How to Fix Copyright
William Patry
(Author)
Description
Do copyright laws directly cause people to create works they otherwise wouldn't create? Do those laws directly put substantial amounts of money into authors' pockets? Does culture depend on copyright? Are copyright laws a key driver of competitiveness and of the knowledge economy? These are the key questions William Patry addresses in How to Fix Copyright. We all share the goals of increasing creative works, ensuring authors can make a decent living, furthering culture and competitiveness and ensuring that knowledge is widely shared, but what role does copyright law actually play in making these things come true in the real world? Simply believing in lofty goals isn't enough. If we want our goals to come true, we must go beyond believing in them; we must ensure they come true, through empirical testing and adjustment. Patry argues that laws must be consistent with prevailing markets and technologies because technologies play a large (although not exclusive) role in creating consumer demand; markets then satisfy that demand. Patry discusses how copyright laws arose out of eighteenth-century markets and technology, the most important characteristic of which was artificial scarcity. Artificial scarcity was created by the existence of a small number gatekeepers, by relatively high barriers to entry, and by analog limitations on copying. Markets and technologies change, in a symbiotic way, Patry asserts. New technologies create new demand, requiring new business models. The new markets created by the Internet and digital tools are the greatest ever: Barriers to entry are low, costs of production and distribution are low, the reach is global, and large sums of money can be made off of a multitude of small transactions. Along with these new technologies and markets comes the democratization of creation; digital abundance is replacing analog artificial scarcity. The task of policymakers is to remake our copyright laws to fit our times: our copyright laws, based on the eighteenth century concept of physical copies, gatekeepers, and artificial scarcity, must be replaced with laws based on access not ownership of physical goods, creation by the masses and not by the few, and global rather than regional markets. Patry's view is that of a traditionalist who believes in the goals of copyright but insists that laws must match the times rather than fight against the present and the future.
Product Details
Price
$23.99
$22.31
Publisher
Oxford University Press, USA
Publish Date
January 04, 2012
Pages
323
Dimensions
5.7 X 1.2 X 8.3 inches | 1.0 pounds
Language
English
Type
Hardcover
EAN/UPC
9780199760091
BISAC Categories:
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Become an affiliateAbout the Author
William Patry is Senior Copyright Counsel at Google Inc. He previously served as copyright counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary; as a Policy Planning Advisor to the U.S. Register of Copyrights; as a law professor; and as a private lawyer. He is the author of the definitive eight volume treatise on copyright law, Patry on Copyright, a separate treatise on the fair use doctrine, Patry on Fair Use which has been in print since 1985, as well as many law review articles, including one with Judge Richard Posner.
Reviews
"How to Fix Copyright is full of smart, sensible ideas." --The Wall St. Journal
"A book that is incandescent in every sense of the word...How to Fix Copyright is a superbly argued, enraging book on the state of copyright law today." -- Boing Boing
"William Patry, Senior Copyright Counsel at Google and one of America's foremost experts on copyright law, offers an insightful, reasonable series of fixes to our increasingly outmoded copyright system. But perhaps the author's greatest triumph is that he makes his complex subject seem familiar and even entertaining. In well-written, easily digestible sections, Patry puts the complex legal, procedural, and constitutional underpinnings of copyright law in context with the rapidly evolving, tech-fueled lives of creators and users. Insightful, impeccably researched, and prescriptive, Patry's vision of copyright should resonate with today's creators - and infuriate yesterday's media and entertainment conglomerates." --Publishers Weekly, Starred Review