Primary market
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NAR Releases 2003 VOW Work Group Report
in an MLSs rules and regulations a VOW or a Participant operating a VOW may not distribute provide or make any portion of the MLS database accessible to any person or entity. h.Any listing displayed on a VOW shall identify the listing firm. i.A Participant"s VOW must display a privacy policy that informs Registrants of the ways in which information obtained from them will be used. j.A Participant may exclude listings from display on the Participant"s VOW based only on objective criteria such as geography list price type of property or cooperative compensation offered by listing brokers. k.A Participant may not provide the identity of a Registrant to any other entity for compensation. Notwithstanding the foregoing a Participant may provide the identity of a Registrant to another broker for compensation if (1) the Participant"s residential real estate brokerage activities principally consist of listing or selling the types of properties required to be filed with the MLS (2) the Registrant is seeking property of a type in a price range or in a location for which the Participant does not ordinarily provide real estate brokerage services and (3) the number of Registrant identities provided or the corresponding revenue generated is an insubstantial portion of the Participant"s real estate brokerage activities. For purposes of this paragraph selling does not include making referrals of prospective purchasers to other real estate brokers and listing does not include making referrals of prospective sellers to other real estate brokers. 6.MLS Participants must notify the MLS of their intention to establish a VOW and make their VOW directly accessible to the MLS for purposes of monitoring/ensuring compliance with applicable rules and policies. III.Policies Applicable to Multiple Listing Services. 1.Associations of REALTORS® and their Multiple Listing Services shall enable MLS Participants to operate VOWs subject to the requirements of state law and the requirements above. 2.MLSs shall if requested by a Participant provide basic "downloading" of active listing information sufficient to operate a VOW but excluding the listing or the property address respectively of any seller who affirmatively directs that the listing or the property address not appear on the Internet or other electronic forms of display or distribution. For purposes of this policy "downloading" means electronic transmission of data from MLS servers to Participants" servers on a persistent or transient basis at the discretion of the MLS. In addition Associations and MLSs can also offer alternative display options including framing of Board MLS or other publicly-accessible sites displaying Participants" listings (with permission of the framed site). This policy does not require associations or MLSs to establish publicly accessible sites displaying Participants" listings. 3.MLSs may charge the costs of adding or enhancing their "downloading" capacity to enable Participants to operate VOWs to those Participants who will download listing information for that purpose. Assessment of such costs should reasonably relate to the actual costs incurred by the MLS. 4.MLSs that allow persistent downloading of the MLS database by Participants for display or distribution on the Internet or by other electronic means may require that Participants (1) utilize appropriate security protection such as firewalls which requirement may not impose on Participants security obligations greater than those employed concurrently by the MLS and/or (2) maintain an audit trail of Registrants" activity on the VOW and make that information available to the MLS if the MLS has reason to believe that a Participant"s VOW has caused or permitted a breach in the security of the data or a violation of MLS rules related to use by one or more Registrants. 5.MLSs may not prohibit Participants from displaying other brokers" listings obtained from other sources e.g. other MLSs non-participating brokers etc. but may require that each listing obtained from another source display the source of the listing. 6.An MLS may permit Participants to make "Sold" data available on a VOW for search by Registrants. If "Sold" data is made available the MLS may establish reasonable limits on the number of Sold records that Registrants may retrieve or download in response to an inquiry. 7.MLSs may establish reasonable limits on the number of listings that Registrants may view retrieve or download in response to an inquiry. 8.MLS"s may establish a maximum period during which Registrants" passwords are valid after which such passwords must be changed or reconfirmed. 9.MLS"s may require that Participants require Registrants to supply a street address prior to accessing a VOW. EFFECTIVE DATE: The foregoing policies shall become effective upon adoption by the NAR Board of Directors except that (1) MLSs have until not later than January 1 2004 to adopt and implement the foregoing policies and (2) Participants shall have until not later than 180 days following adoption and implementation of these policies by an MLS in which they participate to cause their VOW to comply with these provisions. See Appendix A for Sanctions Available for MLS Rules Violations and Data Misappropriation Appendix A - Sanctions Available for MLS Rules Violations and Data Misappropriation Internal Remedies for MLS Rules Violations 1.1. A fine of up to $5 000. 2.2. Suspension of MLS privileges. 3.3. Termination of MLS privileges. Judicial Remedies for Data Misappropriation and Copyright Infringement 1.1. Injunctive relief. 2.2. Statutory damages which may range from $750 to $30 000 in the discretion of the court or up to $150 000 if the infringement is willful. 3.3. Actual damages and lost profits. 4.4. Attorneys fees and costs at the discretion of the court. 5.5. Potential criminal penalties.Pages: 1 [2]