SWMRIC

Changes to Broker Reciprocity Rules and Regulations

Effective January 1, 2007

Italics = Additions Underlined = Deletions

Broker Reciprocity - a means by which each MLS Participant subscribing to the program (the “Broker Reciprocity Subscriber” or “BRS”) permits the display of its active listings appearing in MLS on each others “BRS”, Internet web site.

Broker Reciprocity Database - the current aggregate compilation of all active listings of all Broker Reciprocity Subscribers except those listings where the property seller has opted out of Internet publication by so indicating on the listing contract and on the Listing Data Form by entering “NO” in the Internet “YES/NO” field.

Broker Reciprocity Subscriber’s Agent (hereafter called a BRSA) - is a BRS’s non-principal broker or sales licensee who has written authorization from the BRS to use the BR Database on their web site or frame their BRS’s web site.

SWMRIC - The Southwestern Michigan Regional Information Center, LLC which is an organization that provides MLS computer services and a real property database to the Members of the SWMRIC Member Associations and MLSs.

Republication of Broker Reciprocity Database on Internet Permitted.

a. A BRS or BRSA may republish all or a portion of the Broker Reciprocity Database on the Internet in accordance with the following provisions and any policies that MLS may adopt from time to time. A BRS or BRSA is not required to display the whole BR Database. A BRS or BRSA may exclude select the listings from they choose to display on their Broker Reciprocity sites based only on objective criteria including, but not limited to, factors such as geography or location (“uptown”,“downtown”, etc.), list price, type of property (e.g. condominiums, cooperatives, single family detached, multi-family,), or cooperative compensation offered by listing brokers, type listing (e.g. exclusive right to sell or exclusive agency), or the level of service provided by the listing firm. Selection of listings to be displayed on an Broker Reciprocity site must be independently made by each BRS. Examples include property type (“condos,” “single family detached,” “multi-family,” etc.), price or location (“downtown”). You may also choose not to display listings of certain of your competitors or those listings that are exclusive agency listing agreements. If you plan to display only a subset of the BR Database, you shall have one of the following disclosures on your web site that explains the situation to consumers:

“(Your firm’s name) does not display the entire MLS ( or SWMRIC)Broker Reciprocity database on this web site.” And, if applicable, the following statement: “The listings of some real estate brokerage firms have been excluded.”

Unless expressly contradicted by the provisions of this section, all other Rules and Regulations remain in full force and effect.

b. A BRS or BRSA must notify the MLS of their intention to establish a Broker Reciprocity site and make their site directly accessible to the MLS for purposes of monitoring/ensuring compliance with the applicable rules and policies.

c. An internet republication of another BRS’s listing shall not contain more (but may contain less) information than is authorized to be displayed by SWMRIC’s policy governing the display of the BR data. You may display any information relating to your own listings. Confidential information intended only for the other BRSs and BRSAs (e.g., cooperative compensation offers, showing instructions, property security information, etc.) may not be displayed on Broker Reciprocity sites.

d. In order to be a BRS, an MLS Participant must be actively engaged in providing real estate brokerage services to sellers and/or buyers in real estate transactions.

e. The BRS or BRSA shall update the information on its Internet web site at least weekly. must refresh all SWMRIC downloads and refresh all SWMRIC data at least once every seven ( 7) days. The MLS requires you to display on your web site the last update date. (i.e. Data last updated: xx/xx/xx)

f. A BRS or BRSA may not modify the actual data relating to another BRS’s listing. A computer generated written description of the listing using the actual data from the BRS’s listing is permissible. For your own listings, you can do anything you want to as long as it is in compliance with applicable laws and the Code of Ethics. If you are displaying other data that is tied to another BRS’s listing, you should make efforts to distinguish the data you have supplied from the data from the BR Database. Separating the data on the screen and/or including a credit on the non-BR data would be a good method to handle the distinction.

g. Listings or property addresses of sellers who have directed their listing brokers to withhold their listing or property address from display on the Internet ( including, but not limited to, publicly-accessible Web sites) shall not be accessible via Broker Reciprocity sites. Notwithstanding this prohibition, listing brokers may display on their Broker Reciprocity sites or their other web site(s) the listing or property address of consenting sellers.

h. Display of seller’s(s’) and/or occupant’s (s’) name(s), phone number(s), and email address(es) is prohibited.

i. The SWMRIC approved icon and an explanation of the data source must appear on the first page where any listing data is displayed. The following disclosure verbiage or its equivalent will satisfy this requirement:

“The properties on this web site come in part from the Broker Reciprocity Program of the Member MLS’s of the Southwestern Michigan Regional Information Center.”

j. When displaying listing content, a BRS’s or BRSA’s Broker Reciprocity site must clearly identify the name of the brokerage firm under which they operate in a readily visible color and typeface.

k. Any search result identifying another BRS’s listing in a brief or “thumbnail” format shall bear the SWMRIC approved icon or the SWMRIC approved thumbnail icon immediately adjacent to the property information to identify the listing as an MLS listing. ( See Appendix 4 for the SWMRIC approved icons. ) A brief or thumbnail display is defined as being no more than 120 characters of listing data text and/or a image of no more than 100 pixels high. The SWMRIC approved icon shall be at least 35 pixels by 35 pixels. A thumbnail display of another BRS’s listing may not include any contact information or branding of the BRS who owns the web site or any of its agents. A thumbnail display may only include the following: text data about the listed property, an image of the listed property, the logo of the listing broker or SWMRIC approved icon, and “buttons” or hot links for a detailed listing display. The provision relating to “contact information or branding” is designed to prevent the web-site-owning BRS’s or BRSA’s contact information, contact links, and branding, and that of its agents, from appearing on other BRS’s listings. “Branding” refers to any marks or language referring to the web-site-owning BRS repeated in the thumbnail display of another BRS’s listing. Any association of such information or branding with the listing data is a violation of this rule.

