http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2013-03-22/business/37915517_1_internet-news-copyright-fees
A federal judge concluded that an Internet news clipping service essentially resold stories from The Associated Press, saying in a decision released Thursday that the ability of news organizations to perform “an essential function of democracy” is jeopardized when a company merely redistributes the news of others.
Media observers say the ruling
against Meltwater U.S. Holdings Inc. and its Meltwater News Service, if upheld
on appeal, could provide strong protection for the news industry as it struggles
to survive in an Internet age.A federal judge concluded that an Internet news clipping service essentially resold stories from The Associated Press, saying in a decision released Thursday that the ability of news organizations to perform “an essential function of democracy” is jeopardized when a company merely redistributes the news of others.
U.S. District Judge Denise Cote rejected Meltwater’s claims that its use of Web stories drawn from a scan of 162,000 news websites from more than 190 countries was a fair use of copyright-protected material.
