Google Infringed Copyright

[GhostShip]

Hmm,I have been waiting for a case like this to be decided and its not too bad for Google it seems.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=88136

Internet giant Google Inc. infringed copyright rules by posting thumbnail-size photos from other websites on its search results pages, a US judge said in a ruling.

US District Judge Howard Matz's ruling, handed down in Los Angeles, stems from a lawsuit filed in 2004 by the pornography firm Perfect 10 Inc., which accused Google of breaching on its copyrights.
The type of search with which Perfect 10 took issue is Google's "Image Search" function, which returns a page with tiny images — known as thumbnails — that fit the searcher's query.

The judge ruled that because Google receives advertising money from offering search functions, it is not entitled to the same level of free use of the images as other entities would be.

"Google's use of thumbnails likely does harm the potential market for the downloading of P10's reduced-size images onto cell phones," Matz's 47-page ruling stated.
The ruling, which was signed Friday, asks both sides in the case to come up with the terms of a preliminary injunction that would bar Google from using the thumbnail-size images.

The judge found, however, that Google did not violate Perfect 10's copyrights by linking to pages that Perfect 10 claims are using its images without permission.
He noted that "given the exponentially increasing amounts of data on the Web, search engines have become essential sources of vital information for individuals, governments, nonprofits and businesses who seek to locate information."

Hmm maybe time to post a few pictures myself and sue someone for indexing them for cash..  :twisted:

[Lysander]

I think that this was a fair decision. Google is not a search company and never has been; it's always been about Ad Cents.

[KM]

google was a search engine to start with, then it started to become bigger and needed some funding, it used it popularity as a search engine to get in to the ad business and once it had a source of revenue has started branching out in to various other areas (some profitable, but most cost them money to run)

google has 2 sides to the company, the majority of what it does is giving to the community to help out, but of course there is a (growing) commercial side to the company as well (that is how it can afford to give..)