St. Paul-based NorthstarMLS and American Home Realty Network (AHRN), which operates NeighborCity.com, have come to a confidential settlement over a long-standing copyright dispute.

The NorthstarMLS, which manages property listing data for agents in Minnesota and western Wisconsin, brought suit against San Francisco-based AHRN in April 2012 alleging the group violated its copyright rules by publishing photographs and other data relating to real estate listings on AHRN's NeighborCity.com, a referral site that included agent profiles and transaction-based "agent scores."

A preliminary injunction that was issued in 2012 by the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota said that AHRN should discontinue "any unauthorized copying, display, use, and/or public distribution" of NorthstarMLS's photographic works and the agent remarks and public remarks in NorthstarMLS's database.

The judge has yet rule on Northstar's motions to exclude expert reports of AHRN and NorthstarMLS 's motion for summary judgment on counterclaims made by AHRN. Here's some background on the topic.