Freelance writers win appeal of Tasini decision

[James Love <love@cptech.org>]

This is an important case for freelance writers.
 Jamie

------------
Subject: Tasini overturned on appeal
   Date: Mon, 27 Sep 1999 17:24:29 -0400
  From: "Robert Labossiere" <rlabossiere@interlog.com>



The U.S. decision against writer Jonathan Tasini (and others) has been
overturned. The National Union of Journalists news release is  reproduced in
full below as per
restrictions posted its website. You will find the full story, text of the
decision, etc. at http://www.nwu.org/.


September 27, 1999

Freelance Writers Win Landmark Electronic Rights Lawsuit; Appeals Court
Ruling Opens Door for Massive Claims Against Media Industry.

NEW YORK: The National Writers Union (UAW Local 1981) announced
today that a federal appeals court had ruled in favor of freelance writers
in a
landmark lawsuit that protects their intellectual property and extends
standard principles of copyright law to electronic publishing. The September
24th ruling in Tasini vs. The New York Times is expected to send shock
waves throughout the media industry, which now faces the direct financial
threat of widespread copyright infringement actions.

Jonathan Tasini, the lead plaintiff in the case and the NWU's president,
called upon leaders of the publishing industry to avoid further costly and
disruptive litigation by entering into immediate negotiations with the
National
Writers Union to establish a fair method of compensation for the electronic
sale and re-sale of copyrighted works.

"This ruling is a major victory for the 5,400 free-lance writers who are
members of our union, and for creative workers around the world," said
Tasini. "As of this moment, a federal court has supported our view that
copyrighted material is being illegally sold every day by media companies.
We hope companies everywhere will come to us to negotiate a fair deal for
writers rather than face a costly legal tsunami."

He cited the union's simple solution: the Publications Rights Clearinghouse
(PRC), the first-ever, transaction-based licensing system for freelance
writers. "We're already sending money to writers from legal copyright usage
so we can do so easily in this case," he said. He noted the PRC's expanding
relationship with the Copyright Clearance Center, which can handle the
technical processing of thousands of daily transactions.

"Writers, scholars and creators will now be able to earn a fair share of
revenue from the sale and re-sale of their works in cyberspace," he said. He
also thanked the other plaintiffs in the case: Mary Kay Blakely, Margot
Mifflin, David Whitford, Barbara Garson and Sonia Jaffe Robbins.

In a ruling released late Friday, September 24th, a three-judge panel of the
U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit, ruled that the New York Times,
Lexis-Nexis, and other publishers cannot re- sell freelance newspaper and
magazine articles by means of electronic databases unless they have the
authors' express permission.

The ruling overturns an earlier opinion in the case issued by former Federal
District Court Judge Sonia Sotomayor. In that ruling, according to the Court
of Appeals, Sotomayor erroneously interpreted the Copyright Act in finding
that publishers were simply creating a "revision" of a print article when
they
sold the articles to electronic databases and other media. The decision sets
a precedent that will apply to thousands of other writers, photographers and
other creators whose copyrighted work has been sold and re-sold without
their permission.

In announcing the legal victory, Tasini credited Patsy Felch, the lawyer for
the majority of the plaintiffs, and the United Auto Workers-parent union of
the NWU-which provided critical legal and financial support.

"We're proud to stand with the members of the Writers Union as they assert
their rights in cyberspace," said UAW Vice President Elizabeth Bunn, who
heads the union's 100,000-member Technical, Office and Professional
department. "This ruling will require that the publishing industry deliver
fair
compensation to the people who make their profits possible in the first
place."

According to award-winning NWU member Gerald Posner, the "Court of
Appeals has stated a simple but powerful legal principle-publishers can't
sell
what they don't own. I'm not a conglomerate. I don't have any divisions or
subsidiaries. The words I write are my principle asset. By affirming that I
own
what I have created, the court has increased the economic value of my
work, and eased the path to independent writing, research, and
scholarship."

Databases such as Lexis Nexis, websites and other new media contain
thousands of articles written by freelance contributors, which originally
appeared in the New York Times and many other publications. The Appeals
Court decision means publishers will now have to share that revenue with
freelance writers-or face potential litigation.

In the absence of successful negotiations, Tasini said, publishers could be
exposed to years of litigation and uncertain financial liability, impacting
the
operations of thousands of databases, web sites, and other electronic
publishing formats.

"We don't think continued litigation is in anyone's best interests," said
Tasini. "But make no mistake about it. We fought this suit for six years,
and
we intend to pursue this matter until all writers involved are treated
fairly. It's
up to the industry to decide whether we work together at the negotiating
table, or whether we continue to fight in court."

"The longer this cyber-piracy continues, the more liabilities for past
infringement there will be," said Tasini.


---
Robert Labossiere, Executive Director
The Electronic Rights Licensing Agency (TERLA)
La societe de reconnaissance de droits electroniques (TERLA)
1 Yonge Street, Suite 1900
Toronto, Ontario Canada M5E 1E5
-- 
James Love, Director, Consumer Project on Technology
I can be reached at love@cptech.org, by telephone 202.387.8030,
by fax at 202.234.5176. CPT web page is http://www.cptech.org