[OSM-legal-talk] decision removing data

[Rob Myers]

On 08/05/2010 08:20 PM, Anthony wrote:
>
> I don't think so.  Ways contain geographical data, but they're more
> than *just* geographical data.

I don't know what else they are.

>> The fact that the form is fixed on the hard drive is less important than
>> that it's fixed as a database or as an image encoding. You don't get
>> synchronization rights on source code.
>
> Not sure what you're getting at.

They are different forms. Different forms have different copyright 
protection, including none.

> Accuracy would be maximized by using as many nodes as possible.

Not if many are inaccurate. Outliers aren't just a book by Malcolm 
Gladwell. ;-)

> That's not what's being done.  Instead, the creator of the way is
> selecting nodes which s/he feels best represents the way.  It may not
> be expression in the sense of expressionist art, because the work is
> grounded in an attempt to reflect reality, but a work need not be
> expressionist to be eligible for copyright.

True. But if the sorting is simply "sweat of the brow" then it's not 
eligible either.

>> My point is that they are different fixed forms covered by different aspects
>> of copyright law.
>
> Only because copyright law explicitly treats them differently.
>
> In any case, I'm not arguing with you that the copyright on an image
> is different from the copyright on a vector description of that image.
>   I'm just saying that both are copyrighted.

They are. But only because both are forms that are explicitly covered by 
copyright law. A font program is a copyrighted work that describes an 
uncopyrightable (in the US) but more graphical design. A white pages web 
site may have a typographic, design and code copyrights but wont (under 
US law) have a database copyright.

Copyright isn't just copyright, and a particular expression or element 
of something may or may not be copyrightable.

(IANAL, TINLA.)

- Rob.