Lets say I'm making a list of myspace (IE) sites . The list would contain lots of info about each site. The list would have to be constantly updated to stay correct, so I would end up needing to employ somebody full time just to do this. Now How could i stop somebody from taking this list? Afterall the information would be freely available just by going to other sites. There would be basically no user edited info on the list, just stats like "Alexa", "Page Title" etc. Is it legal to copy lists, or can you stop it somehow?
In this case it would be very difficult to protect. The info you are going to be using can basically be viewed as facts, which can't be copyrighted. However the way you represent then can. Do it in a unique way and you will have limited protection. It might also be a good idea to write a short unique review/description for each listing.
It's easy to do just about anything. If someone copies your list format in its entirety, that's a no no. That's the only way facts are protected (presentation).