summary, the seller's terms control. They are shown on the product page and remain available from your library after purchase.
• No redistribution. No standard tier permits redistributing or reselling the product's source files as they are, or repackaging them as a competing asset for sale. If a seller's own licence terms permit something more, that permission comes from the seller.
• Updates: where a seller publishes an updated version of a product you own, your existing licence covers the update; you do not buy the product again for a new version.

5. Respecting third-party intellectual property

Everyone on FreelancerPeople must respect the intellectual property of others. Sellers must have the rights to everything they upload and deliver, including fonts, stock photos and videos, music, icons, code libraries, plugins and templates embedded in a listing or product. Holding a file is not the same as holding the right to sell it.

• Do not upload or sell pirated, cracked, nulled or leaked material, licence key generators, or anything designed to bypass licensing, activation or digital rights management. Such material is removed and may lead to action against the account.
• Do not offer or deliver counterfeits, brand imitations, or work that copies someone else's protected design, mark or content without authorisation.
• Buyers must not commission infringement. Asking a seller to clone a protected product, copy a brand or reproduce someone else's work without permission violates this policy just as delivering it does.
• When work legitimately incorporates third-party material, make sure the licence permits the intended use and pass on any required attribution.

6. How to file a copyright or trademark complaint

If you own a copyright or trademark, or you are authorised to act for the owner, and you believe content on FreelancerPeople infringes it, send us a written complaint. You can do this in two ways: email support@freelancerpeople.com, or open a ticket through our Support page. Many listings and products also carry an in-page report option that collects the same details in a structured form.

For us to act on your complaint, it must include all of the following:

• Identification of the protected work, together with proof that you own it or are authorised to act for the owner: for example a link to the original, registration details, or documents showing your authority.
• The exact location on FreelancerPeople of the material you are complaining about: the URL of the listing, product, profile or file, described precisely enough for us to find it.
• A good-faith declaration that the use of the material is not authorised by the rights owner, their agent, or the law.
• Your contact details, including a name and an email address at which we can reach you.
• A statement that the information in your complaint is accurate and that you are the rights owner or authorised to act on the owner's behalf.

You may attach supporting evidence with your complaint. If essential details are missing, we may ask you for more information before acting, which can delay the outcome, so please make the first submission complete.

7. What we do when we receive a complaint

Every complaint receives a ticket or case number you can use to track it, and we acknowledge receipt within 24 hours. Our Trust & Safety process then reviews the complaint against the material identified.

• Where a complaint is complete and supports the claim, we disable access to the identified material on the Platform. For complaints in categories where Indian law requires action within a fixed period, we act within that period, which for qualifying complaints is up to 72 hours from the complaint.
• Content that a court order or a government notification requires us to remove is taken down within the timelines that law prescribes.
• An open complaint can also place related activity on hold: for example, a product with an open report may be held from publishing new versions until the matter is reviewed.
• We notify the user whose content was affected, tell them what was reported, and point them to the response options in Sections 8 and 9.

8. The 21-day rule: takedowns and restoration

India's Copyright Rules, 2013 build a specific rhythm into copyright takedowns, and we follow it.

• When we disable access to material on the basis of a copyright complaint, it stays disabled for 21 days from the complaint while the complainant pursues the matter.
• Within that 21-day period, the complainant is expected to obtain an order from a competent court and produce it to us. If a court order is produced, the material remains disabled as the order directs. If no order is produced within the period, access to the material may be restored.
• If the same complainant asks us to take down the same material again after a restoration, we may decline to act without a court order, as the Rules provide.

This means a copyright complaint starts a clock, not a permanent removal. Rightsholders who are serious about a claim should be prepared to pursue it before a court within the window.

9. Counter-statements from the uploader

If your content was disabled in response to a complaint and you believe that was a mistake, you can respond. Reply through the case we opened when we notified you, from the My Reports area of your account, or through the Support page, with evidence of your rights: for example your licence, your purchase record for the assets used, proof of your own authorship, or an explanation of why the use is lawful.

We consider counter-statements alongside the original complaint and, where the evidence justifies it, we restore access to the material. We may share the substance of a counter-statement with the complainant so they can respond. A counter-statement is a formal representation about your rights, so make it only if you genuinely have them.

10. Repeat infringement

We keep a record of policy violations on each account, including formal warnings issued for intellectual property violations. Accounts that repeatedly upload infringing material, or that ignore the outcome of valid complaints, face escalating consequences. Depending on the history and the seriousness of the conduct, that can include removal of content, holds on publishing, suspension of listings or stores, and suspension or termination of the account.

There is no fixed number of chances. Enforcement decisions are made case by case by our Trust & Safety process, weighing the account's history, the nature of the material and the harm involved. A deliberate act, such as selling pirated software, can lead to termination on the first occasion.

11. If you bought a product that is removed

If a digital product you purchased is later removed following an intellectual property complaint, your ability to download it again may be withdrawn, and you should stop using material you know to be infringing.

Buyers in this situation may be eligible for a refund review under our Refund Policy. Where a refund is approved, it is credited to your FreelancerPeople wallet promptly on approval; you can spend the balance on the Platform or withdraw it, and withdrawing requires identity verification and a verified payout method. Refunds are not sent back to the original card or bank account.

12. Trademark and other intellectual property complaints

Complaints about trademarks, passing off, design rights, trade secrets and other intellectual property are handled through the same channel and with the same required contents as Section 6: identify the right, prove your ownership or authority, point to the exact location on the Platform, and declare the complaint accurate and made in good faith. The 21-day mechanics in Section 8 are specific to copyright complaints under the Copyright Rules; other complaints are reviewed and actioned on their own merits, within the timelines described in Section 7.

13. False or bad-faith complaints

The complaint process exists to protect creators, and abusing it harms them. Filing a complaint that knowingly misrepresents that material is infringing, using complaints to attack a competitor, or repeatedly filing meritless reports may itself lead to action against your account, and a knowingly false statement in a complaint can expose you to legal liability. Submit complaints honestly, and only about rights you actually hold or represent.

14. Appeals for affected users

If action was taken against your content or your account under this policy and you believe the decision was wrong, you can appeal. Each case allows one appeal, filed from the case record in My Reports, explaining why the action should be reversed. If your account is suspended, you can still sign in to open a support ticket about the suspension, which is how account-level appeals are raised. Where an appeal is granted, we reverse the action: content is restored with its previous visibility, and account status is reinstated.

15. Governing law and your rights

This policy is governed by the laws of India, and the courts in India have jurisdiction over disputes arising from it, as set out in our Terms of Service. Nothing in this policy or the Terms limits any rights you have under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 or under any other law that cannot be excluded by agreement. Nothing in this policy prevents a rightsholder or an uploader from pursuing their claims directly before a competent court.

16. Questions and contact

For copyright and trademark complaints, counter-statements, appeals, or questions about this policy, contact us at support@freelancerpeople.com or through our Support page. Mark intellectual property matters clearly so they can be routed quickly, and include the details listed in Section 6 so we can act without delay.

Our Grievance Officer is the designated point of contact for grievances about content on the Platform, reachable at support@freelancerpeople.com. Every grievance is acknowledged within 24 hours with a ticket number for tracking and resolved within 15 days. Complaints about non-consensual intimate imagery are actioned with removal within 24 hours; other content complaints are actioned within 72 hours where the law requires it.

We may update this policy as the Platform and the law evolve. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page reflects the current version, and your continued use of FreelancerPeople after an update means you accept the version in effect. See also our Privacy Policy for how we handle the personal data included in complaints and appeals.