Things keep getting more complicated by the minute

Oct 20, 2011 06:52 GMT  ·  By
Until proper regulations are set in place, don't illegally download from the internet
   Until proper regulations are set in place, don't illegally download from the internet

In the highly debated case between Crookes and Newton, the Canadian Supreme Court ruled that simply linking to copyrighted content should not be considered 'republication'.

“Hyperlinks are, in essence, references.  By clicking on the link, readers are directed to other sources.  Hyperlinks may be inserted with or without the knowledge of the operator of the site containing the secondary article,” revealed Justice Rosalie Silberman Abella. 

“Because the content of the secondary article is often produced by someone other than the person who inserted the hyperlink in the primary article, the content on the other end of the link can be changed at any time by whoever controls the secondary page,” she added.

The Justice believes that even though the primary author controls the link itself, the content that's behind the link is in the hands of the one posting the materials.

“I would conclude that a hyperlink, by itself, should never be seen as “publication” of the content to which it refers,” Abella says.

Many voices claim this is a great victory for the freedom of the internet and the freedom of expression, but others, such as the ones representing Access Copyright, also known as the Copyright Licensing Agency, aren't too content with the ruling.

According to Excess Copyright, they proposed a secondary fee that would have to be paid by any Canadian institution that makes use of copyrighted materials.

“Today’s decision may warrant an early attempt to dispose of this controversial element of the proposed Access Copyright tariff. If a link or hyperlink by itself does not constitute 'publication' for defamation purposes, it is difficult to see how it could, by itself, constitute publication or reproduction or any other activity covered by the Copyright Act,” states Howard Knopf.

The matter gets more complicated each day. Yesterday we've witnessed a Spanish court condemn two website administrators for linking to copyrighted works and a few hours later Canadian judges rule in favor of such managers.

I'm afraid that until international or at least regional regulations are not properly implemented, this topic will be the source of many controversies. Unfortunately, I don't see this happening in the near future, so for now we go with the regulations of our own country, as debatable as they are.