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Interesting to read today that Google has lost a copyright lawsuit to Belgian newspapers that had demanded it remove headlines and links to articles posted on its news site without their permission. What is so dramatic about this ruling is that if it stands on appeal, it could set a precedent for how Web search engines link to copyrighted material in the constantly changing world of online news. Google said it would appeal, claiming its Google News service was "entirely legal" and the Belgian ruling did not set any precedent. Google’s point of view is that it merely uses the first line of the news article, then points people in the direction of the full article. This, it describes as “Fair Use.” The courts decided otherwise with a ruling based on EU law that could trigger similar cases against Google in other nations, including copyright groups in Norway, Austria and Italy. No doubt this will evolve into a long drawn out affair, particularly as the depths of Google’s pockets outweigh the GDP of most nations!

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