Re: Maps

From: Bob Stock <bstock[_at_]ucla.edu>
Date: Fri, 9 May 97 13:51:07 PDT

On Thu, 8 May 1997, Bill Thayer <petworth[_at_]suba.com> wrote:
>
> How can one legally draw a good map -- say, of Italy? I'm not
> referring to coloring or placenames; but what I choose to show on
> it, and most of all, the underlying contours and spatial
> relationships of the map itself.

Just as with anything that's part factual, part expressive, some of your map may be copyrightable, and certainly much of it will not be.  The shape of Italy, the city names, the spatial relationships of the geographical points, one to another -- all that is factual and uncopyrightable. Many other map elements that might be considered stock elements for all maps, like having a legend and making rivers a blue color, would also not be copyrightable. However, elements you inject into the making of the map that are considered expressive enough to satisfy the creativity requirement and that are not in and of themselves required to be there because of the inherent nature of a map should be copyrightable.

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Bob Stock <bstock[_at_]ucla.edu>
UCLA School of Law '98
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/1206/

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Received on Fri May 09 1997 - 20:55:37 GMT