In response to your request, the Office solicited the views of interested stakeholders via the Federal Register and held a public roundtable to enable stakeholders to explain their positions. The Office received comments from press publishers' and authors' groups who assert that news aggregators "free ride" on publishers' investment in original reporting. In contrast, internet platforms, libraries, and users’ rights groups assert that aggregators provide significant value to news publishers and to the public at large. These sets of stakeholders disagree on how far copyright law permits aggregation of news headlines and snippets. At the same time, both groups emphasize that they see the challenges publishers face as more a matter of competition policy than copyright. The Office also conducted extensive research into the legal standards governing news aggregation, including both domestic copyright law and international treaty obligations.
After carefully evaluating the information provided, the Office does not recommend adopting additional copyright-like rights for press publishers in the United States. We have concluded that ancillary copyright protections have not been shown to be necessary in light of publishers' existing rights, and would likely be ineffective so long as publishers depend on news aggregators for discoverability. Moreover, to the extent that any ancillary copyright protections would lack traditional copyright limitations and exceptions, they would raise significant policy and Constitutional concerns.
The Office nevertheless continues to believe that the challenges facing journalism are worthy of congressional attention. Stakeholders suggested a range of alternative approaches Congress could pursue, from antitrust reform to tax policy. The Office leaves assessment of these proposals to experts in the relevant fields but stands ready to assist on any copyright-related issues.
Please do not hesitate to let me know if you have any questions regarding the report.
Respectfully,
A personal signature appears here
Shira Perlmutter
Register of Copyrights and Director
U.S. Copyright Office
Enclosure
2
