The nation’s largest multiple listing service (MLS) by subscriber count, California Regional MLS (CRMLS), is the latest firm to catch the wrath of Compass CEO Robert Reffkin.
In a social media post over the weekend, Reffkin highlighted a contract CRMLS asked its subscribers to review and sign earlier in the week.
“This week, the largest MLS in the USA (CRMLS) forced over 100,000 agents to accept a 10-page agreement giving CRMLS the right to SELL the agents’ CONTENT and CONTRIBUTIONS (eg, photos, video, listing data). They were unable to do their jobs without signing away all rights to their content as access to the MLS was blocked until they clicked ‘agree,’” Reffkin wrote. “Imagine your phone carrier cutting off your service until you agree to let them sell your photos and texts. That’s basically what just happened here.”
He closed the post by asking his followers if this “seemed right” to them.
In comments on LinkedIn, many called the contract terms “outrageous” and encouraged those practicing in the CRMLS service area to not renew their subscription and switch to a neighboring MLS if possible.
CRMLS says the statements “contain inaccuracies”
In an emailed statement, Art Carter, the CEO of CRMLS, said that he and his team were aware of the post and that Reffkin’s statements “contain inaccuracies that ignore the facts.”
“The claim suggesting that CRMLS forced 100,000 agents to sign an agreement granting us the rights to sell an agent’s content and contributions is simply not true. The document Mr. Reffkin referenced is our long-standing End User License Agreement (EULA),” Carter wrote.
According to the EULA, in signing the agreement, MLS subscribers “agree to assign any copyright in the selection, coordination and arrangement [they] contribute to the MLS compilation to CRMLS,” meaning that agents and brokers are signing over the copyright to the images and data they enter into the MLS to CRMLS. If subscribers do not agree to this condition, they “will not be permitted to, and will in fact not, input any content into the MLS, nor will [they] access the MLS.”
However, the contract notes that an agent’s agreement to assign the selection, coordination and arrangement of the content they enter to CRMLS does not assign or change ownership of the content that the agent created for their listings. Instead, this agreement just grants CRMLS the authority to include a subscriber’s contribution in CRMLS’ copyrighted MLS compilation.
By agreeing to this and submitting content to the MLS, the contract states that agents grant CRMLS “an irrevocable, unrestricted, transferable, perpetual, royalty-free, non-exclusive license to use, store, reproduce, compile, display, distribute and to make derivative work from [an agent’s] contribution.”
Language has been part of EULA for years
Carter noted that this language, which was highlighted by Reffkin in his post, has been “part of the EULA for years and is not new.”
“It was originally included to support the launch of the data licensing platform REdistribute — a joint venture founded in 2022,” Carter wrote. “REdistribute was developed by some of the largest multiple listing services in the United States. Revenue generated by REdistribute is shared with participating MLSs, allowing them to add even more value back to their participating brokers. CRMLS’s purpose as a founding shareholder of REdistribute was to create a mechanism to include the brokerage community in receiving profits derived from the use of the MLS data by third parties. In 2026, CRMLS will provide dividends to brokerages that provided listing data and will continue to pay listing brokers annually.”
New additions to the agreement
While how CRMLS handles an agent’s contribution to the platform is the focus of Reffkin’s post, that is not the only thing the agreement addresses. The 10-page document also notes that by agreeing to participate in the MLS, that agents are agreeing to cooperate with other licensees and to place all of their exclusive listings into the CRMLS in a manner consistent with MLS rules. Additionally, subscribers must agree to follow the MLS’s rules and policies and that they will not use the MLS for any unlawful purposes.
It was an update to these other items in the EULA, that Carter said required acknowledgement from CRMLS users.
“The only new additions to the agreement related to the implementation of multifactor authentication to enhance the security of our users’ data and added an appeal process for brokers to the arbitration clause,” Carter wrote.
CRMLS is certainly not the only MLS to face the digital ire of Reffkin. In fact, Compass’s legal battle with Washington-based Northwest MLS (NWLS) began as a social media spat this past spring. Additionally, prior to the Department of Justice (DOJ) clarifying its feelings about the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) Clear Cooperation Policy, Reffkin and his firm sent letters to MLSs telling them they were making themselves liable if they enforced the policy.
“At a time when the real estate community is facing significant challenges, it is disappointing that a fellow industry leader would choose to create misinformation rather than work together to uphold integrity and trust,” Carter wrote. “CRMLS remains committed to transparency, accountability, and service to agents, brokers, and consumers. We will continue to focus on providing accurate information and delivering value to the real estate community we proudly represent.”
