At 11:28 AM 12/11/2002 -0800, Major Variola (ret) wrote: >Internet Libel Fence Falls Court in Australia Says U.S. Publisher Can Be >Sued There > > By Jonathan Krim > Washington Post Staff Writer > Wednesday, December 11, 2002; Page A10 > > An Australian businessman, in a court ruling that could > > change how publishers view their ability to distribute > information around the world, won the right to sue a >U.S. > news organization in his home country over a story > published on the Internet.
<snip> http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A37437-2002Dec10.html From the article: "The court dismissed suggestions the Internet was different from other broadcasters, who could decide how far their signal was to be transmitted." This is totally bogus thinking. The Internet is not broadcast medium. Information from Web sites must be requested, the equivalent of ordering a book or newspaper, for delivery. Under this logic a retailer in one country, selling a controversial book to someone in another country, could involve publishers in yet a third country to litigation in the second country. Bizarre. The real question is whether any judgement is enforceable. steve
