Quote:
Originally Posted by Giggleton
I suppose you could believe the written history of copyright if you choose to. But for most of copyright's history it was used as a tool of censorship. To think that the purpose of copyright magically changed once it reached the United States is bit foolish if you ask me.
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I will most certainly believe the well-documented history of copyright, as would any rational person. Copyright has not been used as a tool of censorship. It is not censorship to require people to pay for books.
No one said or in any way, shape or form implied that the purpose of copyright had changed when it reached the United States. Copyright came about because of the ease of printing meant that authors weren't getting paid for their work; publishers could simply print up copies of the work without paying the author. The intent of copyright was to ensure that authors had an incentive to create. If the ease of the printing press created a need for copyright, the need for copyright surely still exists when even easier means of copying exist.