Quote:
Originally Posted by Andrew H.
You're trying to make your argument look better by suggesting that since corporations are behind the idea of "intellectual property," it's bad - but that's not even the case. The term was first used in the 1870's by the Swiss Office for Intellectual Property, which handled patents and copyrights. It has nothing to do with corporations.
And of course intellectual property *is* property. You can own it, you can buy it, you can sell it, lease it, rent it license it, donate it, give it away, pass it on to your heirs by will or intestate succession. It's *property,* and it's pointless to try to pretend it isn't.
Relevance?
We have always had different rules for different kinds of property - real property as opposed to personal property, for example. For a long time, this was a huge distinction: personal property could be left by will; real property could not. Adding intellectual property to the mix doesn't really confuse people.
If I own a store and you steal my inventory, I lose money because I can't sell it to anyone else. If I write e-books and you give away copies of my e-book to people who would otherwise have purchased it, I lose money because I can't sell it to them. This is really simple point. And it is a much more important point than esoteric arguments that nonrivalrous goods aren't property.
It has everything to do with this situation. In some case I do work, translate it to money, and spend the money on something; in other cases, I do work and produce the copyrighted goods myself.
The real basis for *all* property is legislation. Until the statute of wills (in England) in the 1500's, you couldn't pass land to your heirs by will. You still can't possess or sell certain items (i.e., cocaine) in the US or most other countries.
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Andrew H, I'm not certain you grasp the difference between Real and intellectual property. The difference is massive and important.
Simply put, when you sell a piece of real property, of whatever sort, you transfer total ownership of said piece of property. The new owner is under no obligation to do anything you may prefer to the property. it
his property now.
With I.P. you claim to retain all rights to copy. But you
Sold a property!
You can't have it both ways.
Society allows it to be both ways for a limited period of time to encourage more I.P. production. Period. Not to create a perpetual new kind of property, just an extra carrot.