Europe already offers protection for databases beyond that provided by other copyright laws. In 1996, the European Parliament passed the Directive on the legal protection of databases. Since that time, America has debated the need for an equivalent law.
Congressman Rep. Howard Coble said:
"After eight long years, we have finally reached a compromise on this very important piece of legislation which represents a balance where the interests of users and producers of databases are protected."
He described the proposal as going "to great lengths to create incentives for the development of new information products while making certain that libraries, archives and educational institutions are not adversely affected."
Coble continued, "Without the minimal protection afforded by this legislation, we run the risk that new databases will not be created and made available to the public, thereby depriving the public of one more information source."
The US proposal allows a party to take a substantial part of any collection of information for private use, including scientific study or library research. It is only when use leads to material market harm that any liability might accrue.
In fact, the major changes made to earlier drafts of this legislation were to accommodate further the concerns of these communities by providing for "fair use" type privileges in the context of database protection.
Coble concluded:
"Under current law, anyone can copy a database and send it to millions of people, destroying the market for the database. In this environment, e-businesses will be hesitant to make their databases available on the internet for fear that they will be misappropriated by those seeking to take advantage of the lack of legal protection in this arena. Under the protection provided in [the Act] database producers will make their compilations readily available in a wide variety of formats by providing database compilers with legal recourse against those who steal their databases."
