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Parsing Directories

  • 16-02-2009 10:15am
    #1
    Cringer
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 283 ✭✭


    Hi all,

    If one were to create an application that would embed golden pages and your local websites into it, and using their directory categories I was able to scrape the data from the site, would this be legal, do you know?

    For example, using the application and searching yourlocal for taxis in dublin, i would then gather the addresses, website and email addresses for said taxis, would this be ok to do: a) for private use b) to sell the application?

    Thanks


Comments

  • #2
    Tom Dunne
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 23,212 ✭✭✭✭Tom Dunne


    http://www.goldenpages.ie/static/terms.html

    :)


  • #3
    slavigo
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 85 ✭✭slavigo


    Hi,
    I've no experience of this what so ever but a quick scan of golden pages Terms and Conditions, pops up the following and there maybe more, as I didn't read it all.

    Licence
    See 1.4 and 1.5

    There is also stuff on intellectual property.
    I'd presume yourlocal.ie would have something similar.

    Hope this helps.

    P.S. I'd have pasted in 1.4 and 1.5 only I think they are the exact pieces of text that ban the copying of the content of the site :) Legal axe avoided or what! Sure have a look for yourself, I could be wrong.


  • #4
    Cringer
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 283 ✭✭Cringer


    Thanks all,

    Much appreciated for the info


  • #5
    Wcool
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 640 ✭✭✭Wcool


    IANAL but this is not a straightforward case I think.

    If you compile lists (aggregate data in a certain form) that is publicly available elsewhere, I don't think you can copyright your newly compiled list.
    I am not sure about this here, it seems to me the data is not public and owned by Goldenpages (or is it? You could argue that your phone number + profession is NOT owned by Goldenpages?).

    Also what happens if you manually view every page and type it into a new document? Compare this with for instance cases in America where you were not allowed to send a floppy with PGP encryption on it but you could publish the source code, type it in your computer and compile it.
    You could always hire a some people to type over a phonebook.

    Another example is Ryanair's case where a screen scraper is scraping price information from Ryanair's website. I think the lawsuite is still going.

    In many countries price information is public information. Makes sense in my opinion, you don't want a supplier that keeps its prices hidden.

    In Holland there was a similar case against the incumbent KPN and I think the phone guide is public information because of it (this is years ago now, I don't know what the state is now)

    Of course they can claim copyright on the website layout and code.

    All I am saying is: really check a lawyer!


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