Linking and Liability for Creators [Part VII]

Continuing on Derivatives works… When the content of another page is incorporated into one's own page by means of an unauthorized IMG link, there is no direct copyright infringement by the creator of the link. This is because the link's creator never copies the pirated content; she merely provides a visiting browser with instructions to retrieve the image, which is then incorporated into the overall page on the user's machine. Thus the only person who copies the protected image is the final user. This does not mean that the creator of the link escapes liability, however. Copyright law provides that one who knowingly makes an infringement possible can herself be held liable under a theory of contributory infringement.
It is typically considered a breach of net etiquette to link to anyone else image through an IMG link without permission. Even more important, unauthorized IMG linking may well be a violation of the right to make a derivative work under copyright law. Consequently, one should always obtain permission (preferably in writing) from the copyright owner of the image prior to creating the link. (Brad Bolin of www.bitlaw.com)

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