Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!aplcen!samsung!cg-atla!millipore!blu
From: blu@millipore.uucp (Brian Utterback)
Newsgroups: news.misc
Subject: Re: The Rape of Usenet
Keywords: The wholesale capturing of Usenet by GEnie
Message-ID: <1989Dec21.162642.812@millipore.uucp>
Date: 21 Dec 89 16:26:42 GMT
References: <946@crash.cts.com>
Reply-To: blu@millipore.UUCP (Brian Utterback)
Organization: Millipore Corporation
Lines: 48

Newsgroups: news.misc
Subject: Re: The Rape of Usenet
Summary: 
Expires: 
References: <946@crash.cts.com> <1288@east.East.Sun.COM>
Sender: 
Reply-To: blu@millipore.UUCP (Brian Utterback)
Followup-To: 
Distribution: 
Organization: Millipore Corporation
Keywords: The wholesale capturing of Usenet by GEnie

Well, friends, it seems to me that there really isn't a problem here.  I have
no objection to GEnie charging for access to their machines which happen to 
carry USENET postings.  Do they charge a premium for accessing different 
databases? Is this kind of thing even new? Correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't
the Well carry usenet postings and charge for connect time?  And I don't 
believe that these two cases are isolated.  I bet a lot of the machines with 
usenet access have some kind of charge for usage.  Granted these cases are with
two-way exchange; is this really the key factor? If these services did not allow
posting, would you object to them as well? Or do you object to them but just 
hadn't thought about it?

As far as making a profit on these postings, it seems that that is their right.
I am not a Lawyer (I don`t even play one on tv. I did PAY one with a TV once, 
but that is a differnet story 8-) but it seems to me that usenet postings are
in the public domain unless otherwise specified (i.e. copyrighted). While it
may bother you, any thing in the public domain is available for sale as well
as free distribution.  Those people who post source code and say something 
like "this is in the public domain, just leave my name on it" are screwed.
I can take their name off, put my name on, sell it, and even copyright it.
The new version is now copyrighted, but of course you can still copy the 
original public domain version freely.
So, GEnie has a perfect right to upload without doing anything in return.

The above argument suggests a possible way to fight back.  All you would have to
do is copyright your articles, as a number of people already do.  Then in 
beginning of your article just explicitly forbid copying to GEnie.  I don't 
know the ramifications of this. If you excluded only them that might be 
restraint of trade.  If you exclude all pay services the turmoil may not be 
worth it.  Me, I think I'll just go one as I have.



 
-- 
Brian Utterback, Millipore Corporation, 75G Wiggins Ave., Bedford Ma. 01730
UUCP:: uunet!merk!millipore!blu Work:617-275-9200x8245, Home:603-891-2536