On 23 Oct 2007 at 16:05, John Howell wrote: > I repeat: it's all arbitrary and equally good arguments can be made > for every variation that exists and has existed. Or against them.
I'm afraid I have to disagree with this effort at even-handedness, as it seems quite clear to me that one side has a vastly superior argument. What is the justification giving Disney its copyright protection for Steamboat Willie? I can't think of one, except getting more $$$$$$$$ out of an artistic effort from long, long ago, and I just don't see that as justification. The logic behind copyright seems to me to depend on the public good, and Disney is not lobbying for the public good at all, just to make more $$$$$$$ for themselves and their shareholders. The public domain is shrinking, or more properly, it's stopped growing, and digitization of content and the DMCA further shrink any possibility of fair use and make it very difficult to imagine how those works could one day enter the public domain (think about our discussions about key escrow for Finale activiations if you're wondering what I mean by that) under the current laws. This is disastrous for the long-run intellectual health of western society. -- David W. Fenton http://dfenton.com David Fenton Associates http://dfenton.com/DFA/ _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list [email protected] http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
