Legal Question in Intellectual Property in California
copyright, fair use, and the internet
If a copyright owner of a written work places that work on the internet, does she relinquish all rights to further internet use by others?
more specifically--the work was placed on the internet. an organization copied that work in its entirety, and placed it on their own web page, inviting public comment. they claim fair use. she claims that because the work was copied in its entirety, they overstepped the bounaries of fair use.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: copyright, fair use, and the internet
You are not going to get much with a general vague question like that. You need to consult an experienced copyright lawyer, give him or her the specific facts and pay for a half hour or so of consultation. If you want a referral to one in CA, let me know. Some of the best known copyright lawyers in the country are there.
I agree with the first portion of the prior response to you, that putting something on the Internet generally does not relinquish copyright. The manner of placement of the article may,in some cases, relinquish copyright. I need the specific facts of your matter to give a specific answer, and I charge for that.
On the second portion, I mostly disagree with the prior response. Taking in the entirety is usually copyright infringement. A fair use defense such as single copies for educational use and the like, does not superficially appear to be present in what you are describing. Putting it on the Internet for comment, unless put up merely by hyperlink to your site, is unlikely to be fair use in any court, particularly if the posting for comment is for purpose of commercial gain. If use of the entirety of the article is needed to comment on the article, a possible free speech type fair use argument may exist. Again the facts of the case will determine the matter, and ultimately a judge interpreting those facts in view of the law relating to fair use. Again, for specific advice I charge a fee and need specific facts.
Re: copyright, fair use, and the internet
Short answer is: no, placing a work on the Internet does not eliminate rights under copyright law.
But note: this is not what they are claiming. They do not deny that your work is subject to copyright protection. Instead, they are saying that they have a limited right to use it despite its copyrighted status.
They may be right that their use is fair. No one will ever know unless a lawsuit is filed and a judge makes the determination. Fair use cannot be determined in a vacuum.
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