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In a message dated 1/25/2004 3:52:50 PM Eastern Standard Time, Benseraglio2 writes:
Miggle, my man, you're not addressing the point at tissue. Leaving aside the fact that your B and C are precisely the same quantity, what is "the information contained in the AP news report"? Think about it. This is a much broader claim than simply "you can't reproduce our words in precisely the order we have presented them" -- it's asserting that somehow they own the information itself -- it's their "news", their version of reality, and don't mess with it. Copyright is not my specialty, but I think the news services can protect the order of the words they use to describe the news and the graphics they use in presenting it on the internet, but not the underlying information itself. FWIW, here's the text of the fair use exception to copyright protection from 17 U.S.C. � 107:
Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair
use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include - (1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes; (2) the nature of the copyrighted work; (3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and (4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors. I have yesterday's NY Times article but have not read it yet. I agree that we are seeing an attempt to expand the scope of copyright protection: witness the recent extension of the number of years for which copyright protection can be obtained. Another side of the issue is the ease of copyright infringement provided by advancing technology. For a lot of people, "it's easy to copy a CD on my computer for a friend so it must be okay" trumps legitimate copyright protection.
Bruce W. McCullough
McCullough & McKenty, P.A. 824 Market Street, Fourth Floor P.O. Box 397 Wilmington, DE 19899-0397 Tel: 302-655-6749 Fax: 302-655-6827 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web: www.mccmck.com Pennsylvania Office: 123 S. Broad Street Suite 2035 Philadelphia, PA 19109 |
