Future of news hinges on definition of ‘fair use’

THERE is a fight under way that will have an enormous bearing on the future of the news industry in Ireland.

It will decide who owns each aspect of the work produced by journalists and whether another company has the right to profit from it.

The winning of it will rest on who will emerge with the right to distribute articles, and whether the lawful copyright of publishers has been ignored by internet search engines selling a service that gathers and displays links to someone else’s writing.