Re: Old games and copyrights


24 Mar 1995 04:05:54 -0500

In article <3kt4st$f5q@jobe.shell.portal.com>,
Jeff M Lodoen <jlodoen@shell.portal.com> wrote:
>I've heard worries that copyrights may be made permanent someday.
>Something movie studios and others would like. (don't know what
>I think about it... why should they become public property,
>at any time?)

Why shouldn't they? What public interest is served by extending copyrights
indefinitely? I know the folks over at Project Gutenberg are going nuts over
an attempt to extend the law from 75 years to 95 (and I don't have any firm
position on this, except that everyone else in the world has settled on 75),
but the only justification I see for extending copyright law to last forever
is one along Ayn Randian lines. I.e. A viewpoint that denies that there exists
a public interest.

-- 

-- Michael Levy mlevy1@umbc8.umbc.edu