Product Image Copyright & Trademarks in Your Store: What's Allowed?

Can you simply use your dropshipping supplier's product images? What about TikTok videos, Pokémon cards or a slogan T-shirt? This article answers the key questions on copyright and trademark law for product images in dropshipping and print-on-demand stores and shows you how to work cleanly. It is part of our overview Law and taxes for Shopify stores in Germany.

Product image copyright: why almost every photo is protected

In Germany, a photo doesn't need artistic quality to be protected. Even a simple product photo on a white background is a "photograph" (Lichtbild) under § 72 UrhG (German). The right belongs to the photographer and lasts 50 years from the photo's publication (for unpublished photos, from when it was taken).

For you, this means: you may not use an image you find on the internet just because it is public. You need a usage right from the photographer or from someone who is allowed to pass that right on. The same applies to product videos and often to detailed product texts as well.

Supplier images: AliExpress, CJ and co.

This is the most common question in the comments, and the answer is uncomfortable: the images on AliExpress, CJ Dropshipping or other platforms are not automatically free to use. Often the seller there has taken the images from a brand manufacturer or another store. In that case, they can't give you rights they don't have.

Here's how to proceed if you want to use supplier images (recommendations from, among others, IT-Recht Kanzlei (German)):

1. Get written permission: Have it confirmed by email or contract that you may use the images for your store, marketplaces, social media and advertising.
2. Question the chain of rights: Ask whether the photos come from the supplier themselves or whether they are allowed to pass them on.
3. Agree on an indemnity: The supplier should indemnify you against costs in case a third party does assert rights. With providers from the Far East, this is hardly enforceable in practice. So expect the risk to stay with you.
4. Check the origin: A reverse image search (e.g. with Google Lens) shows whether the same photo appears on a well-known brand's website. If so, stay away.
5. Archive everything: Keep permissions, emails and invoices permanently.

With print on demand, the situation is simpler: mockups you create from your own design with your provider's generator are intended for use in your store. Still read the terms of use, because they govern what you may use the mockups for. A comparison of providers is in Print on demand with Shopify.

Videos from TikTok, Instagram and YouTube

Downloading a product video from TikTok, editing it in CapCut and running it as a Meta ad: that is copyright infringement, even if you modify the video. The right belongs to the creator, not to the platform and not to you.

• Ads with third-party videos: Only with an explicit license from the creator. If you book UGC creators, set out the advertising usage rights in the contract, including duration and channels. How to set up your first campaigns is shown in Meta Ads for Shopify beginners.
• Reposts on Instagram: Re-uploading other people's images to your account requires permission. Embedding via the official embed function is generally not considered your own publication under CJEU case law, but you have to consider data protection.
• Videos similar to the competition's: The idea or format of an ad video is not protected. The actual footage is. Shooting your own version is allowed; copying is not.

How to get good images legally

With stock and graphics subscriptions, the license decides: some allow you to keep using motifs on products sold after the subscription ends, others don't. Free licenses often require attribution, and print products for resale are sometimes subject to their own rules. Read the license before your first print and save it with the date.

You don't have the product in your hands yet but still need a video? Ask the supplier for video material with written permission to use it, book a UGC creator with clearly defined rights, or shoot it yourself as soon as the sample arrives. A downloaded TikTok video is not a solution.

Selling branded goods: what's allowed

You may resell original branded goods without asking the manufacturer if they were placed on the market in the EU or EEA by the trademark owner or with their consent. This is called exhaustion (Erschöpfung, § 24 MarkenG (German)). You don't need a license for this. There are limits, though:

• Counterfeits are never allowed, not even when declared as a "replica" or "1:1 copy". Goods with a brand logo at prices far below the original are a warning sign. What else Shopify prohibits is covered in Prohibited and regulated products on Shopify.
• Imports from outside the EU: If the original goods did not enter the EEA with the owner's consent, the right is not exhausted. The trademark owner can then prohibit the sale.
• Advertising with the brand: Naming the brand to describe the goods is fine. Creating the impression that you are an official partner is not.
• Accessories: "Compatible with" statements such as "case compatible with iPhone 17" are allowed if they are necessary and not misleading.
• "As seen in" logos: You may only show media or brand logos in an "As seen on" bar if the coverage really happened, and even then, using the logo itself is legally tricky.

On Pokémon cards and similar licensed goods: if Shopify flags "branded or trademarked products" to you, the platform usually checks at product level. According to the Acceptable Use Policy, Shopify generally gives you the opportunity to fix the problem before taking action against the entire account. Keep invoices ready that prove you source original goods from reputable sources, and don't use official logos or artwork as store graphics.

Print on demand: designs, characters, people

With print on demand, you are the seller of the printed product. If a design infringes third-party rights, you are liable, not just the print provider.

