New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-06-22
Order Stops Use of Other,
Early Editions and
Bulletins
Plaintiff Wins
On Every Count
Right to Exclusive Inform..
ton Is Upheld in Suit
Against News Service

court TO restrain the Interna,io,.I
News Service, known as the Has,,
service, from bodily taking 10 an
TO its own customers news tia,
peared on Bulletin boards or in a..
editions of Associated Press p.n.,.
BY this order the court upheld all ca,
tentions of The Associated Press s,,,
its property rights in the new, /,
sends TO its $50 newspaper members
The courts opinion was given on A.
peals by both plaintiff and defenS,,,
from a decision in March in the dis,rt,
court by Judge A. n. Hand. who r..
fused TO so restrain the defendsD,
stating that the question was one a.
first impression, which should be A..
swered by the higher court.
Judge Hand restrained the Interr,.
tional service, however, from induci,,
any person to communicate TO il As.
ISOLATED Press news prior TO pub,i.,.
ton and from inducing any member q,
The Associated Press TO violate the a..
CARNATIONS charter or bylaws. II,
appeal of the international seryi,
from this decision is denied by II.
Circuit Court.
Court Ruling Emphatic
Emphatic language was used by n.
court in characterizing the actions 0,
agents for the International News S.,.
vice.
IF the defendant takes what son,
one else owns, and sells it as Of riet,
in rivalry with the owner" says Ii.
court in its opinion, such compett!o,
is more than unfair, it is patiently IN.
lawful, and the wider term comprise,
the narrower.
"But laying aside the right Of prop.
erty as the ultimate foundation Of suit,
the business method OF selling in com.
petition with plaintiff and its members,
something falsely Represented as gath
cred by defendants otherwise than
from bulletins and early editions, isui.
fair, because it is parasitic and ur,rs
at is immoral, and that is uM,Ay
unfair to some one.
"To commercially distribute news ..
gathered by the sender, is, under y
facts shown, an invasion Of proper
rights; to send it out as ones ou
labor is marked by that dolus, which i
fraud, and that is the basis Of the de-.
trine of unfair competition in its VIC.
sense"
These comments were made by III
court after it had related and describe.
as "undisputable" the material facts OF
which The Associated Press asked FOL
the injunction.
Natural News Sources
Pointing out that the natural place
for receiving news from Europe va
the Atlantic seaboard, and New Yo'i
especially, the court adds: "Bulleilr!
and early editions put out by memosn
of plaintiff in the seaboard cities ar
read by agents of defendant. and ~
substance thereof transmitted by VIE
westward, sold to defendants eE'
toners, and by them printed, perhii'
without any knowledge on their par
that the origin of and sole basis i''
defendants dispatch is a bulletin pos
ed in New York by a member OF pan
tiff, as the result of plaintiffs enors
and certainly without any such lni''
nation given them by defendant"
The international Sery.ce sdmiNe'
this practice, but attempted 70 lustil
il by asserting IL was a legitimate ",
growth Of the newspaper habit OF uu'
izing tips" 4,
To this the court replies: There
no difficulty in discriminating oe'Ee'
the utilization of tips and the pocl!
appropriation of another's labor ID "
cumulating and stating informsau,o.
The word tip signifies a bare lntin'
ton that something has happened
Property in Facts
The defendant called this appropisl
ton permissible. arguing that 81
plaintiff ever had was facts, tnat a., :.
defendant took was facts. that we. I,
could be no property in facts. sno I.
there were il would be lost the insS.,
any member of The Associated ~
published the facts By showing o'"''
tin or distributing an edition. 1,
These arguments were relee'ee ~
the court, which sustained me es~'
of the plaintiff that II dealt N ~ ~.
not facts alone, and that in news ~. ~
is a property right not eHnsuTTs.' AZ.
the act Of single member OF iH' ."
ISOLATED Press.
There is no doubt that there IS ~
erty right in news capable OF ana ~
titled to legal protection" the co.. co.,
asserts. property covers evefytTr,s,,',
that has an exchangeablc value; -.
news possesses the quality sta,eq 80
obvious enough when j, IS opss.',, !,
that the defendant takes u N o''s'
exchange il against dollars. ,,..s,
"If IL be admitted that pis'.'' =,
right of property in its news ohV go,
listed, such existence was for me u. ..,
fit Of all its members, who. how. .;,,
owing 10 the earth's method OF FoVst,..s
cannot simultaneously exercise 's s,t
several rights. Il is reasonaois 49,
Just that each member OF plainiin - I,
plaintiff itself has property tsn
its own news until the plaintiH ! %" :,
WESTERN member has enjoyed hii
ward. which is not 20 have MS ~,
competitor supplied in time ior COMP
tition with what he has paid iof
Others Employees Paid =.
The two injunctions granted !,
March by Judge Hand were esse' i,
Associated Press charges thh "
telegraph editor of an Associated f t'i...
newspaper in Cleveland and his 49, -,
ant each received So weekly FOR se. ,.,e
tips" on Associated Press disps .,,,.
~ the Cleveland Office of the ih.' "a,
tional Service. IL was charged siso =,
International employees went 20
.r:.., 81 "Tba Now York AmtlN~