John Sankey <bf250[_at_]freenet.carleton.ca> wrote:
>
> A database can be copyrighted, so perhaps it is the collection
> of prices that is copyrighted, not a single number of which you
> have independent knowledge.
I can think of only one practical aspect where a number might be copyrighted, and that is in the field of cryptography, where a single number may consist of hundreds of digits, and would practically have no other use. Even here, it would be an uphill battle, since one cannot copyright "facts".
The MLS book is definitely protected by copyright, I would propose, in that it required originality to organize and present the information on each property displayed. I propose that it is more than a phone book, which is not copyrightable under Feist. That may all change soon, as there is legislation to allo w for the protection of databases, or collections of information. If that legislation passes, then phone books would again become protectable.
Thomas Workman
<tworkman[_at_]erols.com>
Received on Wed Apr 29 1998 - 15:01:37 GMT
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