Re: Kinko's and Ticketmaster

On Wed, 21 Jul 1999, Nick Zales <zales[_at_]execpc.com> wrote:
>
> Kinko's once made me sign a release to copy portions of the
> Wisconsin Statutes! Needless to say I never went back there again.
> They have gone too far!

You expect underlings or even managers at Kinko's to make such subtle distinctions? Why not sign a statement that makes it clear to them that you are taking the risk?

> I notice that at Ticketmaster's web site, they show seating charts
> of the venues where concerts are performed. I also notice they are
> claiming copyrights to all the drawing of these venues. As many of
> these venues are publicly owned, and the seating charts are probably
> copies of the venue's own chart, how can they get away with this?

Umm, what is the problem? If the charts are those of the venue itself, then whoever made them would have the copyright -- a chart or map is copyrightable. The owner of the venue doesn't matter one bit for who would have the copyright in a map of it. The federal government may own the interstate roads (well, most of them), but it doesn't own a map made by someone else of them.

Only (so far as I know) the federal government has explicitly disclaimed any copyright in official documents. I'm not sure a map of a performance hall owned by a city would be non-copyrightable by the city or by whomever made it.

If the charts are someone else's, then they are improperly claiming copyright in the graphic itself. But there some claim a separate copyright in the html or other image format as a derivative work -- this is a bit problematic -- when you just change medium and still keep the graphic as essentially the same it is not really a derivative work, but just a copy -- and likely to be infringing.

If the work is public domain, then claiming copyright is improper -- though perhaps the copyright would be in the collection and organization of them all.

This is but one small, but good, example of the copyright problems created by the internet and computers.

--
Steven D. Jamar
Professor of Law
Director LRW Program
Howard University School of Law
2900 Van Ness Street NW
Washington, DC  20008

vox:  202-806-8017   fax:  202-806-8428
email:  sjamar[_at_]law.howard.edu

The elaborate argument . . . does not need an elaborate answer

Oliver Wendall Holmes