Re: copyright of map

On Thu, 29 Jun 2000, Mike Phillips <mfslaw[_at_]mailandnews.com> wrote:
>
> I have a client who spent a lot of money having a somewhat decorative
> map of the US drawn with HTML hot zones or image maps. A competitor
> has copied the map and is using it on its website. Can there be any
> degree of creativity in a map as to cause it to come under the
> Copyright statutes? If not, can you think of a way to stop the
> competitor from using the map

Depends how smart your infringer was.

In general, the less protectable (which is to say, the more factual, or functional) the more exact copying has to be for infringement. Maps have long been held to be protectable, and a particular arrangement of HTML code ought to be protectable too.

So you ought to have case -- at least assuming the copying was exact, or close to it.

• Charles

Charles Kramer
<tilyou1[_at_]aol.com> Received on Wed Jul 05 2000 - 03:43:36 GMT