Quote:
Originally Posted by tubemonkey
That's correct. Whoever holds the copyright gets to collect the profits.
Should a company like Disney go into public domain 70 years after the death of Roy Disney? He and his brother (Walt) built this company up and turned it into a valuable piece of property. Why should their work be allowed to be passed on forever and an author's work not?
Like I said, I make no distinction between physical and intellectual property.
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The right shouldn't belong to the person, but to the company. If it doesn't, they're stupid. The company lives on, even if the person dies. Once the company dies, the copyright should die with it.
My vote goes for 10-20 years with the option of renewal. Though, I would make it a bit longer than 20 years, let's say 40 (the average working life or a person), with an option of renewal of another 30. But only by the original writer, not his or her heirs. That means that a book will most likely last at least the lifetime of the writer, and not much further.