Posted by Friend [Friend] on November 10, 1999 at 10:45:43 {AAJB0ph6mYrRIg7iiOekOgnjR4Br/g}:
In Reply to: ********Censorship or Moderation? posted by Lobo on November 10, 1999 at 10:07:31:
Lobo
I’m interested to know what is your take on my question about whether linking to an outside website can be construed as violation of copyright law in the US.
No, just linking to an outside website would not constitute copyright infringement. But if that outside website was violating a copyright and you linked directly to the material in question then you might be skating on thin ice (not to mention expensive ice) if you refused to remove the link.
Do you know of any case law where the owner of a website was held liable for copyright violation when a guest posted a link to an outside website?
No, offhand I have no case law to cite and do not have time to look for it. If you want to try this out I am sure you can find a way to pirate the Encyclopedia Britannica and then link to it. Afterward you can ask Britannica Advanced Publishing, Inc. if they want to prosecute or not for the pirated information or the link to it.
Friend