It it invalid to apply analogies involving physical property to intellectual property. The two are not similar enough for that to be a convincing argument, especially since mere facts aren't protected intellectual property at all.
This seems to always be the reply when analogies come up, which is why I said it was apples, bananas, and oranges.
The point being, what's mine is mine, and if I say you can't have it, I want you to respect my wishes. Sure you can probably justify endlessly, or interpret differently, or stretch the truth, or bend the rules, but one business is saying, don't use our data this way, and regardless of this, the other business is finding a way to use the data.
Seems wrong to me.
EDIT:
Because I can't reply deeper to these threads, I have to edit here.
The "mine" above is not intended to be in regards to the information or content on Craigslist. I'm not saying they own it.
I think there is a relationship between the person who posted the information to Craigslist and Craigslist itself. I don't think anyone has a right to become some part of that relationship without both sides agreeing.
Maybe it's because I'm a freelancer. If I have a relationship with a Client to build them something, and someone else decides, of their own accord, that they are now part of that relationship, I have the right to tell them to back off, and I believe they should respect my wishes.
I'm not talking data ownership. I'm not talking about legal matters. I'm saying, human to human, they should just be cool with Craigslist wishes and go another way.
Craigslist postings aren't Craigslist's in a legally or practically meaningful way. This is the crux of the matter. The owners are the posters, and few if any of them would object to increased visibility.
> The point being, what's mine is mine, and if I say you can't have it, I want you to respect my wishes.
As far as I know, Craigslist doesn't own the facts contained in a listing, nor does it have a claim to the aggregation of such facts, so Craigslist doesn't have a legal or moral claim here.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feist_v._Rural