For my class, we've been discussing different issues in online education. On of them is copyright. My partner Lynee and I worked on this wiki about copyright. Lynee contributed a lot of the content having just gone to a conference on copyright and higher education.
Copyright can be an issue when you are developing courses. There is lots of great content out there, but sometimes if can be difficult to know what's okay to use do to copyright issues. This is somewhat frustrating to me as copyright was originally designed to further creative works. But now a lot of people need to "reinvent the wheel" instead of making use of existing works due to copyright. Some useful academic works that have fallen out of print are nearly impossible to get (and can't be copied) due to copyrights. In my opinion, current U.S. copyright law is designed to protect the profits of corporations. I think its current incarnation actual inhibits academic discourse and development. Plus some of the legal court cases regarding web linking to copyrighted material are just absurd.
You hear in academia about fair use -- the idea that if your copying it for educational purposes its okay. That's not quite what fair use is about. Fair use is a legal defense, not copy right permission. Here's a great video, A Fairy Tale, which explains fair use. To the best of my knowledge, this video is a great example of fair use.
The main copyright issue is the news is downloading music and other media off the internet. I'll try and stay off my soapbox on this issue and just summarize my point. Copying legally available media that is sold for money when you do not own it is wrong. However, the way the RIAA and others are trying to apply copyright law is really just bullying. I don't believe they can actually prove copyright violations took place (sharing files is not a copyright violation IMO, downloading them might be). Plus, given the current state of technology, they really need to adapt their distribution scheme instead of harassing their customers.
I'd love to see real copyright reform that is based on both author and public needs and not on the profits of corporations.
4 comments:
Great post, Rebecca. The law is clearly not keeping up with technology and the cultural changes it is driving. Could not agree with you more on your point about corporate profits.
You have given me lots to think about and I loved the video. I must say however that I believe the free market system works and if corporations do not make a profit many great ideas will never make it to the production floor so that many can in turn benefit. That said, this is anything but a clear cut issue, considerable arguments can be made for either side.
I understand that corporations need to make a profit for them to be willing to produce stuff. However, I don't think they need 90+ years of copyright in order to see a return on their investment. (If so, perhaps they need a better business?)
Also, I don't think copyright should be a tool to use to blackmail your customers into paying money. (Which the RIAA has clearly been doing.)
Hi Rebecca-
Great post! I'm just starting to read the class blogs and enjoyed your exploration --- (might make a nice addition to the discussion section of the wiki for our classmates who are reading wikis but not blogs?) : )
Copyright is an issue I struggle with almost every week at my little college. Administration scares us to act conservatively and seek permissions and pay royalties for everything that we find out that faculty are using in their courses, and the college is always willing to cover the costs, but it is an extremely time-consuming process and I wish the law was clearer. Anyways, I have to attend these Copyright workshops every semester to keep up with the latest interpretations of the various acts. You have inspired me to do something about copyright on my blog this week...
I'll see what happens!
Post a Comment