Daniel P. B. Smith wrote:
From: Steve Summit scs@eskimo.com
There may be no artistic input, but some will claim that they deserve protection for all the work they did tracking down the old map and making the scan. To be lily-white, it can be argued that you're supposed to track down an original copy of the old map yourself, and make your own scan.
In "Feist Publication Inc. v. Rural Telephone Service Co. Inc." the Supreme Court of the United States said:
...
"Copyright rewards originality, not effort. As this Court noted more than a century ago, 'great praise may be due to the plaintiffs for their industry and enterprise in publishing this paper, yet the law does not contemplate their being rewarded in this way.'"
This is fine for a US based Wikipedian, and even though I live outside the US I would have no compunction about relying on it, but some of our colleagues are somewhat more reticent to be bold.
(re-sent) Ec