On 4/26/98, Russell G. Cofano <russc[_at_]cofanogroup.com> wrote:
>
> In previous posts, there was discussion concerning copyright of
> numbers in the ADA case. How about this scenario?
>
> A real estate broker enters into a listing agreement with a home
> seller. The seller, with broker's help, elects to sell the house
> at $200,000. Listing Broker enters the listing in the local
> multiple listing service computer database. Is the list price
> copyrighted (for now, forget about who would own the copyright)?
No. I don't think that even Judge Easterbrook would find a listing price copyrightable. Easterbrook's reasoning was that the procedural numbers were a creative classification of objects, or at least creative enough to be copyrightable. Putting aside creativity, a listing price is not a classification. The price should be based purely on the value (fact) of the listing. To whatever extent it is higher or lower than some perfect market value, it may represent other facts like marketing strategy or how risk-averse or risk-prone the seller is. In no way does it form a part of a classification scheme in Easterbrook's world.
> I am an attorney for the real estate brokerage industry and was
> recently told that the answer to the question was "yes." Makes
> no sense to me, however, as I understand that one cannot obtain a
> copyright of mere facts (the list price), but rather the creative
> expression of those fact can be copyrighted. How can a price in
> the above example be creatively expressed?
This simply gets us into flights of fancy. Sure, you could express the price in some other way that would probably be creative, but that's not really your question, nor is it particularly realistic.
But just because I like whimsy, how about:
Listing Price: First, you get on a plane for France. Take with you a calculator and some good old American dollars, somewhere between $190,000 and $200,000. When you get to Paris, head for the nearest bank. Skip the ones in the airport, though, they're terrible, and you should probably hire a private car to take you there. Don't forget you're carrying all that money. Also, cabbies in Paris will rip you off, so you don't want to take a normal cab. When you get to the bank, demand to see the president. The French are very impressed by arrogant behavior. Makes them feel at home. Then, when you are in the president's office, dump the cash on his desk, and ask him what this represents in francs. Make sure he counts it all. Take that figure, deduct all your travel expenses, and this is what I want for my house.
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