This is just another example of what a misnomer the word "copyright" is. It has absolutely nothing to do with rights, and everything to do with restrictions.
The Patent and Copyright systems are just two of the newest religions. They are defended with the same basic arguments that many followers of other religions use.
I'm going to make three statements below. Please list the substantial differences between them.
1: Patents are good, because....innovation!
2: Copyright is good, because....creativity!
3: God exists, because....morality!
average_joe: "So if some employee is violating company policy and doing something they shouldn't be doing, you think that company has no place defending its rights?"
So, what you're saying is that it's wrong to hold the entire company or organization liable for what a few employees are doing?
Sort of like how it's not really MegaUpload's responsibility if individual users used the service to infringe? Or how The Pirate Bay should not be held liable for what their users do? Or how it's not really Google's fault what their users post on YouTube? Etc, etc, etc....
1: Create something that people like.
2: Offer it as a product in a format that people want...
3: ...at a price they are willing to pay.
4: Make it convenient and easy to buy the product.
5: Profit
If you fail at any of the first four, how could you ever expect to do number five?
Shorter version: Is it called "intellectual property" or "intellectual artificial scarcity"? That should tell you which side won this debate.
Yes, yes.. Just like all these countries are perfect examples of democracies, because they have the word "democratic" in their names, right?
* People's Democratic Republic of Algeria
* Congo, Democratic Republic of the
* East Timor – Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste
* Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
* Korea, North – Democratic People's Republic of Korea
* Laos – Lao People's Democratic Republic
* Nepal – Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal
* São Tomé and Príncipe – Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe
* Sri Lanka – Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
"That was the big news. But that's not the end of it. During LeakID's sudden burst of activity, all sorts of content was falsely claimed and removed by the overeager autobot."
"blah blah blah, you think your time is what they want?? lol, no its your money, they could care less if you read the book, listen to the album, it is and always will be about your money"
What you're saying is not wrong. At least not always. But it is completely irrelevant.
If I'm going to spend money on a book, I have to at least believe it is worth my time to read it, even if I end up never actually reading it. Plus, spending time purchasing a good is also spending time. That's why convenience is so important. Make me jump through too many hoops to buy your stuff and I just won't bother.
Attention and Time are scarce resources, indeed. Content is not.
"...many young people continue to see "free" as the appropriate price tag on music."
I am getting so fucking sick of this discussion....
Content creators, copyright holders, please, think about this.
Do you honestly think that you are competing for my dollars? Mere money? Really?
You are competing for something much more valuable. My time
Every minute I spend reading your book, or listening to your song, is a minute I am not reading or listening to something else. That's a minute of my life that I will never get back! What do you think that's worth? How do you even put a pricetag on that?
First, you need to grab my attention. Then, if you're lucky I will give you my time. After that, if I like your stuff, there is a chance that I will give you money.
If I don't know about you or your work, what chance do you have of getting my money?
If I don't think your work is worth my time, what chance do you have of getting my money?
I have the utmost respect for content creators. Authors, musicians, film makers, painters, etc, all of you. But you must understand that I don't need you to keep myself entertained.
Your music is not available on YouTube? Oh, I better run to my local record store and buy your.... No, actually, I will probably just listen to something else. I love music, but I can always live without your music.
I can't download the latest episode of a particular TV show for a decent price, in a decent format, without DRM? Oh, I better run and buy the... No, chances are I will just watch something else. There are millions of hours of cat videos online that will keep me entertained for weeks.
You've written a novel and you don't want me reading it for free? You think I'm stealing bread from your mouth by borrowing your book from a friend? That's easily solved. I'll just read something else.
Does that feel better? Me not reading your book? Not listening to your song?
How are you profiting from that?
The truth, that you don't want to accept, is very simple....
If I read your book, you are lucky! There are hundreds of thousands of other books that I'm not reading at that time. I can always get more money, but the time I spend reading your book, I can never get back. Think about that for a minute.
Wether I pay you or not, if I am consuming your content, you should be thankful. And if I give you money, you are one of the lucky few. Because I have plenty of options.
When you judge someone else, you always start by looking at yourself as a point of reference.
They know what kind of persons they are, and how they got to be wealthy and influential. So, naturally, they assume that Dotcom is as big a bastard as they are.
I absolutely love The Oatmeal, but I have to say that I'm not a fan of Inman talking about "content theft" as that concept is quite ridiculous in this context. Copying is not theft. As far as I know, when someone posts a The Oatmeal comic on another site, that comic does not magically disappear from theoatmeal.com.
Attribution is quite another matter though, and personally, I think it is much more important than copyright.
If I were in Inman's shoes, this is what I would have done:
* I would relax about my content being monetized by someone else in this way. A dollar earned by someone else on advertising on another site does not equal a dollar lost by me.
