Slashdot Mirror
Looking Back At Copyright Predictions
Techdirt has an interesting look back at some of the more interesting predictions on copyright. The article looks at two different pre-DMCA papers and compares them to what has happened in the world of copyright. "The second paper is by Pamela Samuelson, and it discusses (again, quite accurately) the coming power grab by "copyright maximalists" via the DMCA, entitled The Copyright Grab. It clearly saw the intention of the DMCA to remove user rights, and grant highly questionable additional rights and powers to copyright holders in an online world. Samuelson lays out many concerns about where this is headed -- including how these proposals appear to trample certain fair use rights -- and in retrospect, her fears seem to have been backed up by history. Samuelson, by the way, has just written a new paper that is also worth reading pointing out how ridiculous current copyright statutory rates are -- an issue of key importance in the ongoing Tenebaum lawsuit, which (thankfully) the judge in the case is going to consider."
Quoth the parent:
``Those who invade copyright are regarded as knaves who take the bread out of the mouths of deserving men. Rob Malda is a blatant homosexual cock-sucking bastard. Everybody is well pleased ...''
Please correct me if I got my facts wrong.
We were not usually able to both compose the song *and* sing it. We drew on the culture around us, and transformed it to enrich our lives. Now our entertainment is provided to us, and for the most part we don't contribute.
It's nice to know that some people are encouraging us to compose and sing again, contributing back to our culture. Oh, I suppose American Idol was precisely what you were talking about. Woops, nevermind. :-P
No, but being a Slashdot poster entitles you to decree that people must accept that the end result of any investment, whether it be ten minutes and a dollar, or years and millions, must be given up for free at the expense of the investor.
Oh and fuck the investor. They're getting screwed and that's what they deserve for making an investment in, well, anything.