A Call for Copyright Reform

Pamela Samuelson of UC Berkeley has released a short, readable paper about the need to seriously reform the convoluted copyright statute. The current law, which is mostly a product of the 1976 revision, was written in a time where technology was hardly a concern for content owners and when lawmakers had little understanding of the technology (how things stay the same...).

She recognizes that this is likely to not occur due to other, more pressing, concerns, and I think that might be a good thing. I fear that deep revisions could stifle innovation due to the influence wielded by the content owners. I think it may be better to stumblr blindly through the next decade or so until people raised on the Internet are in a position to influence the decisions.

What do you think should be done about copyright reform?

20 Second Clip Yields 31,536,000 Seconds in Jail

A student in DC has been charged after filming 20 seconds of Transformers to show her brother. See here.

Complaint Filed Over Overreaching Copyright Notices

In the past, I've tried to highlight the overreaching copyright notices that are commonplace. You can see the posts here.

Well, today, the WSJ reports that the CCIA has filed a formal complaint about the practice citing, among others, the NFL and Harcourt, Inc.

To many, copyright remains a nebulous and confusing concept. The notices blasted before MLB games or prior to the text of a book serve as a form of education to many, but it is education mislead by omission of important fair use rights that the consumer has. This CCIA complaint is a very reasonable request which will, if adopted, provide for a more fair conception of copyright law.

Packers, I'd Like to Introduce You to the Net

The Internet has, for the most part, been commonplace for 10 years and nearly ubiquitous in the USA for 5.

Yet, for some reason, its basic functions remain foreign to the Green Bay Packers.

Their lovely copyright page, available here, demands that all links to the site be directed at the homepage. In fact, to link to the copyright page, like I did above, requires written permission.

Does anyone want to help these sad, sad people?