AP Sues Moreover Technologies And VeriSign For Infringement, Misappropriation

 

NEW YORK, NY (October 9, 2007) - The Associated Press said today that they have sued Moreover Technologies Inc. and VeriSign Inc., asking a federal court to stop the two companies from accessing and electronically publishing AP's proprietary news reports without permission and infringing on the news organization's copyrights and trademarks.
 
AP says the lawsuit, filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, seeks unspecified damages and a permanent injunction against Moreover and VeriSign. AP says the suit was filed after the two companies failed to comply with the directives of a September 11, 2007, cease-and-desist letter.

"The Associated Press spends hundreds of millions of dollars every year gathering and reporting the news, providing original coverage of vital breaking news that cannot be obtained anywhere else," Tom Curley, AP president and CEO, said in a press release today.  "We've done this for more than 160 years, often under tremendous time pressure and often at great risk to our journalists. When someone uses our content without our permission, they are free riding on our newsgathering and our reporting of news from around the world."
 
"AP’s proprietary news reports are a critical source of reliable information in today’s time-sensitive, information-centric, global economy," AP vice president and general counsel Srinandan Kasi said in the same release.
 
"As part of its policy of enforcing its intellectual property rights, AP maintains an active licensing program across content platforms and media types. Thousands of publishers, corporations, educational institutions, governmental bodies and other organizations, large and small, have been and are active licensees of AP content, in some cases continuously over several decades,” Kasi said.

According to the suit, Moreover Technologies, which is owned by the Delaware corporation VeriSign, openly claims that AP is among the sources of its major news coverage. “This suit is about two companies that are willfully misappropriating and infringing upon AP’s proprietary news reports on a continuous basis, and are falsely associating themselves with AP, to operate and promote their fee-based and ad-supported services, which they promise will deliver real-time news in as fast as two minutes of publication,” said Kasi.

NPPA Marketplace

Insure Your Equipment

You go where the action is….so should your insurance! Hays delivers comprehensive insurance for your gear - covering cameras, computers, editing equipment and rental.

Join the NPPA

NPPA members receive a wide range of benefits, from educational opportunities to mentoring, exclusive discounts, insurance options, business tips, and much more.