Hacker News new | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submit login

Such rights are part of a social contract only. When the US decided to implement such a contract, the original duration was 14 years plus another 14 if the owner of the work was still alive [1], and pursed the next term. We've now got to 70 years after the rights owner's death. A question that a lot of pirates have is "does this make sense at a policy level?"

Add to that many pirates also purchase more media, the question become more interesting.

While I don't condone or use such technology (I'd rather own it and not have to watch our for an enforcer), I don't buy things. If I can't purchase it legally, I don't want it. I've gotten to the point that the whole topic makes me not want to purchase or consume media anymore. I still do, but it's becoming more of a chore with each passing day.

1 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_Act_of_1790




When the owner of a work is a corporation (eg. Disney), and corporations are considered legal persons (in many ways - including their religion!), then 70+ years starts to make sense in a certain (but ugly) way...


How is inheritance dealt with ? a family and lineage will surely want to benefit from an ancestor wealth as long as possible be it 14, 70 or even more years.


I don't see why society needs to care specifically about their desires. The only reason for copyright at all is we think it's best for the person creating a work to have exclusive rights to said work for a period of monetizing. If they have exclusive rights, a person is probably more likely to pursue creation and innovation. It is my contention that the current duration promotes rent seeking, which is against the spirit of the 1790's act.


Very good point.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: