On Mon, May 22, 2000 at 01:51:13PM -0400, Chloe Hoffman wrote: > [stuff deleted] > > And, as for Brian's comment, I would note that U.S. copyrights are expiring > everyday. That said, I see his concern and agree there has to be some limit > on copyright term extensions (in the U.S. and worldwide). Otherwise, in the > U.S. context, the "limited times" wording of the U.S. Constitution becomes > meaningless. The only effective way I think something can be done is to > educate the public on the importance of public domain works and to move > public opinion so that legislators don't enact such laws or put limits on > such laws (e.g. no retroactive effect). Term extensions have occurred > throughout history and a U.S. court ruling that the most recent extension > violates some law could put U.S. copyright (and perhaps worldwide copyright) > into jeopardy (not that some or perhaps many would be upset about that > prospect). Moreover, enacting some law today to prevent future copyright > term extensions won't help when some later legislature repeals the law. > Thus, the need to get the public on-side now and in the future. >
The vast majority of US copyrights that were previously set to expire between 1998 and 2018 have been extended by another 20 years. As a result, only a very tiny number of works will enter the public domain in the US during the next 20 years. -- Brian Ristuccia [EMAIL PROTECTED] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
