Re: music playlists

The selection criteria is the what matters most. If the playlists are selected in any way that is original, then the list itself is protected. Yellow pages are protected because of the way they are organized, not because of the material in them other than the organization.

On Wednesday, March 30, 2005, at 05:55 PM, Webb, Jere wrote:

> • Client operates an online music site where you can browse songs,
> add tracks to your play list, and get suggestions for songs you might
> be interested in.  Copyright permissions are obtained.  Client
> proposes to have a bot "scrape" play lists from other music websites
>  (these are all over the web).  They would not be published or
> distributed in any way, but would merely go into a database that would
> be used to analyze affinities or likely interests of listeners.  Then
> when you go to the site you will get suggestions on music that might
> be of interest to you, much like amazon does with books.  The question
> is, does anybody think these play lists enjoy any copyright
> protection.  I conclude that they do not.  No matter how creative the
> selection process may be,  the expression is just an an alphabetical
> list and therefore covered by Feist v. Rural Communications (holding
> the white pages of telephone book not subject to copyright protection
> and rejecting the "sweat of the brow" theory of protection). 
>
>  
> Any thoughts, cases etc, relevant to this issue.?
>  
>  I am aware that my client may need to be concerned about website
> terms and conditions, which sometimes impose restrictions beyond what
> is protected by copyrights.
>  
>
>  
>
>

-- 
Prof. Steven D. Jamar                               vox:  202-806-8017
Howard University School of Law                     fax:  202-806-8567
2900 Van Ness Street NW                   mailto:sjamar[_at_]law.howard.edu
Washington, DC  20008   http://www.law.howard.edu/faculty/pages/jamar/

"A life directed chiefly toward the fulfillment of personal desires 
sooner or later always leads to bitter disappointment."

Albert Einstein