Quote:
Originally Posted by Ralph Sir Edward
Smith posed a problem. He is PD in Life + 50, under copyright under life +70, and mostly still under copyright in the US. First Lensman was not renewed, plus most of his shorter works. Nor was his collaboration with E. Evelyn Smith renewed. Also the First two skylarks were not renewed.
So most of his works are still under copyright, and most of those omnibus edition are copyright infringements - at least in the US. I haver no clue who is handling the estate these days. His daughter is dead. . .
(The Skylark 0f Space is a very thorny copyright problem. There are three versions of it. The 1926 version is PD (copyright not renewed). The 1947 version is unknown. The 1958 version (which is what most readers here would think of as The Skylark of Space) is still under copyright.
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Once again, that's pretty much my point. So, what harm is done? It's obvious whomever the copyright holder is, is making no effort to defend the copyright or for that matter publish the books. Unless a copyright holder steps forward, those books are orphaned works.
Most people seem to agree that orphaned works is the big flaw in copyright law. It appears to me that the way things work now, the practical effect is that orphaned works are treated as PD, thought the legal liability exists if a copyright holder appears.