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Google Inc. lost a copyright lawsuit Tuesday to Belgian newspapers that had demanded it remove headlines and links to news stories posted without their permission. The ruling, if confirmed, could set a precedent for how Web search engines link to copyrighted material in the tumultuous arena of online news.
The company behind the world's most-used search engine immediately said it would appeal, claiming its Google News service was "entirely legal" and the Belgian decision was a one-time result that would not be repeated elsewhere.
The Brussels Court of First Instance ruled that California-based Google could not call on exemptions, such as claiming "fair use" because it says it reviews press articles when it displays headlines, a few lines of text, photos and links to the original page.
Google Inc. lost a copyright lawsuit Tuesday to Belgian newspapers that had demanded it remove headlines and links to news stories posted without their permission. The ruling, if confirmed, could set a precedent for how Web search engines link to copyrighted material in the tumultuous arena of online news.
The company behind the world's most-used search engine immediately said it would appeal, claiming its Google News service was "entirely legal" and the Belgian decision was a one-time result that would not be repeated elsewhere.
The Brussels Court of First Instance ruled that California-based Google could not call on exemptions, such as claiming "fair use" because it says it reviews press articles when it displays headlines, a few lines of text, photos and links to the original page.