Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!mailrus!iuvax!maytag!looking!brad From: brad@looking.on.ca (Brad Templeton) Newsgroups: news.misc Subject: Re: The Rape of Usenet Keywords: The wholesale capturing of Usenet by GEnie Message-ID: <65046@looking.on.ca> Date: 21 Dec 89 05:27:51 GMT References: <946@crash.cts.com> <1989Dec21.000041.6034@ns.network.com> <1989Dec21.020140.24067@athena.mit.edu> Organization: Looking Glass Software Ltd. Lines: 37 Class: discussion In article <1989Dec21.020140.24067@athena.mit.edu> jik@athena.mit.edu (Jonathan I. Kamens) writes: > Second, all it takes to make it impossible for GEnie legally to post >one of your articles on their system is to put something to the effect >of, "This article is copyright 1989 by . You may >redistribute this article only if you do not charge a fee from the >people to whom you redistribute it." If you don't want public-access >Unix sites to have to filter your articles, and GEnie reserves >redistribution rights on everything posted to it, then you can change >the second sentence to "You may redistribute this article only if the >people tho whom you redistribute it may do likewise." Actually, no. The first clause would bar UUNET, and if you think about it, also bars AT&T, which feeds some sites via its BTL arm, but charges them for it through its long distance arm. And people could pick the info up from GEnie and re-feed it if they want, GEnie can't stop them, unless Dave does additional editing, and even then, they can't stop YOUR message from being distributed, so the 2nd clause means nothing. And all these clauses mean nothing because once an automated link is in place, you can't put stupid copyright messages on things that you know will be violated by the link. I have a feed to UUNET. I put a copyright message on my posting saying, "UUNET may not copy." I then command my computer, and UUNET's computer (because they allow me to, and I know that) to copy it. You think a judge wouldn't laugh at you? If there are copyright messages in place before a link goes in, and somebody puts in a link, *then* you have a case. But if the link is already in place, then *you* are the one commanding the remote computer to copy your article, and you can't really violate your own copyright. GEnie is yet another pay site to get USENET material. Not the first, not the last. This was all gone over a year ago. Most people like the idea. Can we pass this one over? -- Brad Templeton, ClariNet Communications Corp. -- Waterloo, Ontario 519/884-7473