CoStar is suing Zillow, alleging it stole and profited from nearly 47,000 copyrighted images created by CoStar’s network of professional real estate photographers. This could be a major copyright case with billions at stake.
Key Facts:
- CoStar filed a lawsuit against Zillow in the Southern District of New York on June 30.
- The suit alleges Zillow used nearly 47,000 copyrighted photos from CoStar without permission.
- Some of the disputed images allegedly displayed CoStar watermarks and appeared over 250,000 times across Zillow platforms.
- Zillow reportedly distributed these images to partner sites like Realtor.com and Redfin through syndication deals.
- This is the second lawsuit Zillow has faced in five weeks; Compass previously sued the company over listing practices.
The Rest of The Story:
CoStar Group, which owns Homes.com and Apartments.com, is accusing Zillow of misusing tens of thousands of copyrighted real estate photos.
The lawsuit claims Zillow not only displayed the photos without permission but also used them to enhance its rental listings and boost its online reach.
According to the complaint, CoStar found nearly 47,000 of its copyrighted images on Zillow and its affiliate websites.
Many of the images allegedly still had the CoStar watermark, and some were reportedly shown on various Zillow listing pages more than 250,000 times.
CoStar alleges the misuse extended beyond Zillow’s internal platforms.
The company says Zillow shared the copyrighted photos with outside partners, including Realtor.com and Redfin, as part of its syndication network.
This, CoStar claims, allowed Zillow to profit further off of stolen content.
“Zillow’s misconduct is not limited to the Zillow family of websites,” CoStar wrote in the court filing.
They emphasized that the photos are the product of a massive investment—“billions of dollars” in creating a comprehensive photo database through thousands of hired photographers.
Zillow has not yet commented publicly on this new lawsuit.
The company is also fighting a separate legal battle with Compass, which alleges Zillow is suppressing listings from other platforms.
Compass is asking for an injunction and financial damages.
Zillow denies wrongdoing in that case and has pledged to “vigorously defend” itself.
Commentary:
If the allegations are accurate and these photos were taken by CoStar photographers and copyrighted by the company, then Zillow may have few legal options other than settlement or negotiation.
Copyright law doesn’t offer much leeway when it comes to commercial use of protected images.
The law is clear: if you want to use someone else’s photos to make money, you need their permission.
This isn’t a gray area about fair use for journalism or educational content.
It’s about using protected property to drive traffic, increase listings, and generate ad revenue.
It’s also telling that some of the disputed images still carried CoStar’s watermark.
That makes it difficult to argue the use was unintentional or that Zillow didn’t know who owned the photos.
When watermarked content appears repeatedly across thousands of listings, it suggests a systematic issue—not a clerical error.
The fact that Zillow allegedly redistributed these photos to competitors like Redfin and Realtor.com only increases the scope of the problem.
If true, this suggests the infringement wasn’t just internal, but part of a broader business strategy to grow Zillow’s influence in the rental market.
That’s going to be a hard sell in court.
Judges don’t look kindly on companies that take copyrighted work and resell it through partnerships.
It turns a private copyright issue into a potential class-action scenario or even a federal enforcement issue.
Zillow’s previous defense against Compass may not work here.
With Compass, the battle is over listing practices and competitive fairness.
In the CoStar case, the fight centers on intellectual property—a field with well-established legal rules and precedents.
Even without a trial, the financial threat is real. CoStar claims to have spent billions creating its database.
If damages are calculated based on licensing fees or potential lost revenue, Zillow could face an enormous bill.
In short, this lawsuit could force Zillow to rethink how it sources and displays media—and may compel the company to forge licensing agreements that should have existed all along.
The Bottom Line:
CoStar’s lawsuit against Zillow centers on nearly 47,000 copyrighted real estate images that Zillow allegedly used without permission.
If proven, this is not a minor infraction but a major case of commercial copyright infringement.
The legal issues here aren’t ambiguous. Using someone else’s images for profit, especially at scale, is against the law.
Zillow may soon find itself with little choice but to settle—or face a costly legal reckoning.
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