[IP] Pakman on Music Fee

[David Farber <dave@farber.net>]

________________________________________
From: Mary Shaw [mary.shaw@gmail.com]
Sent: Sunday, March 16, 2008 11:15 AM
To: David Farber
Subject: Re: [IP] Re: : Pakman on Music Fee

Dave,

Jim makes an incorrect analogy to libraries ...

They purchase one or more copies of a book, then lend those copies.  This is, as best I understand, entirely appropriate under the Doctrine of First Sale.  The libraries do not create new copies, they create access to purchased copies -- and they are (or at least used to be) sensitive to photocopying.

Even for electronic books, they try to preserve that model.  My local library (Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh) lends electronic books -- but (a) you have to use their reader; (b) your loan is for a definite period and your copy expires (in two weeks, IIRC), (c) if all the "copies" (licenses) of a book are checked out you can get on a  waiting list. The one obvious defect of this replication of the physical-book model is that they haven't made provisions to "return" the book early.

In the world of commercially-published scientific journals, the market is so distorted that only libraries can afford the subscriptions, and major research libraries pay those subscriptions and license access for affiliated researchers. This is widely recognized as seriously broken, because it creates an elite class of access. There is pushback now, with funding agencies and researchers demanding free access to their published research.  Similarly, there is increasing pressure to provide free access to legal decisions (for example, as noted in a message you sent recently).

I find it curious that the discussions of electronic sharing of IP never seem to consider all these examples. Maybe looking at more than one use case would be revealing.

Incidentally, I *do* object to paying increased prices for my blank media because other people have made illegal copies on similar media.

Mary Shaw

On Sun, Mar 16, 2008 at 9:44 AM, David Farber <dave@farber.net<mailto:dave@farber.net>> wrote:

________________________________________
From: Jim Griffin [griffin@onehouse.com<mailto:griffin@onehouse.com>]

[[snip]]

Indeed, taken to the next logical step, following David's thinking it is
hard to imagine we would expend tax dollars to build and maintain libraries
in a time when book stores are having trouble attracting customers. And
here's news for David and others: Libraries typically lend for no charge
that music which he and others sell and offer as both product and service.
Should they be stopped, too? Or was the Rooseveltian notion of equalizing
access to knowledge, art and culture just a passing fad?


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