Is in-line linking copyright infringement?
15 февраля 2023 года
Hi-network.com
In recent caseGoldman v. Breitbart, the US District Court for the Southern District of New York vested the controversial decision that in-line linking can be copyright infringement. Plaintiff Justin Goldman has took a picture of Tom Brady that went viral on Snapchat, Twitter, Reddit and other websites. The Defendant also put an embedded tweet with this photo along with text about Brady. Even though defendant did not host the photo, the Plaintiff considered that it violated its copyright by displaying photo publicly. The Court supported Plaintiff position and stated that it exclusive right to display was violated by Defendant making an active role in publishing this photo (which is the very process of embedding). The fact that this picture was hosted on another place (Twitter) was not of relevance for the court. This decision, if not revised on appeal, can have serious implications on online users, since anyone who is sharing photos or videos from social media can be liable for copyright infringement.