L A search result producing a detailed display of another BRS’s listing shall bear that BRS’s name, Listing Agent’s name and office telephone number within the property information. The SWMRIC approved icon and SWMRIC’s copyright notice shall be displayed immediately following the property information. The copyright notice shall be at least a 10 point font size and appear exactly as follows: “ Copyright nnnn Southwestern Michigan Regional Information Center, LLC. All rights reserved. “ [ Where nnnn is the current year.] The copyright symbol can be used in place of the word “copyright”. MLS interprets any display containing more than 120 characters of listing data text and/or a image of more than 100 pixels high as being a detailed display. The BRS’s name shall be at least as large as the largest type size used to display the listing data. A detailed display of another BRS’s listing may not include any contact information, links to, or branding of the MLS Participant who owns the web site or any of it’s agents within the “body” of the listing data. The “body” is defined as the rectangular space whose borders are delimited by the utmost extent in each direction of the listing text and photo data. The prohibition on branding or contact information within the “body” of the listing data is intended to prevent any possible confusion on the part of the consumer as to the source of the listing.

m. Any result identifying another BRS’s listing shall include the disclaimer “Information Deemed Reliable But Not Guaranteed.” This disclaimer shall be at least a 10 point font size. You will probably want to display this disclaimer on your own listings as well, unless your legal counsel advises otherwise.

n. Any Internet web site used for publication of the Broker Reciprocity Database or any portion thereof must be controlled by a BRS or a BRSA and advertised as that BRS’s or BRSA’s Internet web site. In order to participate in Broker Reciprocity™, a site must be marketed and branded or cobranded as a broker’s site.

o. A BRS, at their option, may give written authorization to their non-principal brokers and sales licensees to use the BR database to populate their own web sites or frame the BR data on the BRS’s web site. If written authorization is obtained by a non-principal broker or sales licensee to use the BR database to populate their web site, the BRS, licensee and any third party vendor shall sign an agreement with the MLS setting forth the permissible uses of the BRS Database, agreeing to comply with the MLS Rules and Regulations governing the BR Database, and agreeing to comply with all state laws and regulations.

p. BRSs or BRSAs must protect Broker Reciprocity information from misappropriation by employing reasonable efforts to monitor and prevent “scraping” or other unauthorized accessing, reproduction or use of the SWMRIC database. A BRS or BRSA displaying the Broker Reciprocity Database or any portion thereof shall make reasonable efforts to avoid “scraping” of the data by third parties or displaying of that data on any other web site. Reasonable efforts shall include, but are not be limited to:

1. Monitoring the web site for signs that a third party is “scraping” data and

2. Prominently posting notice that any use of search facilities of data on the site, other than by a consumer looking to purchase real estate, is prohibited. If a BRS or BRSA suspects “scraping” of the data has occurred, the suspicion and any evidence must be reported to the MLS immediately for investigation and action.

q. A BRS or BRSA must make changes to an Internet site necessary to cure a violation of the MLS’s Rules and Regulations within five business days of notice from the MLS of the violation. MLS reserves the right to discontinue the data feed you receive without further notice if you do not comply with this requirement. You may also be subject to fines from the MLS.

r. Except as provided in these rules, a Broker Reciprocity site or a BRS or BRSA operating a Broker Reciprocity site may not distribute, provide, or make any portion of the SWMRIC database available to any person or entity. No portion of the Broker Reciprocity Database shall be used or provided to a third party for any purpose other than those expressly provided for in the MLS Rules and Regulations. This section expressly prohibits distribution of the BR Database or any portion of it for any purpose other than those expressly permitted by the MLS Rules and Regulations. This includes distribution to other BRS’s. In other words, In addition, a brokerage firm cannot sell access to the Broker Reciprocity Data to other brokers or any other businesses, whether or not they are participants in MLS.

s. No portion of the Broker Reciprocity Database shall be co-mingled with any non-MLS listings on the BRS’s or BRSA’s Internet web site. If you take listings from consumers but do not put them into an MLS system, they cannot appear on any thumb-nail display or as part of any search results with BR Database data. If the property in question appears in any other MLS, then the property may be co-mingled.

If you serve a market area without an MLS, you must either enter such listings into an MLS in a market that has one, or you must not co-mingle those listings with the BR Database listings.

t. Any BRS and BRSA using a third party to develop and /or design its web site shall have a written agreement with that third party in the form prescribed by the MLS. MLS requires that third parties gaining access to the BR Database sign the standard contract as approved by the MLS. Providing an MLS password to an unauthorized recipient is a serious violation of the MLS Rules and Regulations punishable by a fine of $_________ for each such violation.