Re: copyright

At 04:20 PM 7/25/2002 -0500, T. Kimsey wrote:
>Again, I had this very experience yes you can sue, yes you can get damages
>even if it's not registered....

I'm curious, was this in the US? The US Copyright Office seems quite clear 
on this issue, and I quote:

"In general, copyright registration is a legal formality intended to make a 
public record of the basic facts of a particular copyright. However, 
registration is not a condition of copyright protection. Even though 
registration is not a requirement for protection, the copyright law 
provides several inducements or advantages to encourage copyright owners to 
make registration. Among these advantages are the following:

      Registration establishes a public record of the copyright claim.

      Before an infringement suit may be filed in court, registration is 
necessary for works of U. S. origin."

As far as meta tags go, providing the tags are accurate I don't think the 
poster has a chance,

"Several categories of material are generally not eligible for federal 
copyright protection. These include among others:

Works that have not been fixed in a tangible form of expression (for 
example, choreographic works that have not been notated or recorded, or 
improvisational speeches or performances that have not been written or 
recorded)

      Titles, names, short phrases, and slogans; familiar symbols or 
designs; mere variations of typographic ornamentation,     lettering, or 
coloring; mere listings of ingredients or contents"

I think the "titles, names, short phrases and slogans" is an apt 
description of meta tags.

source: http://www.loc.gov/copyright/circs/circ1.html#cr



-----------------------------------------
Al Sessions
al(at)oldforgefd.org
http://www.fultonchaindesign.com/mt (personal weblog)

HWG hwg-techniques mailing list archives, maintained by Webmasters @ IWA