Monthly Archives: August 2011

Studios ask SCOTUS if state law can protect uncopyrightable ideas

Terry Hart • August 29, 2011 • Posted in Copyright news • Comments closed

There’s a story of a proposed bike path in Los Angeles that met opposition from NBC Universal, which had a production studio in the area. Several Universal executives apparently feared the path would be used by aspiring screenwriters to toss unsolicited scripts into the studio parking lot.1 True or not, companies in the creative fields [...]

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Friday’s Endnotes – 08/26/11

Terry Hart • August 26, 2011 • Posted in Friday's Endnotes • Comments closed

Consumption is a Human Right? — Another great post from Faza, taking on the weakness of the “access to culture” argument. “As human rights go, access to culture is a rather weak one. I mean, seriously, whatever happened to food, housing and healthcare? Compared to a lack of any of those, not being able to listen [...]

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The Modern Contrivance of Copyright (1875)

Terry Hart • August 25, 2011 • Posted in Copyright history • Comments closed

The following is from the beginning of Appleton Morgan’s 1875 treatise, “Law of Literature,” which has been said to have “codified the law of literary property in the United States.”1 Before the invention of the art of printing, we have seen that literary compositions were published, either by delivery, by word of mouth, or by [...]

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A Pirate’s Tall Tales

Terry Hart • August 24, 2011 • Posted in Copyright Criticism • Comments closed

Rick Falkvinge, founder of the Pirate Party and self-described “political evangelist“, loves to tell stories. Last week on TorrentFreak, Falkvinge wrote a post called Nobody Asked for a Refrigerator Fee. In it, he tells the story of the refrigerator and how it displaced the need for home delivery of ice blocks. The broader point is that this [...]

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Win, Lose, or Draw? Mixed Bag in Capitol v. MP3Tunes Decision

Terry Hart • August 23, 2011 • Posted in Copyright news • Comments closed

Yesterday’s court opinion from the record labels’ lawsuit against “online music entrepreneur familiar with high-stakes copyright litigation” Michael Robertson’s latest venture is a mixed bag — no big win for either side, though plenty of little items of interest.  Capitol Records v. MP3Tunes, Memorandum and Order, No. 07 Civ. 9931 (SDNY Aug. 22, 2011). Background on [...]

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Friday’s Endnotes – 08/19/11

Terry Hart • August 19, 2011 • Posted in Friday's Endnotes • Comments closed

If the public desire a really free press, they must not look to it as a source of taxation; and if they are anxious for truth, for elevated and elevating sentiments, for ideas matured by study and reflection, and an honest exposition of grievances, they must recognise original articles as property, and secure them against [...]

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Copyright and Web Fonts: Santorum Web Developer Sued for Typeface Infringement

Terry Hart • August 18, 2011 • Posted in Copyright news • Comments closed

Professional web designers typically know a little about copyright law since infringement is a liability for their business. Most know enough to avoid using images without the proper licensing or copying large amounts of text from another website. But not as many pay as much attention to making sure they have the proper licenses for [...]

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Free Ride: How Digital Parasites are Destroying the Culture Business, and How the Culture Business can Fight Back

Terry Hart • August 17, 2011 • Posted in Copyright news • Comments closed

A conventional narrative has emerged of  the media and creative industries’ response to the internet and digital technology. Beginning around the mid-1990s, this story has been one of old against new: stodgy, corporate executives holding on to the past versus hip digital natives embracing the future. These technologies have rendered copyright law broken according to [...]

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Sousa on Copyright, 1905

Terry Hart • August 16, 2011 • Posted in Copyright history • Comments closed

The famed American composer colorfully mocks the idea of ascribing altruistic motives to the music pirate: Sir, — With an avidity worthy the cause, I have read during my sojourn in these tight little islands everything that has come my way which has borne on the subject of music piracy. Because of the laxity of [...]

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Copyright Uncertainty

Terry Hart • August 15, 2011 • Posted in Copyright reform • Comments closed

Is copyright law too uncertain? That certainly seems to be the prevailing view. Any number of copyright critics point to the uncertainty of the law — especially for online users, who are in closer contact with copyright issues than any previous generation has been — as one of its biggest flaws. As attorney Steven Horowitz notes in [...]

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