Irish newspapers on defence over sharing links
04 January 2013
The body representing Ireland ' s leading newspapers was forced to defend the way
it enforces copyright law on Friday after revelations that it charges websites
that link to its articles.
The body representing Ireland ' s leading newspapers was forced to defend the way
it enforces copyright law on Friday after revelations that it charges websites
that link to its articles.
AFP - The body
representing Ireland ' s leading newspapers was forced to defend the way
it enforces copyright law on Friday after revelations that it charges websites
that link to its articles.
National Newspapers of
Ireland (NNI), which represents 16 of the most popular national papers, said it
believed "that the display and transmission of links does constitute an
infringement of copyright" under current Irish law.
However, it insisted that
"there is a distinction between the sending and receipt of links for personal
use on the one hand and the sending and receipt of links for commercial
purposes on the other".
"NNI and its
newspaper members never have had any difficulty with people displaying links
for personal use," it said in a statement.
The row was sparked by the
revelation that Women' s Aid, a
charity combatting domestic violence, had been told by an NNI subsidiary that
it must pay 300 euros ($400) to display up to five links to newspaper articles
on its website.
The fees relate to hypertext
links to the original article on a newspaper' s
website, not a reproduction of the text -- either totally or partially.
The case was highlighted
by Dublin-based solicitor for Women' s
Aid, Simon McGarr, in a blog entry on Sunday entitled, "2012: The year
Irish newspapers tried to destroy the web."
He said NNI sub-company
Newspaper Licensing Ireland Limited (NLI) told Women' s
Aid that the rates increased to 1,350 euros for displaying 26 to 50 links,
while the cost for 50 or more was "negotiable".
Comments
Post a Comment