The law concerning the ability to use such links is in its infancy, with no definitive precedent. Hyperlinks are inserted into a Web site by the site's owner, who can create the link without the assistance of the owner of the linked-to site. Such is the case, in part, because the link benefits the linked site by bringing it additional viewers. Recently, however, a series of lawsuits have drawn into doubt the continued viability of this practice. These suits are driven by a number of concerns, principal among them is the advertising potential of the Web.
Advertisers are willing to post ads based on the traffic and number of viewers attracted to a site.
Because a site's home page is generally the page most frequently visited, it is here that the most profitable ads are likely to be found. Linking can be used to transfer a user to pages deep within a site that contain content of interest, by-passing the home page of the linked site on which advertisements appear. The use of links in this manner threatens to dilute the advertising revenue generated by a site. Linking can also be used to make the content of the linked site appear on the site on which the link is located permitting a site owner to profit from the content on a site he did not create, using it to draw traffic and advertisers to his site. Some Web site owners also object to linking for the same reasons that traditional publishers, authors or owners of trademarks object to the unauthorized use of their works, such as dilution of trademarks, misappropriation or inappropriate display of their work, and other traditional infringement concerns.