Subject: Landmark Supreme Court Internet Case Alert
NINCH-ANNOUNCE (david@ninch.org)
Date: Fri, 23 Feb 2001 09:59:50 -0500
Message-Id: <v04210116b6bc264d8d99@[192.100.21.23]> Date: Fri, 23 Feb 2001 09:59:50 -0500 To: ninch-announce@cni.org From: NINCH-ANNOUNCE <david@ninch.org> Subject: Landmark Supreme Court Internet Case Alert
NINCH ANNOUNCEMENT
News on Networking Cultural Heritage Resources
from across the Community
February 23, 2001
Tasini v. The New York Times
U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments March 28
in landmark electronic rights lawsuit
http://www.nwu.org/tvt/sc.htm.
On February 20, 2001, the lawyers for the writers in the landmark
electronic rights lawsuit, Tasini v. The New York Times, filed the
main brief representing the writers position to the U.S. Supreme
Court. As this case moves forward, readers will probably be
interested in several of the amicus briefs filed on behalf of Tasini,
notably those by historians and by the American Library Association,
as well as the statement (in support of Tasini) by the Copyright
Office.
For further information on the case, go to
http://www.nwu.org/tvt/tvthome.htm, an extract from which I reproduce
at the foot of this message.
David Green
===========
>From: "Jonathan Tasini" <jt@pipeline.com>
>To: "Jonathan Tasini" <jt@pipeline.com>
>Subject: Landmark Supreme Court Internet Case Alert
>Date: Thu, 22 Feb 2001 17:35:38 -0500
>X-Priority: 3
>Status:
>
>Members of the Press/Others: On March 28th, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear
>oral arguments in the landmark electronic rights lawsuit, Tasini v. The New
>York Times. The plaintiff-writers won a sweeping, unanimous decision in the
>U.S. Appeals Court in September 1999. If the Supreme Court upholds the
>Appeals Court decision, it will profoundly effect the livelihood of creators
>for years to come.
>
>As a resource to the press as it prepares pre-hearing and hearing day
>converage (as well as a resource for non-press), we have posted all the
>Supreme Court legal briefs on our website--both sides main briefs and amici,
>as well as the pro-author position of the U.S. Copyright Office. Please
>visit: http://www.nwu.org/tvt/sc.htm.
>
>You may also see an electronic column entitled "The Hypocrisy of The New
>York Times" at: http://www.nwu.org/tvt/schypoc.htm
>
>You can also also find extensive background to the case on the site. Please
>visit: http://www.nwu.org/tvt/tvthome.htm
>
>As well, background on the NWU can be found at: www.nwu.org
>
>If we can be of any assistance to the press, please do not hesitate to
>contact us. I look foward to hearing from you.
>
>
>Jonathan Tasini
>President
>National Writers Union
>113 University Place
>NY, NY 10003
>212-254-0279
>Union Web: www.nwu.org
==============================================================================
From: Tasini et al v The New York Times et al
http://www.nwu.org/tvt/tvthome.htm
Introduction to Tasini v NY Times
Tasini et al vs The New York Times et al is the landmark lawsuit
brought by members of the National Writers Union against The New York
Times Company, Newsday Inc., Time Inc., Lexis/Nexis, and University
Microfilms Inc., charging copyright violation regarding the
electronic reuse of work produced and sold on a freelance basis.
For decades, when freelance writers sold stories to American
publications it was understood by all concerned that they were
selling only First North American Serial rights which allowed the
newspaper or magazine to publish the story in print one time. For
freelance authors, retention of all other copy rights is crucial to
their economic survival because a significant additional source of
income comes from their ability to sell secondary rights such as
syndication, translations, anthologies, and so forth, to other
publications.
With the advent of electronic media including databases like Nexis,
publishers such as Time/Warner and the Times/Mirror Company, the
parent companies of Time and Newsday, have been selling
freelance-authored material to electronic databases such as
Nexis/Lexis without any additional payment or purchase of electronic
rights from the original authors. They claim, without justification,
that by purchasing First North American Serial rights they
automatically gain electronic re- publication rights. Tasini et al vs
The New York Times et al is going to establish that they are
violating the copy rights of writers.
Copyright © 2000 by National Writers Union.
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