* I would sometimes upload material to FJ myself. If FJ gets millions of visitors, I'd try to convert some of them to fans.
* I would ask my fans to give proper attribution, and linking, when sharing my stuff on other sites.
I'm not saying that the FJ people have done nothing wrong here, but Inman has certainly also crossed some lines himself.
Think about it... When you are granted "Copyright," you aren't actually granted any substantial rights you didn't have to begin with. What is happening, though, is that other people's rights are restricted.
Here are some "rights" that you have with a work you have created:
If Copyright did not exist, you would still have these "rights," simply by having access to the work.
Now poof, you are granted "Copyright" for the work. What new rights do you get? I can only think of one: The "right" to sue other people for "infringement."
Now name some rights other people had for that same work before you were granted the Copyright, but that are now restricted. That's right, pretty much all of them. All of them and more if you ask the Copyright Extremists.
So, "Copyright" should really be "Copyrestriction."
I've actually begun viewing Copyright as a sort of religion, with the maximalists being the extremists. People such as myself, who are a against Copyright, are the atheists.
Proponents of Copyright are often citing dubious sources as evidence for their religion. Theirs is the Only True God. Without Copyright, society will collapse. Without Copyright, we're all just beasts, raping and killing at will. They refuse to listen to rational arguments, of course. They all get very offended when you question the validity of their claims, or suggest that the world would be better without their religion. Etc...
On the post: Our Turn To Get Bizarre Legal Threats From Global Wildlife Foundation
On the post: No, Copyright Is Not Like A Contract
Copyrestriction, not copyright
On the post: Former Chief Judge Of Patent Court: We Need To Strengthen, Not Weaken, The Patent System Because [Reasons]
The Patent System is just another religion
I'm going to make three statements below. Please list the substantial differences between them.
1: Patents are good, because....innovation!
2: Copyright is good, because....creativity!
3: God exists, because....morality!
On the post: DOJ Taking Down Sites For Infringement... While Infringing Content Is Available Via Its Own Network
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
"So if some employee is violating company policy and doing something they shouldn't be doing, you think that company has no place defending its rights?"
So, what you're saying is that it's wrong to hold the entire company or organization liable for what a few employees are doing?
Sort of like how it's not really MegaUpload's responsibility if individual users used the service to infringe? Or how The Pirate Bay should not be held liable for what their users do? Or how it's not really Google's fault what their users post on YouTube? Etc, etc, etc....
You mean like that?
On the post: Dear Recording Industry: 'Rampant Piracy' Is Deader Than Your Outdated Metrics
Please explain how Spotify is ripping off artists.
On the post: Dear Recording Industry: 'Rampant Piracy' Is Deader Than Your Outdated Metrics
It's simple, really...
It's certainly not easy, but it is very simple:
1: Create something that people like.
2: Offer it as a product in a format that people want...
3: ...at a price they are willing to pay.
4: Make it convenient and easy to buy the product.
5: Profit
If you fail at any of the first four, how could you ever expect to do number five?
Simple, really.
On the post: Fixing Copyright: Is Copyright A Part Of Free Market Capitalism?
What's in a name?
Yes, yes.. Just like all these countries are perfect examples of democracies, because they have the word "democratic" in their names, right?
* People's Democratic Republic of Algeria
* Congo, Democratic Republic of the
* East Timor – Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste
* Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
* Korea, North – Democratic People's Republic of Korea
* Laos – Lao People's Democratic Republic
* Nepal – Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal
* São Tomé and Príncipe – Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe
* Sri Lanka – Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
On the post: UK Looking To Cement Its New Anti-Free Speech Reputation By Arresting Man For Posting Photo Of A Burning Poppy
On the post: Why Do Both Major Parties Suck So Badly On Civil Liberties?
Remember....
On the post: LeakID And The DMCA Takedown Notice Farce
Autobot?
Meh... If anything, it's obviously a Decepticon.
On the post: Shocking Revelation: It Isn't The Phone That's Dangerous; It's The Driver
Re: Re:
On the post: Shocking Revelation: It Isn't The Phone That's Dangerous; It's The Driver
On the post: Apparently The Purpose Of Copyright: Keeping Our Ancestors' Promise To Noah Webster
Re: Re: Something much more valuable than dollars
What you're saying is not wrong. At least not always. But it is completely irrelevant.
If I'm going to spend money on a book, I have to at least believe it is worth my time to read it, even if I end up never actually reading it. Plus, spending time purchasing a good is also spending time. That's why convenience is so important. Make me jump through too many hoops to buy your stuff and I just won't bother.
Attention and Time are scarce resources, indeed. Content is not.
