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DMCA Safe Harbor May Not Apply To Old Copyrighted Works
tlhIngan writes "On Tuesday, the New York appellate court denied Grooveshark the DMCA safe harbor protection on songs like Johnny B. Goode. What happened was due to an oddity in the law, the DMCA does not apply to state-licensed copyrighted works (those copyrighted before February 15, 1972). What happened was Congress overhauled copyright law to make it a Federal matter, but all works prior to that date still come under common-law and state statutes. The end result is that Grooveshark does not have DMCA safe harbor protection for older works and may be sued for copyright infringement (barring other agreements, e.g., UMG and YouTube), even though they fully comply with the DMCA otherwise, taking down copyrighted materials. Grooveshark is a "music locker" service allowing users to upload music for others to listen to."
Does that also mean (to be consistent) that earlier works don't get the federal copyright term extensions, so anyone can use (say) Mickey Mouse?
A court can easily decide these cases through careful construction of a three part test:
1) Does the interpretation give benefits to a corporation that is a large campaign contributor?
2) Does the interpretation give benefits to a corporation that is a large campaign contributor?
3) Does the interpretation give benefits to a corporation that is a large campaign contributor?
My God, it's Full of Source!
OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
Don't worry, in 1000 years time our genetically modified cats will have overthrown their furry shackles and will have become our feline overlords. They will be most thankful that humans have kept their historical "culture" properly archived and indexed, most notably "Cats in Sinks".
At least they'll be well-dressed.