Quote:
Originally Posted by pwalker8
Over time, many restrictions that people have tried to place on copyrighted material has been struck down by the courts as inconsistent with the purpose of copyright (fair use doctrine and format shifting are examples of this). Copyright isn't a right, it's a government granted monopoly, a privilege if you will, that can be taken away or modified at the whim of the government. Sometimes authors forget this, and forget that copyright is basically a compromise between two parties, the author and the readership.
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I couldn't agree more with this statement. Some people seem to forget that copyright isn't a natural right, it's a government created tool to encourage people to create; copyright is only useful to the extent that it fulfils its function.
I haven't voted in this thread's poll because unlimited copyright is as damaging as no copyright, the question itself is a false dichotomy and pretty much forecloses any useful discussion on the topic. Frankly, I think copyright should be considered in economic terms, of maximizing benefit, rather than the usual terms of theft versus freedom.