For some time now, elements of the racing industry have
considered copyright as a legitimate means to obtain a financial
contribution from bookmakers who utilise race information without
the racing industry's permission. This continues to be the case
despite the High Court's 2009 unanimous decision in the IceTV
Case where the High Court ruled that IceTV did not infringe
copyright in Nine's television program schedule1.The
High Court found that there was no substantial reproduction of
Nine's program titles and times in IceTV's electronic
program television guide.
A recent case, involving Telstra Directories, has concluded that
copyright did not subsist in Telstra's white and yellow
directories. This raises significant obstacles to any party seeking
to establish copyright in databases compiled from factual
information. Racing and sporting bodies will have to address these
issues if they wish to pursue unauthorised users of their racing
and sports fixture information
