Shuroki Online

I’ve just read the most concise and clear explanation of the core
broken bits of copyright law I think I’ve ever come across and I wanted
to post it real fast.

I follow copyright, patent, intellectual property rights, and
digital restriction management (DRM) news pretty closely. I’ve wanted
to write a series of articles on these issues for some time now because
I think that the concepts and terms need to be explained in a much
clearer fashion. The Government and industry has one way of talking
about things, the activists have another, and the media just seems to
muddle, confuse, and generally screw it all up.

Well, I came across an interview posted on LinuxP2P.com on
April 2, 2006 with Rick Falkvinge of the newly founded “”Pirate Party”"
in Sweden. This new political party is trying to get members elected to
the Government to reform the copyright and patent laws in Sweden. In
this interview, Mr. Falkvinge covers all of these issues, but here is
an excerpt of his elegant words regarding copyright law (not bad for
somebody with whom English is not their first language!)

“”… the protection term
[of Copyright] today is ludicrous. Copyright is a monopoly
given to the creator as an incentive to create more culture. So why,
then, does the monopoly last seventy years after the creator’s own
death? He or she is very unlikely to create more culture after his or
her own demise. If you look at the industry, any investment made is
usually calculated to have paid itself within a few years, say five
years. We believe this is a reasonable term. That would mean that any
music, movie, etc, would have five years of monopolized sales under
copyright before it becomes a free-for-all, which is more than
sufficient to regain any investment.

Overall, today’s copyright does not strike a balance between the creator’s interest in regaining an investment on one hand, and society’s interest in creation of culture on the other. The law is totally one-sided towards the creator’s interests, preventing the spread of culture.“”

I hope that may help explain an important concept in this ongoing
cultural battle.. I still plan to write some extensive articles on the
subjects.. let me know if your interesting in reading such a thing and
I’ll see if I can make it sooner, rather than later.