I am not a lawyer, but, in technical knowledge, the average lawyer ranks somewhere between a luddite and a lugnut. So I'm not going to comment on the legal issues involved, but there are some facts that need to be clearly understood in order to make a reasoned judgment .
So, next time you call your lawyer asking if the ODP has been guilty of "restraint of trade" in not listing your site as expeditiously or promoting it as fulsomely as your greedy heart desired, you might mention some facts.
-- The Open Directory explicitly does not promise to list all sites. In fact, it explicitly reserves the right to NOT-list a site for various reasons, including simply a violation of the submittal guidelines.
-- The Open Directory does not sustain a business relationship with submitters. It solicits help finding websites, and promises to use that help -- if in fact it is constructive and not pestilential.
-- The Open Directory does not have a monopoly of general-purpose directories: two of the largest portals have their own directories (Yahoo and MSN/Looksmart); and there are many other "vertical" directories for particular geographic regions or business types.
-- Portals that license the Open Directory are explicitly free to modify ODP content in any way, including adding or deleting sites. The ODP does not place any technical or legal constraints on their adding any particular site to any particular category.
-- Most surfers use search engines rather than directories to find businesses.
-- There is no search engine that possesses a monopoly. Google and Inktomi are the largest search engines, and neither one is in the position to place artificial barriers to new entrants.
-- Open Directory data is not directly entered into Inktomi, which has its own site submittal system.
-- The Open Directory data is directly entered into Google, but it has no monopoly (or even really, privileged place) on Google site submittal: Google's spider, direct site submittal, and Yahoo provide alternate ways for any site to get into Google.
-- Most portals provide targeted paid advertising ABOVE whatever search engine or directory results they display. The Open Directory has no control or effect whatsoever on that channel.
Now, if you have a business, we do want to list it. Not because we care whether you or one of your competitors gets any particular customer, but because we want the Open Directory to be comprehensive. We do take pride in what the Open Directory contributes to the quality of portals and search engines. And we do take pride in the significant economic pressure the mere presence of a content-rich alternative puts on, say, Looksmart. But the ODP isn't Microsoft or Qualcomm or even the Devil, and it doesn't have the power to restrain your trade.
You don't want to contribute to the sum of human knowledge? You want to chase the same round of rich readers with the same slim packet of porn photos? You want to build-or-buy a Hotel Directory Website with Online Reservations? Go ahead. We can't stop you, and we won't try. But we may not have time in our busy schedules to give you the kind of free promotion you want. So just make sure your business plan includes obtaining whatever such services you need, from whomever you wish to hire.
In fact, even if you have a real business providing unique goods and services, you will not be able to afford to depend on the Open Directory for all your website promotion needs. (It's not Santa Claus either.)
So, next time you call your lawyer asking if the ODP has been guilty of "restraint of trade" in not listing your site as expeditiously or promoting it as fulsomely as your greedy heart desired, you might mention some facts.
-- The Open Directory explicitly does not promise to list all sites. In fact, it explicitly reserves the right to NOT-list a site for various reasons, including simply a violation of the submittal guidelines.
-- The Open Directory does not sustain a business relationship with submitters. It solicits help finding websites, and promises to use that help -- if in fact it is constructive and not pestilential.
-- The Open Directory does not have a monopoly of general-purpose directories: two of the largest portals have their own directories (Yahoo and MSN/Looksmart); and there are many other "vertical" directories for particular geographic regions or business types.
-- Portals that license the Open Directory are explicitly free to modify ODP content in any way, including adding or deleting sites. The ODP does not place any technical or legal constraints on their adding any particular site to any particular category.
-- Most surfers use search engines rather than directories to find businesses.
-- There is no search engine that possesses a monopoly. Google and Inktomi are the largest search engines, and neither one is in the position to place artificial barriers to new entrants.
-- Open Directory data is not directly entered into Inktomi, which has its own site submittal system.
-- The Open Directory data is directly entered into Google, but it has no monopoly (or even really, privileged place) on Google site submittal: Google's spider, direct site submittal, and Yahoo provide alternate ways for any site to get into Google.
-- Most portals provide targeted paid advertising ABOVE whatever search engine or directory results they display. The Open Directory has no control or effect whatsoever on that channel.
Now, if you have a business, we do want to list it. Not because we care whether you or one of your competitors gets any particular customer, but because we want the Open Directory to be comprehensive. We do take pride in what the Open Directory contributes to the quality of portals and search engines. And we do take pride in the significant economic pressure the mere presence of a content-rich alternative puts on, say, Looksmart. But the ODP isn't Microsoft or Qualcomm or even the Devil, and it doesn't have the power to restrain your trade.
You don't want to contribute to the sum of human knowledge? You want to chase the same round of rich readers with the same slim packet of porn photos? You want to build-or-buy a Hotel Directory Website with Online Reservations? Go ahead. We can't stop you, and we won't try. But we may not have time in our busy schedules to give you the kind of free promotion you want. So just make sure your business plan includes obtaining whatever such services you need, from whomever you wish to hire.
In fact, even if you have a real business providing unique goods and services, you will not be able to afford to depend on the Open Directory for all your website promotion needs. (It's not Santa Claus either.)