Back in 2004, a company called Perfect 10 sued Google on the grounds that its use of thumbnails violated its copyrights. This attracted attention because of the subject matter -- nude photography -- and because it represented a significant challenge to the working of the Web. (Perfect 10 also sued Amazon.)
Google has now won the case on appeal, according to the Washington Post. It says:
The appeals court ruled that the thumbnails fell within a "fair use" exception in copyright law because they play a role in the search process and thus have a function different from that of the original photos.
"We conclude that the significantly transformative nature of Google's search engine, particularly in light of its public benefit, outweighs Google's superseding and commercial uses of the thumbnails in this case," Judge Sandra S. Ikuta wrote for the panel.
However, "Yesterday's ruling was not a complete victory for Google, because the judges directed the lower court to reconsider a separate finding in the company's favor," says TWP. Basically, it seems the problem is that while Google's thumbnails may not infringe copyright, it was linking to sites that do infringe copyright -- and knowing that, not stopping it.
