AP, blogger resolve dispute over copyright

By SETH SUTEL – 1 hour ago

NEW YORK (AP) — A news discussion site and The Associated Press have resolved a dispute over an AP demand that the site remove some of the news agency's content.

In a statement Friday, Rogers Cadenhead said he is "glad" the dispute over his site, the Drudge Retort, has ended. He said a larger conflict remains between AP's view of acceptable use of its content and the practices of many bloggers. Cadenhead declined to comment further, referring all questions to his attorney.

An AP statement Thursday night said the company had provided additional information to Cadenhead about posting its material online, and both sides considered the matter closed. It also said the AP was having a "constructive exchange" with a "number of interested parties in the blogging community" about the relationship between bloggers and news providers, and intended to continue the dialogue.

Earlier this month the AP sent a legal notice ordering Cadenhead to take down seven entries on the Drudge Retort, his takeoff on the Drudge Report. The news agency said the postings were violating the AP's copyright.

Cadenhead highlighted the disagreement in his personal blog, http://www.Cadenhead.org, and prominent bloggers rallied behind him, saying the posts in question were protected under the "fair use" provision of copyright law. That allows quotation of copyright material for commentary and certain other purposes without asking permission.

In response, the AP said it was working to develop guidelines for what it considered permissible use of its content by bloggers.

Cadenhead said in his blog post that he wouldn't reveal details of his discussion with AP attorneys about their specific objections to the blog entries until the AP releases guidance for online use of its content.

The AP's plan for such guidelines was met with new criticism from some bloggers, who said it was an attempt by the AP to create its own legal definition of what constitutes "fair use" of copyright material. AP has said it had no intention of trying to define a legal standard, and will seek to protect AP content without discouraging bloggers from legitimately quoting from it.

"I think it would be helpful for bloggers and users of social news sites to know what the AP believes to be fair use of their copyrighted work," said Cadenhead's lawyer, Wade Duchene. "I hope that any guidelines that are issued are not interpreted as an agreed definition of fair use" under copyright law, he added.

Duchene said he expected disputes between news organizations and bloggers over permissible use of copyright material online to continue, but he also said he was "hopeful that future disagreements can be handled in a less confrontational manner."

AP spokesman Paul Colford declined to elaborate on the news cooperative's statement.

AP is a not-for-profit cooperative owned by its member news organizations.

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