Hi, all. I'm a Wikipedia editor who uses the login "FuriousFreddy". There
were some questions raised over the legality of the inclusion of data from
the American Billboard music charts, since the company that owns Billboard
(VNU Media) claims copyright and ownership of the chart information. I sent
them an email several weeks ago...and they finally got back to answering it.
What does this mean for the Wikipedia music articles which include Billboard
charts?
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Brandon Cordy <brandon(a)brandoncordy.com>
Date: Nov 14, 2005 7:26 AM
Subject: FW: Billboard chart data licensing
To: b.touch(a)gmail.com
-----Original Message-----
*From:* Sam Bell [mailto:SBell@vnuemedia.com]
*Sent:* Sunday, November 13, 2005 1:00 PM
*To:* Brandon Cordy
*Cc:* brandon(a)brandoncordy.com; Ben French
*Subject:* Re: Billboard chart data licensing
Brandon,
Thanks for reaching out to me - much appreciated. Use of Billboard
intellectual property does require a license and we would be happy to
discuss how to go about obtaining one. I am copying Ben French on this email
- he will touch base on Monday to discuss further.
Cheers
Sam
...................................................
sam bell
director, business development
vnu emedia, inc.
770 broadway
new york, ny 10003
p. 646-654-5522
f. 646-654-5589
http://www.vnubusinessmedia.com
*"Brandon Cordy" <brandon(a)brandoncordy.com>*
10/24/2005 04:53 PM
To
sbell(a)billboard.com
cc
brandon(a)brandoncordy.com
Subject
Billboard chart data licensing
Dear Mr. Bell,
I am not sure if I have the correct department, but I am writing to
enquire about the licensing of Billboard chart data for use at the
English version of Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia
(
en.wikipedia.org <http://en.wikipedia.org>). Currently, Wikipedia uses a
significant amount of
data from Billboard records and charts, and I was concerned, after
seeing the disclaimer at
napster.com <http://napster.com> ("Billboard chart
information may
not be published, broadcast, displayed or redistributed without the
prior written agreement of VNU eMedia, Inc.") that we may not be in
compliance with your usage policies. Are we allowed, as a non-profit
informational resource, to use Billboard chart data, and, if so, is
there any limit to the amounts we may use (in recent months, several
persons have begun adding data from every Billboard chart in relation to
a particular song)?
If it is found that we should not include any or most Billboard chart
data, it will be removed expeditiously and without question. I
personally do not represent, neither am I associated with, the Wikimedia
Foundation in any way; I am inquiring out of courtesy. If I have
contacted the wrong department, if you could please foward my inquiry to
the correct one, I would be very grateful. Thank you for your assistance.
Regards,
Brandon Cordy