C&D for iPod Subway Maps

iPodSubwayMaps.com has received cease-and-desist letters from the New York and San Francisco transit authorities, who are invoking their copyright on their system maps, which the site breaks into iPod-screen-sized pieces that can be parsed via the scroll wheel. The developer, William Bright, has pulled the maps and is rereleasing his own versions.

See previous entry: iPod Subway Maps.

Posted on Monday, September 26, 2005 at 8:32 AM
Categories: Mass Transit, Mobile Devices

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Comments

This is typical of a bunch of beuracrats. You would think they would applaud an innovation that makes life easier for their citizens. Instead they obstruct progress.

I have to question the legality of copyrighting a map of a public subway system. I can’t imagine that color coding the various lines is enough of a creative innovation to bring such a map under copyright protection. Does that mean a city can claim a copyright on street maps and demand a licensing fee?

Roger Hart | 09/26/2005 at 12:47 PM | #

There are files for the NYC Subway Map here:

[link deleted — I think posting it here might put us both at risk. —ed.]

Grab them ASAP and share them with others (host them, file share, bit torrent, etc).

Good luck.

Kevin B. | 10/04/2005 at 11:11 AM | #

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