Some thoughts on copyright of facts (streets, etc.) according to US law. >From Who Owns My Work? By Salvatore A. Marsico
The Copyright Act of 1976 sets out seven enumerated categories of works of authorship including "literary works." Compilations are literary works (17 U. S. C. A. § 101) and proper subject matter of copyright protection. A compilation is "A work formed by the collection and assembling of preexisting materials or of data that are selected, coordinated, or arranged in such a way that the resulting work as a whole constitutes an original work of authorship" (17 U. S. C. A. § 101). Copyright protection in a compilation extends only to the material contributed by the author. Furthermore, copyright protection extends only to the expression of the idea, not the idea itself. In other words, when the author's contribution is in the arrangement of facts, only the arrangement is protected (Rockford Map v. Directory Service)769 8 F.2d 145, 148, 226 U. S P. Q. 1025 (7th Cir. 1985) Thus, when a compilation contains only public domain materials such as facts, which are not proper subject matter for copyright protection, the author's original selection, coordination, or arrangement is proper subject matter. Copyright protection of this compilation extends to protecting against the copying of selection, coordination, or arrangement, not against the copying of the unprotected (public domain) material. _______________________________________________ Geowanking mailing list [email protected] http://lists.burri.to/mailman/listinfo/geowanking
