Political Forum Copryright Infringement Lawsuit.

[Missourian]

Righthaven then writes to the website operators alleging copyright infringement and demanding payments of up to $150,000 to settle the action. A lawyer acting for some of the targeted websites told OUT-LAW recently that most cases settle for around $2,500.


Digital rights group the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has been looking for a test case to challenge what it calls Righthaven's bullying tactics. It is now backing a counter-claim by political discussion site Democratic Underground, which is asking the US District Court of Nevada to declare Righthaven's claims invalid.


<SNIP>


"Thousands of people discuss and debate political issues on our site every day, particularly now during election season," said Democratic Underground founder David Allen. "Online discussion often requires quoting from news sources -- a legal fair use of the material. By targeting short excerpts of news articles with their sham copyright claims, Righthaven is chilling free and open discussion on the Internet."

EFF backs political site's Righthaven counter-suit | Pinsent Masons LLP

 

[California Girl]

Am I the only one who is GTM about the argument that DU provides 'debate' and 'discussion'? They must hide those in among the fucking nutjobs that rant and rave like lunatics. There's a reason why net speak for that particular forum is DUmmies.

 

[Ravi]

Am I the only one who is GTM about the argument that DU provides 'debate' and 'discussion'? They must hide those in among the fucking nutjobs that rant and rave like lunatics. There's a reason why net speak for that particular forum is DUmmies.

Why not discuss the merits of the case instead of attacking DU?

 

[California Girl]

Am I the only one who is GTM about the argument that DU provides 'debate' and 'discussion'? They must hide those in among the fucking nutjobs that rant and rave like lunatics. There's a reason why net speak for that particular forum is DUmmies.

Why not discuss the merits of the case instead of attacking DU?

Because for DU to use words like 'debate' or 'discussion' is really fucking funny.

 

[midcan5]

Hopefully the ACLU or a similar freedom of the press organization will tackle this nonsensical crap.

U.S. Copyright Office - Fair Use

"Section 107 contains a list of the various purposes for which the reproduction of a particular work may be considered fair, such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Section 107 also sets out four factors to be considered in determining whether or not a particular use is fair:

1. The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes
2. The nature of the copyrighted work
3. The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole
4. The effect of the use upon the potential market for, or value of, the copyrighted work

The distinction between fair use and infringement may be unclear and not easily defined. There is no specific number of words, lines, or notes that may safely be taken without permission. Acknowledging the source of the copyrighted material does not substitute for obtaining permission."

 

[Missourian]

Luckily it was the DUmmies.

Had it been a legitimate political forum I would have blacked it out in deference to our hosts.

 

[Missourian]

The gist of the article is Righthaven searches the internet for phrases from the news articles whose copyrights have been assigned to them.

The one they discovered at DU was a one paragraph (five sentence) excerpt from a 50 sentence article.

Righthaven threatens to sue over copyright infringement.

The website owners capitulate even though they believe they have a legal right to use the material, because it is cheaper to settle than it is to defend the lawsuit.

 

[Dreadnaught1968]

Am I the only one who is GTM about the argument that DU provides 'debate' and 'discussion'? They must hide those in among the fucking nutjobs that rant and rave like lunatics. There's a reason why net speak for that particular forum is DUmmies.

Why not discuss the merits of the case instead of attacking DU?

Because for DU to use words like 'debate' or 'discussion' is really fucking funny.

I think the best is when they talk about "free speech" at the DUmp. It would probably be a good place to advertise cheese, though.