As the world mourns the passing of Aretha Franklin, we need no further discussion about the value of recording artists. The anthem of a generation, Franklin’s first hit, “Respect” was not written by her but by Otis Redding, who first recorded the song in 1965. But in 1967, Aretha made that song what it is—“owned it” as we say today—along ...
Last week, Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) suddenly—and I do mean suddenly—introduced a bill in the Senate that many of the usual copyright-haters are applauding as an “alternative” to the CLASSICS Act. It’s hard to decide whether Wyden and whatever narrow constituency he’s serving are using this bill as a political stunt aimed at killing CLASSICS, or if they’re really arrogant ...
If Cory Doctorow writes an article about copyright, “it’s only there trying to fool the public.” For instance, his recent missive about the CLASSICS Act in the venerable Boing Boing (which I assume is the sound inside its editors’ heads) is a fabrication rich in offensive overtones. Not only does he repeat the fiction that this bill extends copyright terms ...
In my last post on this subject, I asked why an organization like Public Knowledge would criticize the CLASSICS Act when there is no apparent downside for consumers if the bill becomes law. That post suggested PK’s motivation is more marketing for the service providers rather than advocating a public interest; but as promised, I will try to kick the ...
On April 25, a pretty extraordinary thing happened. Especially in a time of staggering political dysfunction, it was pretty impressive to see the House of Representatives pass an omnibus bill overhauling copyright law for music in the digital market with a vote of 415-0. Now headed to the Senate, the bill, known generally as the Music Modernization Act (MMA), combines ...
