Legal Information

BEVFAM Website Terms of Use and Legal Notices

This website (“Site”) is owned and operated by the Bülent Eczacıbaşı Foundation Center for Photographic Studies (“BEVFAM”/“Site Owner”). By accessing, browsing, using or otherwise interacting with the Site, all users acknowledge and agree that they are legally bound by these Terms of Use and Legal Notices. Users who do not accept these terms must immediately discontinue all use of the Site.

Terms of Use and Legal Notices

Users agree to act in good faith and comply with these Terms of Use, the legal notices set out below, and all applicable laws and regulations. Users expressly acknowledge and agree that any administrative, civil or criminal liability arising from their failure to comply with these obligations shall be borne solely and entirely by them.
Users may access and view the content on the Site solely for personal, non-commercial and informational purposes. Any access or use of the content beyond this limited scope constitutes an unlawful use. All rights of the Site Owner and any other rights holders are expressly reserved.
The Site Owner may, at any time and at its sole discretion, revise, update, modify or remove any content on the Site (including but not limited to works, information, images, materials, documents and designs) and may amend these Terms of Use.
Any such revisions or amendments shall become effective immediately upon publication on the Site. Users are solely responsible for monitoring and reviewing these updates via the Site or by contacting the Site Owner.
Users may visit the Site without providing personal data. However, personal data may be requested when necessary for correspondence initiated by the User or for the exercise or protection of legal rights.
Users acknowledge and agree that they are solely responsible for their use of the content on the Site and for any decisions made or actions taken on the basis of such content. Users further agree that no liability of any kind may be attributed to the Site Owner or to any third-party rights holders for any outcome or consequence arising from such use.
Users acknowledge that the Site may contain links providing access to other websites or content (including ContentDM and similar digital archive platforms). Users accept that they are responsible for reviewing the data protection policies and conducting the necessary checks before using any such third-party services and that the Site Owner bears no responsibility for these third-party applications.
If Users breach these Terms of Use, engage in any behavior that may hinder or disrupt the operation of the Site, impose an excessive load on the Site or carry out (or risk carrying out) actions that infringe the rights of third parties, their access to the Site may be suspended temporarily or permanently. In such circumstances, Users shall not have any right to claim damages, losses or compensation from the Site Owner.
The Site and/or the Site Owner shall not be held liable, directly or indirectly, for any loss, damage, cost or other claims arising from the actions of Users or third parties. The Site and/or the Site Owner shall likewise bear no responsibility for any damage that may occur to the computer hardware or other property of Users as a result of accessing the Site or downloading any audio, visual, textual or other materials from it.
The content contained on the Site or within its software may not be altered, copied, processed, deleted, distributed or otherwise used in any manner that exceeds personal and legitimate use, nor may it be exploited in any way that constitutes unfair competition. Users may not interfere with, remove or modify any numbers, codes, watermarks or similar elements representing the content or software of the Site; nor may they convert such materials into source code or object code, or engage in reverse engineering. Without the prior written consent of the Site Owner, the Site may not be framed, redirected, displayed through similar browsing technologies or linked to for any purpose. Any acts in violation of this provision constitute offenses under the Law on Intellectual and Artistic Works and other applicable legislation.
Users are required to comply with all applicable laws and regulations (including, without limitation, the Turkish Penal Code, the Turkish Commercial Code, the Code of Obligations, Law No. 5651 on the Regulation of Broadcasts on the Internet, Law No. 6698 on the Protection of Personal Data, the Law on Intellectual and Artistic Works, and the Industrial Property Law), and they shall be solely responsible for any consequences arising from non-compliance.
Users agree to comply with all announcements and notices published by the Site. Any legal, criminal or financial liability arising from use in violation of such notices or applicable laws shall rest solely with the Users.

Intellectual Property Rights and Permission of Use

All content on the Site (including images, texts, documents, photographs, databases, graphics, logos, design elements and all other materials) is protected under the Law on Intellectual and Artistic Works (Law No. 5846), the Industrial Property Law (Law No. 6769) and other applicable national and international legislation. It should be noted that intellectual property rights represent a central component of the Site’s content and must be respected accordingly. Any infringement of these rights constitutes not only a violation of the rights of the Site Owner, but also of the rights of other creators and rights holders –such as photographers, designers, and authors– and may give rise to significant legal and criminal liability toward both the Site Owner and such rights holders.

The content on the Site (including visual, written, and digital materials) is made publicly accessible solely for personal study and reference within the scope of scientific, artistic, academic and cultural research. Any requests or applications for commercial, advertising or any other use beyond these purposes shall not be considered.
Users acknowledge and agree that, without the Site Owner’s prior written permission and without a duly executed agreement, any use of the content on the Site (including any alteration, reproduction, copying, downloading, uploading, processing, adaptation, distribution, publication, communication to the public, display, creation of derivative works or any other form of use, intervention, removal of watermarks or exploitation etc.) is unlawful and constitutes a criminal offense. Users further acknowledge that such acts give rise to legal and criminal liability and agree not to engage in any such acts. Users also acknowledge and undertake that, by any means whatsoever, they shall not engage in any act that infringes intellectual property rights or constitutes unfair competition, including but not limited to using the Site’s content or the Site Owner’s name or trademarks in a manner that associates them with the Users’ own or with any third party’s name, brand or institution.
Users seeking to make use of the content for scientific, cultural, or educational purposes must submit their requests via the email address arsiv@bevfam.org. Such requests shall be subject to BEVFAM’s approval following the completion of the “Image Request Form” to be provided and the subsequent execution of a written “User Agreement.” Any authorized use must remain strictly within the scope of the authorization granted and must be carried out only with the specific visual material supplied by the Site Owner for that purpose. Users have no right to use any content accessed through the Site or through any other source unless these procedures have been duly followed.
The Site Owner may, within the scope of its collaborations, refer any requests for the use of content belonging to individuals or institutions whose archives are published on the Site directly to the relevant partner institution, and in such cases, the User may be required to obtain permission directly from the person or institution that holds the rights to the archive.
Even where written permission has been granted, proper attribution is required, and full and accurate credit must be given to both the author and BEVFAM.

The Site Owner reserves the right to amend this document unilaterally at any time; any revised terms shall take effect immediately upon their publication on the Site.

These terms of use and legal provisions are governed by the laws of the Republic of Türkiye, and any disputes arising from or in connection with their interpretation or implementation shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Istanbul (Çağlayan) Courts and Enforcement Offices.

For any questions or permission requests, please contact us at:
arsiv@bevfam.org