• Brands and logos: Car brands, sports clubs, fashion labels or well-known slogans on shirts are off-limits. Trademark rights to slogans are also possible. Check slogans in the trademark register before printing.
• Characters and works: Comic characters, film quotes, fan art and song lyrics are protected by copyright.
• People: Photos and recognizable depictions of athletes, celebrities or other people require consent (right to one's own image, § 22 KUG). This isn't copyright but a personality right, and it also applies to athletes.
• Customer uploads: If customers upload their own motifs or design something with personalization tools like Teeinblue, you still print and sell the result. State in your terms and conditions that customers may only upload content they hold the rights to, and look at orders before printing. Reject obvious brands, characters or celebrity photos. How to set up such stores is shown in Selling personalized products with Shopify.

Checking and protecting your own brand

Before you settle on a store name or brand name, check it in the DPMAregister (German) and in the EU-wide search TMview. A match in a completely different industry is usually not a problem; a similar name in your product class is. Ideas for finding a name are in Finding a store name and logo.

A trademark listed as deleted in the DPMA register is not a free pass. Check whether the same name exists as an EU trademark, in other classes or as a company name. Unregistered marks can also be protected through use.

A German trademark costs €290 at the DPMA for up to three classes when you apply online, and €100 for each additional class (DPMA fees (German)). Is it worth it? If you are building your own brand and want to sell under the name long term, usually yes. If you are only testing products, probably not yet. More on the transition in From dropshipping to your own brand. You may only use the ® symbol for registered trademarks. ™ is not regulated by law in Germany and protects nothing.

By the way, the copyright notice in the footer ("© 2026, store name") doesn't come from registration; copyright applies automatically. You can change the "Powered by Shopify" text under "Online Store", the menu next to the theme, "Edit default theme content".

Cease-and-desist letter or Shopify notice: what to do?

1. Don't ignore it: Cease-and-desist letters (Abmahnungen) have short deadlines. If you let them pass, you risk a preliminary injunction with higher costs.
2. Remove the content immediately: Take the image, video or product offline, including on social media and in running ads.
3. Don't sign anything without checking it: The enclosed cease-and-desist declaration (Unterlassungserklärung) is often too broad. Have it reviewed and, if necessary, amended by a lawyer specializing in copyright or trademark law.
4. For Shopify notices: Respond via the notice in the admin, remove the affected product or provide evidence.

And if someone copies your images or designs?

Then you turn the tables. Your own product photos are automatically protected as photographs, and your own graphics and designs often are too. In the EU, new product designs can also be protected against imitation without registration for up to three years from first publication. Longer protection comes from a registered design at the DPMA or the EUIPO. Here's how to proceed:

• Secure evidence: Keep screenshots with date and URL, original files and drafts with creation dates.
• Notify the platform: If the copying store runs on Shopify, report the infringement via the procedure for copyright and trademark rights. Meta, Etsy and Amazon have their own reporting forms.
• Have a lawyer send a cease-and-desist letter: For merchants based in the EU, a lawyer can demand an injunction and damages. With anonymous stores from the Far East, often only the platform report remains.

Incidentally, false or pretextual reports can themselves give rise to claims for damages. Only report what really belongs to you.

FAQ

Can I just use product images from AliExpress?

Not without further ado. These photos are also protected by copyright, and the seller has often taken them from brand manufacturers or other stores. Get written permission and use a reverse image search to check where the image comes from. The safest option is your own photos of a sample you ordered.

Are the images on CJ Dropshipping free of copyright?

You shouldn't assume so. The fact that a dropshipping provider supplies images doesn't mean they hold all the rights to them or can effectively transfer them to you. Read the terms of use, ask about individual products and check the origin of the photos. If images obviously come from a brand, don't use them.

Do I need a license to sell branded products like a coffee machine?

No, if they are original goods that were sold in the EU with the manufacturer's consent. Then the trademark right is exhausted. You may use the brand name to describe the goods, but not create the impression that you are an official dealer. Counterfeits or imports from outside the EU are a different matter.

Can I use a deleted trademark from the DPMA register?

Not without further checks. The deletion only affects that one register entry. Check whether the name is also protected as an EU trademark, in other classes or as a company name, and whether anyone is still actively using it. If in doubt, a brief trademark search by a lawyer is worth it.

Should I register a trademark for my print-on-demand store?

If you want to build a store name long term, yes. A German trademark costs €290 for up to three classes when you apply online. At the beginning, though, not infringing other people's trademarks is more important than your own registration. Check names and slogans in the register before printing.

Who is liable if a customer has a protected motif printed on a product?

You are too, because you sell the printed product. State in your terms and conditions that customers may only upload their own or licensed content, and have them indemnify you against claims. That doesn't replace checking, though: look at orders before printing and reject obvious brands, characters or celebrity photos.

As of: October 2026. This article is not legal or tax advice. For specific cease-and-desist letters or trademark questions, a lawyer specializing in copyright or trademark law can help.