Posted by Jon on January 30, 2003 at 21:00:04 from 199.159.244.137 user Jon.
In Reply to: Re: US Copyright - I don't get the problem posted by Prue Eckett on January 30, 2003 at 20:33:31:
What's wrong with extending copyrights? It stifles creativity, which is exactly the opposite function copyright was supposed to fill.
For instance, the photographs of Ansel Adams are copyrighted. You can't legally take a photo from around where he stood, looking in the general direction he did, under generally similar lighting conditions without risking violation of his copyright. Or take music - there are only a finite, and seriously limited number of notes. If a piece of music never comes out of copyright, sooner or later there won't be anything left to (legally) write. No "Variations on a theme by Thomas Tallis", for instance. As many of the copyrighted works currently around are based on original works by the celebrated Anon. (folk tales, folk tunes, etc.), you risk suit for copyright infringement or royalty payments for even going back to the basic composition.
Copyright laws were designed to protect the creator. These mindless extensions, well past any reasonable limit, benefit only the corporations which buy rights from the original creator.