CULTURAS IN VITRO
Do we really need to have copyright? As the high court reviews an extention in the number of years of ownership, consider social and economic costs.
Congress originally said copyrights should expire after 28 years. The 1998 act lets them run up to 95 years - the 11th time Congress has lengthened the term.
Plus, critics note, the latest extension protects works retroactively. How does giving Disney an extra 20 years of profit on a cartoon created in 1928 promote creativity today?
It doesn't. In fact, extending copyright length is more likely to discourage creativity than promote it, according to a provocative new study.
In a recent paper, Michelle Boldrin and David K. Levine argue that economists and policymakers have greatly overestimated the benefits that flow from copyrights and patents, while ignoring the economic and social costs. [...]
But you don't need an advanced degree to understand their main point:
When a Disney or a Microsoft puts more resources into enforcing and extending copyright monopolies than it does into creating or innovating in the first place, it's clear that something is out of balance. It's time for somebody - if not the Supreme Court, then Congress itself - to reevaluate the whole arrangement.