A Danish court recently ordered an Internet news service to stop its practice of "deep linking" to other sites. A "deep link" is a direct link to a specific web page within a web site, thereby bypassing the main page of the web site. "Deep links" are very common throughout the Internet. For example, the results provided by search engines are often lists of "deep links". The case before the Danish court stemmed out of a complaint against Newsbooster.com by the Danish Newspaper Publishers' Association (DNPA). Newsbooster.com worked much like a search engine offering "deep links" to specific news stories found on a variety of web sites. Users were able to choose keywords and Newsbooster would return links to articles matching the request. In its decision, the Danish court concluded that Newsbooster was in direct competition with the newspapers, and the links provided to the articles within the paper damaged the value of the newspapers' advertisements. The decision has come as a surprise to many industry watchers, as the practise of "deep linking" is very prevalent throughout the web and has been considered a major driving force in the growth of the Internet. In response to inquiries by E-TIPS, Newsbooster's CEO, Anders Lautrup-Larsen, stated that the company believes the court's decision is "wrong" in that it does not define what Newsbooster does that is different from other search engines other than the fact that Newsbooster's searches are limited to news sources. According to Mr. Lautrup-Larsen, one of the company's main arguments isthat Newsbooster argues it is merely referring searchers to the copyrighted material as opposed to copying them. It is currently unclear what the consequences of this decision will be. The order has to be affirmed by either one of the Danish High Courts or the Maritime and Commercial Court of Copenhagen by July 19th. For a translation of the Danish Court's decision, visit: http://www.newsbooster.com/?pg=judge&lan=eng. To view newsbooster's press releases on this issue, visit: http://www.newsbooster.com/?pg=presscenter&lan=eng. To read articles on deep linking including the above decision as complied by the American Library Association, visit: http://www.ala.org/alaorg/oif/deeplinking.html.

E-TIPS® ISSUE

02 07 18

Disclaimer: This Newsletter is intended to provide readers with general information on legal developments in the areas of e-commerce, information technology and intellectual property. It is not intended to be a complete statement of the law, nor is it intended to provide legal advice. No person should act or rely upon the information contained in this newsletter without seeking legal advice.

E-TIPS is a registered trade-mark of Deeth Williams Wall LLP.