Copyright law's perennial dilemma
This quote is stuck up on the wall here at EFF. It makes me think every time I read it. Figured it should be online somewhere.Copyright law strikes a precarious balance.DiscussTo encourage authors to create and disseminate original expression, it accords them a bundle of proprietary rights in their works.
But to promote public education and creative exchange, it invites audiences and subsequent authors to use existing works in every conceivable manner that falls outside the province of the copyright owner's exclusive rights.
Copyright law's perennial dilemma is to determine where exclusive rights should end and unrestrained public access should begin.
Neil Netanel, Copyright and a Democratic Civil Society, 106 Yale L.J. 283, 285 (1996).
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Cory Doctorow
Upcoming appearances
* Feb 9, 2012, DeKalb, IL: Day of Doctorow, NIU
* Feb 10-12, 2012, Chicago, IL: Capricon 32
* Feb 13, 2012, Arlington, TX: UT Arlington College of Engineering Distinguished Speaker Series
* Feb 16, 2012, Victoria, BC: 13th Annual Privacy and Security Conference
Recent books:
* Context (essays)
* With a Little Help (short stories)
* For the Win (YA novel)
* Makers (adult novel)
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