The Associated Press said that it will ask bloggers and other writers to restrict the way in which they use AP quotes.
Last week it sent a letter to the Drudge Retort asking the company to remove certain items containing AP quotes ranging from 35 to 79 words.
“As content creators, we firmly believe that everything we create, from video footage all the way down to a structured headline, is creative content that has value,” said Jim Kennedy, vice president and strategy director of the AP.
He does not advise cutting and pasting large sections of content but would rather organizations link to the articles.
However, the AP has not yet set clear guidelines and is not planning legal action.
“We are not trying to sue bloggers,” Kennedy said. “That would be the rough equivalent of suing grandma and the kids for stealing music.”
Interesting. The AP is seen as such a serious authority and a prime source to quote from, that it makes sense they're looking for a bigger slice of the pie. However, hopefully they won't go off the deep end.