I suppose Crikey should be flattered that a leading international commercial motor sport web site should think enough of our exclusive interview series with AVESCO chairman and V8 Supercars boss Tony Cochrane to want to highlight his views on motor sport to the wider world. Absolutely nothing wrong with lifting select quotes with proper attribution – all media indulges in this practice.

Indeed like any other media organisation Crikey also relies on the internet in helping us capture background material or indeed select quotes on a particular topic, where we will then also either directly link to that original source, or acknowledge the source as it might appear within our own articles. Even a few direct quotes without attribution is no hanging offence.

However, I am totally bemused to note that while Motorsport.com when “googled” can claim all their material to be copyright with “all rights reserved”, thinks nothing of lifting our whole Cochrane interview and introduction – that’s in excess of 6000 words. Hardly a small bite or taste with no link back to Crikey either! So this web site has essentially rebadged and published our copyrighted material as their own commercial content with just the smallest attribution to myself and Crikey at the very end of the two part interview.

I shall be interested in their response as to why they think it is ok for all their content to be copyright protected including presumably retaining “all rights” over my own stolen journalism, given neither publisher Stephen Mayne or myself has been approached for any such permission either by them directly or anybody else on their behalf.

According to its own online corporate identity, Motorsport.com, inc. is a Florida corporation, with headquarters in Tallahassee, Florida. It has locations and/or staff located in six countries and three continents around the world. They might operate out of Florida, but they are not immune to such blatant unauthorised intellectual theft.

You can view the Motor Sport.com Tony Cochrane “stolen” interview here

https://www.motorsport.com/news/article.asp?ID=178479

And check out our exclusive two part interview on Crikey here: https://uat.crikey.com.au/articles/2005/03/003-0001-4808.html