In 1999 I wrote a series of articles ruminating on the repercussions of the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998, a bill which extended the term of copyright by additional 20 years.
A Question of Copyright
|
||
| Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 |
Since then an onslaught of copyright issues has been brought center stage: the flurry, nay blizzard, of internet file sharing activity and the resultant action of corporate copyright holders, including the crushing of Napster, AudioGalaxy, and others, the passage of Public Law 105-304 (aka The Digital Millenium Copyright Act [DMCA]) which "prohibits the act of circumventing technological measures that control access to a copyrighted work in all but a narrow set of circumstances," and etc.
We're about to see what may be the big magilla of all these. Attorney and law professor Lawrence Lessig has taken the lead in jockeying the Eldred v. Ashcroft through the courts (in my previous articles the case was referred to as Eldred v. Reno; the name change is for obvious reasons). The suit, the first time a copyright case has reached the Supreme Court, challenges the constitutionality of the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act. At issue is the fact that the original language regarding copyright in the US Constitution suggested that copyright be granted for "limited times" in order to help "promote the progress of science and the useful arts," i.e., to encourage the creation of new work. In those days "limited time" was felt to be 14 years.The arguments begin before the Supreme Court on October 9, 2002.
Although it is not clearly stated whose creation the site is, Eldred.cc is the apparently official site for support of the plaintiffs in the case. It's also the best resource for current news about the status of the hearings.
There are, of course, many sides to this issue. Below you'll find links to a number of articles on the subject.
Steven Levy's article in Wired Magazine gives some good background to the case, with a focus on Larry Lessig himself.
Lawrence Lessig's Supreme Court Showdown
To Lessig [Eldred v. Ashcroft] is both an opportunity to make up for losing the prize that was snatched from him some four years ago [as Special Master in the Microsoft case], and a giant step in his crusade to stop a trend he fears may be inevitable: big-media dinosaurs controlling the Internet. That's why the law professor has declared war on Mickey Mouse.