On the post: Apparently The Purpose Of Copyright: Keeping Our Ancestors' Promise To Noah Webster
Something much more valuable than dollars
I am getting so fucking sick of this discussion....
Content creators, copyright holders, please, think about this.
Do you honestly think that you are competing for my dollars? Mere money? Really?
You are competing for something much more valuable. My time
Every minute I spend reading your book, or listening to your song, is a minute I am not reading or listening to something else. That's a minute of my life that I will never get back! What do you think that's worth? How do you even put a pricetag on that?
First, you need to grab my attention. Then, if you're lucky I will give you my time. After that, if I like your stuff, there is a chance that I will give you money.
If I don't know about you or your work, what chance do you have of getting my money?
If I don't think your work is worth my time, what chance do you have of getting my money?
I have the utmost respect for content creators. Authors, musicians, film makers, painters, etc, all of you. But you must understand that I don't need you to keep myself entertained.
Your music is not available on YouTube? Oh, I better run to my local record store and buy your.... No, actually, I will probably just listen to something else. I love music, but I can always live without your music.
I can't download the latest episode of a particular TV show for a decent price, in a decent format, without DRM? Oh, I better run and buy the... No, chances are I will just watch something else. There are millions of hours of cat videos online that will keep me entertained for weeks.
You've written a novel and you don't want me reading it for free? You think I'm stealing bread from your mouth by borrowing your book from a friend? That's easily solved. I'll just read something else.
Does that feel better? Me not reading your book? Not listening to your song?
How are you profiting from that?
The truth, that you don't want to accept, is very simple....
If I read your book, you are lucky! There are hundreds of thousands of other books that I'm not reading at that time. I can always get more money, but the time I spend reading your book, I can never get back. Think about that for a minute.
Wether I pay you or not, if I am consuming your content, you should be thankful. And if I give you money, you are one of the lucky few. Because I have plenty of options.
Think about that.
On the post: Is Being Rich And Arrogant Against The Law? The RIAA & MPAA Seem To Think So
It's simple, really...
They know what kind of persons they are, and how they got to be wealthy and influential. So, naturally, they assume that Dotcom is as big a bastard as they are.
On the post: DC Police Chief Lays Down New Cell/Camera Policy: 'Don't Seize. Don't Delete. Don't Interfere.'
But what if....
But what if there's dancing involved? Surely there must be an exception in there somewhere for dancing?
On the post: The Oatmeal v. Funnyjunk: How The Court Of Public Opinion Beats The Court Of Baseless Legal Threats
Copying is not theft
Attribution is quite another matter though, and personally, I think it is much more important than copyright.
If I were in Inman's shoes, this is what I would have done:
* I would relax about my content being monetized by someone else in this way. A dollar earned by someone else on advertising on another site does not equal a dollar lost by me.
* I would sometimes upload material to FJ myself. If FJ gets millions of visitors, I'd try to convert some of them to fans.
* I would ask my fans to give proper attribution, and linking, when sharing my stuff on other sites.
I'm not saying that the FJ people have done nothing wrong here, but Inman has certainly also crossed some lines himself.
On the post: EA Believes That Making A Lot Of Money Is Less Important Than Keeping Games Expensive
Regarding the value of a work
Which is more valuable?
A game that sells a million copies at $2 each, or a game that sells 50,000 copies at $10 each?
The value of a work is how much money it brings in, not the price of each copy.
On the post: Filmmaker Compares Copyleft Supporters To Anti-Gay-Marriage Advocates
Copyrestrictions
Think about it... When you are granted "Copyright," you aren't actually granted any substantial rights you didn't have to begin with. What is happening, though, is that other people's rights are restricted.
Here are some "rights" that you have with a work you have created:
* Copy
* Share
* Timeshift
* Formatshift
* Placeshift
* Remix
* Distribute
* Broadcast
* Perform
If Copyright did not exist, you would still have these "rights," simply by having access to the work.
Now poof, you are granted "Copyright" for the work. What new rights do you get? I can only think of one: The "right" to sue other people for "infringement."
Now name some rights other people had for that same work before you were granted the Copyright, but that are now restricted. That's right, pretty much all of them. All of them and more if you ask the Copyright Extremists.
So, "Copyright" should really be "Copyrestriction."
On the post: Filmmaker Compares Copyleft Supporters To Anti-Gay-Marriage Advocates
Copyright as Religion
Proponents of Copyright are often citing dubious sources as evidence for their religion. Theirs is the Only True God. Without Copyright, society will collapse. Without Copyright, we're all just beasts, raping and killing at will. They refuse to listen to rational arguments, of course. They all get very offended when you question the validity of their claims, or suggest that the world would be better without their religion. Etc...
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