It's On: Movieline's Parent Company Sues THR Owner For Copyright Infringement
Big news today on the Hollywood jurisprudence front, as Penske Media Corporation -- which publishes Movieline, Deadline, TVline and number of other premium Web properties -- has filed suit against Hollywood Reporter owner Prometheus Global Media LLC alleging copyright infringement.
"The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and requesting a jury trial, is very juicy and makes for great reading," notes Nikki Finke, who posted the news -- along with the actual complaint and evidence of source-code theft in particular -- this afternoon on Deadline. Have a look over there (the exhibits are pretty eye-popping), and stay tuned for more here as the case develops.
· BREAKING! Deadline's Parent Company Sues The Hollywood Reporter's Parent Company For Copyright Infringement [Deadline]
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Comments
I am shocked - shocked, I say - that one media website is stealing from another. No offense to anyone, but that happens all the time. Once a story is released, it's picked up by hundreds if not thousands of sites/blogs/etc. That's one reason why I like Movie|Line so much - you always credit your sources. Deadline doesn't seem to do the same (although I don't know that for sure; I don't read that site - sorry ST - but when I clicked on a few posts that weren't marked as "exclusive", there was no indication where the news came from).
This sounds like a frivolous lawsuit that has no chance of evolving beyond a nuisance for all involved. However, I do think that if a website like THR is going to copy and paste articles, or even small portions of articles, they should always cite the source. I think it would be great if Congress would state that quotes or full copies of articles on the Internet must link to the original writers. While I don't agree with the lawsuit - I don't think it has a chance of reaching trial, let alone being successful - I fully agree that Nikki has every right to be upset at websites stealing her hard work and not attributing it to her.