IP: Unpredictable consequences of "music locks"

[Dave Farber <dave@farber.net>]

>
>Date: Sat, 27 Jan 2001 11:14:59 -0500
>To: farber@cis.upenn.edu
>From: "David P. Reed" <dpreed@reed.com>=
>
>Dave -
>
>The propagation of Digital Rights Management technology carries an 
>"unintended consequence" - the creation of a technology that may allow 
>material that is NOT subject to copyright protection to be managed as if it is.
>
>There are many examples of digital bit patterns that are not covered by 
>copyright, but perhaps the best examples are *expired copyrights*.   One 
>cannot "renew" copyrights after they expire (except through what some call 
>the "Mickey Mouse exception," wherein Congress always creates a loophole 
>that keeps the Mouse proprietary just before he is due to enter civilian life).
>
>There are many good public policy reasons why copyrights are granted for 
>limited durations.  The Constitution provides for "limited" grants only.
>
>Use of Digital Rights Management technologies that prevent copyright 
>expiration should probably be made illegal by Congress, pending review of 
>this impact.
>
>Certainly the Digital Millenium Copyright act can not be used to justify 
>these technologies as protecting copyright, if indeed they go well beyond 
>copyright in their effect.
>
>- David
>--------------------------------------------
>WWW Page: http://www.reed.com/dpr.html
>
>



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