Thursday, February 02, 2012

If Public, ALWAYS Public?

Once something is public domain, is it always public domain?

Not if the Supreme Court says it's not.

Argument for decision:  reciprocity.  Presumably, easier to get other countries to recognize our copyrights if we recognize theirs.

Argument against:  WTF?  The only reason to grant a monopoly is to encourage new works.  These are all old works, by definition.

(Nod to BC, who has sharp eyes for a cool issue)

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is called, "Thinking like a lawyer." LOL!

James Oswald said...

One way to look at it is as a taking without due process. You are taking things from the public and giving them to their former owners without actually trying (everyone) for a crime or compensating them for their loss.