Feist Publications v. Rural Telephone Service

Feist Publications v. Rural Telephone Service is a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case from 1991. It focused on copyright law and whether phone directories could be copyrighted. Rural Telephone compiled a directory, while Feist Publications used that information without permission. The Court ruled that facts themselves cannot be copyrighted, only the creative expression of those facts. This decision emphasized the importance of originality in copyright law, stating that simply assembling data does not qualify for protection. It helped clarify the limits of copyright concerning factual information and encouraged the free flow of information.