If this allegation is true, I'll be pissed. I took the time to upload about 100 large resolution Photoshop files to Kodak recently (for use as presents mostly - calendars, whatnots), and if Kodak downsampled the images before sending the pictures to their intended recipients, I want a refund. MoFos.
WSJ.com - Lawsuit Is Filed Against Kodak
A former Eastman Kodak Co. manager says that the company altered millions of photographs stored by customers on the popular EasyShare Gallery Web site and that she was fired after threatening to bring her concerns about the plan to top management.In a lawsuit filed in California superior court in Oakland, Maya Raber, the former director of engineering for EasyShare Gallery, said that Kodak planned to secretly compress the digital-photograph images stored by customers of the Web site, a process she says can irreversibly damage the images. The suit alleges that she and other employees warned of the potential damage the compression could cause, but higher-ups pushed the plan along.
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Ms. Raber claims some of the photographic images that are uploaded on the EasyShare Web site are still being compressed and potentially damaged. She says customers are not told of the possible damage.“I thought it was deceiving and illegal,” Ms. Raber said in an interview. She said the idea to compress photo images was part of a cost-cutting plan that would allow the company to save money on photo-imaging storage costs. Ms. Raber claims Kodak used misleading advertising pitches to lure customers to the site.
She says compressed images can permanently lose sharpness and appear grainy when reproduced. An internal panel found the results to be unsatisfactory, Ms. Raber claims. Kodak declined to comment on any effects of compression on the photos.
Ms. Raber, of course, was subsequently fired, and is suing for wrongful termination.
Tags: litigation
