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The FSF's Donald Robertson Talks About Copyrights, Patents, and the TPP (Video)
We all know (or know about) Richard M. Stallmann, founder of and vociferous spokesman for the Free Software Foundation. But the organization is far from a one-man band, and Donald Robertson, their copyright administrator (and wearer of several other hats as well) is the person to turn to when you want to get into the murky depths of copyright and patent law. He's also somewhat of an expert on the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), which the FSF says, '...has a number of truly dangerous provisions that harm software freedom."
What can you do to help stop this trade agreement that has gotten the FSF (and the EFF, among others) up in arms? Don answers that question in the video (and accompanying transcript for those who would rather read than watch). And any unanswered questions will probably be taken care of in a second video interview with Mr. Robertson that we plan to run in the next day or two.
What can you do to help stop this trade agreement that has gotten the FSF (and the EFF, among others) up in arms? Don answers that question in the video (and accompanying transcript for those who would rather read than watch). And any unanswered questions will probably be taken care of in a second video interview with Mr. Robertson that we plan to run in the next day or two.
What can you do to help stop this trade agreement...
... the answer is to join a mailing list?!?! Come on!
I totally understand that the FSF is still getting their plan in order, but the editors shouldn't lead with it if there's no answer yet. It's like those awful news blurbs, "what common condiment could be killing you RIGHT NOW!?! Find out more during our broadcast tomorrow."
I also don't get why this was split into two. There's hardly any content in this one.. where's the rest of the interview?
"Yeah, there is no submarine copyright. It is either you’ve seen another work and you are copying it and therefore you know, as the person who is doing the copying that you are doing it, or you are not copying at all."
I wonder if Mr. Robertson has heard of Bright Tunes Music v. Harrisongs Music and Three Boys Music v. Michael Bolton. In both cases, a plaintiff owning copyright in a musical composition successfully argued that a songwriter should be held liable for having accidentally copied the plaintiff's song after having heard it performed on the radio years ago. The wide exposure given to popular music through radio and other mass media essentially turns a copyright into a patent on a short snatch of melody, where it can be presumed that other composers will have heard it at least once. And I find this dangerous for the viability of releasing video games as free software.
I've never seen the FSF endorse a candidate ...
... and you never will. As a 501c3 non-profit, the FSF is prohibited from endorsing specific candidates.