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Politech is the oldest Internet resource devoted to politics and technology. Launched in 1994 by Declan McCullagh, the mailing list has chronicled the growing intersection of culture, technology, politics, and law. Since 2000, so has the Politech web site.
Previous Politech message: http://www.politechbot.com/p-05009.html ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Wed, 06 Aug 2003 10:00:30 -0400 From: Annalee Newitz <Annalee@techsploitation.com> To: declan@well.com Subject: why I infringe responses Several people have responded on list to my op-ed without fully understanding my argument. I'm not arguing for the abolition of copyright -- I'm arguing against our current IP ownership structure, in which a few corporations own the vast majority of copyrights. As I state quite clearly, I don't have a problem with people owning IP as long as that ownership is much more equally distributed. One of the biggest problems in the copyright debate is that people have a tendency to take an "all or nothing" approach, as some of my respondents seem to do. One points out the "irony" that I've copyrighted my column about violating copyright. But there is a vast difference between me owning the copyright to my article and Disney owning it. In one case, I own the product of my labor and I'm free to do with it as I like. In the second case, Disney owns the product of my labor and can forbid me from doing anything with it. As we attempt to reform the copyright laws, it's crucial that we remember that there is a just and equitable way to deal with IP. We don't have to throw the baby out with the bathwater. We just need to make sure that nobody is hoarding copyrights, and keeping the rest of us from getting on with our creative work and the financial rewards that might bring us. -- Annalee Newitz www.techsploitation.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------- POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list You may redistribute this message freely if you include this notice. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- To subscribe to Politech: http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ Declan McCullagh's photographs are at http://www.mccullagh.org/ Like Politech? Make a donation here: http://www.politechbot.com/donate/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------