Copyright and Dreamwidth Stuff
May. 5th, 2009 12:58 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
amalthiaOne more reason I love DW. When you're reading your reading page if you want to un-subscribe to a feed or subscribe all you have to do is mouse over their icon figure and a popup box will open and give you options! It makes things so much easier, especially when reading discussions I can easily add someone to my reading list without having to leave the discussion or open yet another tab.
Um...since I'm saying something positive about DW I figured I better offer some invites to anyone that is interested. I have 3 invite codes to the first three people that comment here and request one. You may have to email me at amalthia at gmail.com and let me know which email to send the invite to.
In other news, I ran across this today. The Death of Copyright I completely disagree with everything this writer had to say but that's not the interesting part of the post. It's how the writer reacts to those that disagree. It's a classic example of how not to respond...Basically if this was fandom I'd have submitted this link to fandom wank. I read the discussion and so far I think everyone has been polite, civil, and clear in their viewpoints even those that disagree with the author's statement about what would happen if there was no copyright. I personally think the author is grossly exaggerating. I also happen to think copyright as we know it nowadays is deeply flawed and can use some adjustment. I don't believe corporations should own copyrights on art, stories, or music for life + 70 years... I do believe authors deserve to be paid for their efforts but really the +70 is I think benefiting mostly corporations at this point. I could understand life + 20 because that would give the author's heirs a chance to maybe do something with their parent's work before it passes to public domain.
I'm thinking of all the novels that are currently in public domain that many movies and books are made based off them. Lost in Austen probably would not have happened if Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice was still in copyright (which if the corporations have their way) no work written today will be out of copyright for the next 200 years. I keep thinking of all these out of print books that are still in copyright and being held hostage by the publishing houses so no one can read them, or try re-printing the work themselves, or do anything with it. People far more articulate than I have discussed this topic at some length in various blogs, forums, and communities.
I just hate when people post articles pretty much saying everyone would steal and nothing creative and good would ever get produced again if money wasn't involved. Yes, I know many authors make a living off their writing, but just as many don't and they still write and share. Though, truly if I were a billionaire I can already list off the top of my head 20 fan fic authors I'd totally pay for them to stay home and write all day. (preferably really hot slash porn but I'm not too picky) :) I think if copyright truly did not exist I would not be the only one that would throw money at my favorite authors to help them out so they could keep writing. Or some other model would come out to support artists. As is we have a system that pretty much locks all creative works away from the public for so long I'll be dead and turned to dust before anyone is allowed to write spin offs, make movies, tv shows for His Majesty's Dragon. That actually makes me a bit sad. Because back to the BBC mini-series Lost in Austen...I'm reminded at how much creativity is out there and I'll never see something like that for my favorite novels written now.
At the moment people are kind of stuck using books written 200 years ago for shows. (not that that is bad but really there are only so many public domain novels people can use for movies, tv mini-series, and books) Which is probably why we have so many remakes for Pride and Prejudice.
Um...since I'm saying something positive about DW I figured I better offer some invites to anyone that is interested. I have 3 invite codes to the first three people that comment here and request one. You may have to email me at amalthia at gmail.com and let me know which email to send the invite to.
In other news, I ran across this today. The Death of Copyright I completely disagree with everything this writer had to say but that's not the interesting part of the post. It's how the writer reacts to those that disagree. It's a classic example of how not to respond...Basically if this was fandom I'd have submitted this link to fandom wank. I read the discussion and so far I think everyone has been polite, civil, and clear in their viewpoints even those that disagree with the author's statement about what would happen if there was no copyright. I personally think the author is grossly exaggerating. I also happen to think copyright as we know it nowadays is deeply flawed and can use some adjustment. I don't believe corporations should own copyrights on art, stories, or music for life + 70 years... I do believe authors deserve to be paid for their efforts but really the +70 is I think benefiting mostly corporations at this point. I could understand life + 20 because that would give the author's heirs a chance to maybe do something with their parent's work before it passes to public domain.
I'm thinking of all the novels that are currently in public domain that many movies and books are made based off them. Lost in Austen probably would not have happened if Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice was still in copyright (which if the corporations have their way) no work written today will be out of copyright for the next 200 years. I keep thinking of all these out of print books that are still in copyright and being held hostage by the publishing houses so no one can read them, or try re-printing the work themselves, or do anything with it. People far more articulate than I have discussed this topic at some length in various blogs, forums, and communities.
I just hate when people post articles pretty much saying everyone would steal and nothing creative and good would ever get produced again if money wasn't involved. Yes, I know many authors make a living off their writing, but just as many don't and they still write and share. Though, truly if I were a billionaire I can already list off the top of my head 20 fan fic authors I'd totally pay for them to stay home and write all day. (preferably really hot slash porn but I'm not too picky) :) I think if copyright truly did not exist I would not be the only one that would throw money at my favorite authors to help them out so they could keep writing. Or some other model would come out to support artists. As is we have a system that pretty much locks all creative works away from the public for so long I'll be dead and turned to dust before anyone is allowed to write spin offs, make movies, tv shows for His Majesty's Dragon. That actually makes me a bit sad. Because back to the BBC mini-series Lost in Austen...I'm reminded at how much creativity is out there and I'll never see something like that for my favorite novels written now.
At the moment people are kind of stuck using books written 200 years ago for shows. (not that that is bad but really there are only so many public domain novels people can use for movies, tv mini-series, and books) Which is probably why we have so many remakes for Pride and Prejudice.