On Tue, 02 Feb 1999, Edward Branham <ebb[_at_]usa.net> wrote:
>
> Best Practices:
>
> 1) Don't use their logo on your site without permission, and
>
> 2) Don't show their content in a frame that could be construed as
> hiding them as the source of the information.
The "precedents" on this issue are the three (rather famous by now) disputes between commercial entities: the TotalNEWS case on framing (settled out of court); the ongoing and yet-to-be-setted-or-determined Ticketmaster case (on linking); and the Shetland News/Times dispute on deep linking, settled out of court.
None of these cases have established any clear precedent in the area of copyright law. In fact, the TotalNEWS case raised several causes of action, amongst them trademark infringement, trademark dilution and unfair competition. The Ticketmaster case seems to be based entirely on trademark infringement/dilution. The Shetland News/Times case, on close reading of the documents published, puts forward no viable theory in copyright or in trademark.
What all of these cases have in common, though, is that the parties are commercial entities, and that at the heart of the dispute is/was a contention of unfair commercial practice using tools and techniques unique to the Internet. While no law has been established on the questions raised in these cases, it could be argued that a certain level of custom or practice has developed in the commercial field: do not link without permission; do not use another commercial entity's logo for any purpose (linking included) without permission; do not frame another commercial entity's site in your own site without permission.
One must not forget that the use and access to web sites is oftened controlled contractually by "terms of use," which may or may not stipulate specific terms relating to these matters. For example, a site might state that all linking to it is permitted, or that linking must be done using a specific logo and following a certain administrative procedure. In general, these terms, when used, do not distinguish between commercial and non-commercial use- meaning that they apply to everyone.
The above discussion is in the context of violating rights of the site being linked to. Another, separate question is linking to a site which is illegally disseminating copyrighted material. Depending on the laws of the country/ies involved, if the linking entity knowingly linked to an infringing site, it might be held responsible for contributory infringement. Such was the case in England with the Broxtowe Files case, in which the linking site was enjoined from continuing to link.
Brian Negin
<negin[_at_]cbs.gov.il>
Received on Wed Feb 03 1999 - 07:00:59 GMT
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