Category: Copyright Policy

Copyright Policy Discussions

Lessig Mixes it Up | The Illusion Of More

David Newhoff at The Illusion Of More challenges Lawrence Lessig’s “Laws That Choke Creativity.”

So, as a legal layman but active observer of these things, it seems to me Mr. Lessig’s presentation, though charming, contains at least two fallacious premises.  The first is that the positive aspects of remix culture are actually threatened by the copyright system; and the second is that remix culture is universally positive.  I don’t know of any cases in which rights holders are stopping “the kids” from singing the songs of the day on YouTube.  But there are plenty of cases in which adults are profiting from remixing culture in ways that benefit neither fans nor creators. While it’s almost rote these days to call everyone a shill, I don’t think this is very helpful. I prefer to assume intelligent people mean what they say and believe in their positions, and Lawrence Lessig is certainly an intelligent man.  Of course, that might be why his ideas are ultimately so dangerous.

READ THE FULL POST AT THE ILLUSION OF MORE:
http://illusionofmore.com/mixing_lessig/

by Trichordist Editor

Five Things Congress Could Do for Music Creators That Wouldn’t Cost Taxpayers a Dime – Complete Series

Chris Castle suggests “Five Things Congress Can Do For Creators…” in three different areas in this series. Essential reading for all musicians and songwriters for an understanding of the forces and legislation that shape your ability to make a living.

1) Five Things Congress Could Do For Music Creators That Wouldn’t Cost the Taxpayer a Dime Part 1:
Pre-72 Sound Recordings

Many of us in the music business know that songwriters and recording artists are financially worse off under the “new boss” than they were under the “old boss.” We have watched older artists “die on the bandstand” because the royalty or residual income they had counted on to support them in their retirement began evaporating with the arrival of the Internet in their lives. We have watched younger artists and songwriters essentially give up on the idea of doing anything but breaking even — maybe, if they are lucky — on sound recordings. And there is a growing realization that being in cut out bin, or as it’s known online the “long tail”…well, is not ideal. So what is to be done?

READ THE FULL POST HERE:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-castle/five-things-congress-coul_b_3658643.html

2) Five Things Congress Could Do for Music Creators That Wouldn’t Cost the Taxpayer a Dime Part 2:
Update the Compulsory License for Songwriters

One might ask why do we need a compulsory license for songs? At a time when the dominant big tech companies drive around the world snorting up private data and taking pictures of your house, have scant attention paid to them when they gobble up companies to increase their market dominance or even monopoly, and employ an unprecedented number of lobbyists to influence governments around the world, why are we still worried about compulsory licenses for songs? To protect the public from the anticompetitive ambitions of songwriters?

READ THE FULL POST HERE:
http://musictechpolicy.wordpress.com/2013/08/29/five-things-congress-could-do-for-music-creators-that-wouldnt-cost-the-taxpayer-a-dime-part-2-update-the-compulsory-license-for-songwriters/

3) Five Things Congress Could Do for Music Creators That Wouldn’t Cost the Taxpayer a Dime Part 3:
Create an Audit Right for Songwriters

Chairman Goodlatte has said he intends to update the Copyright Act to bring it into line with the digital age. The Congress already allowed audits for the compulsory license for sound recordings and the webcasting royalty established under Section 114. This mechanism that Congress created in the recent past is working quite well.

Chairman Goodlatte could borrow heavily from the audit rights for the Section 114 compulsory license for sound recordings, and allow songwriters to conduct group audits under Section 115 to avoid a multiplicity of audits.

READ THE FULL POST HERE:
http://musictechpolicy.wordpress.com/2013/09/03/five-things-congress-could-do-for-music-creators-that-wouldnt-cost-the-taxpayer-a-dime-part-3-create-an-audit-right-for-songwriters/

by Trichordist Editor

Why Copyright is a Right and Fair Use is a Privilege | Law Theories

In this post, I’ll explain why copyright opponents have it exactly backwards when they claim that copyright is a privilege and fair use is a right. At the outset, I note that these terms can have various, nontechnical meanings that possibly overlap. For example, Black’s Law Dictionary defines “right” to mean, inter alia, a “privilege,” and it defines “privilege” to mean, inter alia, a “right.”2 But copyright opponents are not using these terms interchangeably; they are using them in contradistinction to each other. In other words, they are saying that right and privilege are mutually exclusive terms. It’s this technical usage of these terms that I’ll address.

READ THE FULL STORY AT LAW THEORIES:
Why Copyright is a Right and Fair Use is a Privilege

by trichordist

Steal a Little: Piracy & the Economy via The Illusion Of More

I’ve wanted a sailing yacht for years but have never been able to afford one — until now. Thanks in part to a report on piracy and counterfeiting by the GAO and this explication by CCIA (Computer & Communications Industry Association) lobbyist Matt Schruers, I now have a plan that will put me at the helm of the sloop Larceny by the Summer of 2016. And the best part is the whole family gets to collaborate to make it happen. According to my rough calculations, all we have to do is steal groceries like a Dickensian gang for three full years, and we’ll save enough for a substantial down payment on the boat. I’m thinking Beneteau 45ft, but if any seasoned mariner out there has a recommendation, let me know.

READ THE FULL POST AT THE ILLUSION OF MORE:
http://illusionofmore.com/piracy_and_economy/

by Trichordist Editor

Repeat after me… “Artists are Innovators!” via VOX INDIE

Testimony from copyright hearing highlights what’s at stake for content creators

On Thursday (July 25th) the House Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet held another hearing on copyright reform, “Innovation in America: The Role of Copyrights,” with the following witness invited to testify:

Sandra Aistars, Executive Director, Copyright Alliance
Eugene Mopsik, Executive Director, American Society of Media Photographers
Tor Hansen,Co-Founder, Yep Roc Records / Red Eye Distribution
John Lapham, General Counsel, Getty Images
William Sherak, President, Stereo D

Unfortunately, to some in the press–who the witnesses were seems to have overshadowed what they may have actually said. In The Washington Post Andrea Peterson bemoaned the lack of “innovators” on the witness list.

READ THE FULL POST AT VOX INDEI:
http://voxindie.org/house-hearing-copyright-reform

by Trichordist Editor