What about Google News? I pointed out to Davis that it too aggregates local newspaper headlines and ledes, including some of GateHouse's own publications.

"That is very different than the context of what was happening in these three communities," Davis replied. He noted that Your Town is a "direct competitor" to GateHouse's own community-oriented websites in suburban Boston, and also cited the "excessive volume" of GateHouse headlines and ledes appearing on the Your Town sites.

, another Boston-area site that frequently points to local newspaper articles and blogs, is also seen in a different light by GateHouse executives (see disclosure at the end of this article). This is apparently because it is not viewed as a direct competitor and it uses summaries, commentary, and links, as opposed to copied headlines and ledes. "We like Universal Hub," Davis said, adding that links from any local websites -- including Boston.com's Your Town minisites -- are welcome.

The hammered out between the New York Times Co. and GateHouse reflects GateHouse's conventional expectations. Copying and republishing content from RSS feeds or any other source is forbidden, and technological solutions will be put in place to prevent it from happening in the future -- not only on sites owned by the New York Times, but also on GateHouse's own sites. However, the agreement also states:

"Notwithstanding the above prohibitions, nothing shall prevent either party from linking or deep-linking to the other party's websites, provided that the terms and conditions set forth in this Letter Agreement and in the Definitive Agreement are otherwise fully complied with."