IP: more on Global Internet Copyright Treaty Enters Into Force

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

------ Forwarded Message
From: Seth David Schoen <schoen () loyalty org>
Date: Thu, 4 Apr 2002 01:03:07 -0800
To: farber () cis upenn edu
Subject: Re: IP: From Gligor:  Global Internet Copyright Treaty Enters Into
Force

At least they're honest about their goals -- "preventing unauthorized
copying or use of work" -- turning copyright from a limited monopoly
into an absolute, unlimited monopoly.

How can we explain to the public that _some_ unauthorized copying and
_some_ unauthorized uses have always been legal, and that the WCT/WPPT
agenda (spelled out long ago) includes preventing _every_ unauthorized
use?  That's practically the whole DMCA story -- and DRM vendors are
still brazenly bragging that their products can let publishers control
every use of a work, right down to private home viewing.

Seriously, that's a selling point for them, to be able to say that
publishers can eliminate fair uses if they like.  I've never heard a
DRM vendor say "we chose _not_ to allow publishers to control
such-and-such because copyright law doesn't give them the right to
control that", "we chose _not_ to give them this particular kind of
control because we knew that it would hinder the public's exercise of
fair use rights".  Nope, they're busy perfecting the architecture for
"preventing unauthorized copying or use of work", giving publishers an
ever-more-precise language for unilaterally deciding what's
"authorized".

-- 
Seth David Schoen <schoen () loyalty org> | Reading is a right, not a feature!
     http://www.loyalty.org/~schoen/   |                 -- Kathryn Myronuk
     http://vitanuova.loyalty.org/     |


------ End of Forwarded Message

For archives see:
http://www.interesting-people.org/archives/interesting-people/