[dvd-discuss] Re: [DMCA_Discuss] Fine Statement re: Copyright Terms

["Peter D. Junger" <junger(at)samsara.law.cwru.edu>]

Seth Johnson writes:

: 
: (Forwarded from DVD Discussion list,
: dvd-discuss@eon.law.harvard.edu)
: 
: -------- Original Message --------
: Date: Wed, 29 May 2002 12:27:04 -0400
: From: "Dean Sanchez" <DSanchez@fcci-group.com>
: 
: 
: I have major issues regarding allowing copyright to be
: granted on any unpublished work. A manuscript moldering in
: the drawer does not benefit the public. If an author wants
: copyright protection, he must be willing to publish (i.e.
: make it available to the public).  Until fairly recently,
: this was part of the social compact.  Having to register is
: and was the ideal situation.  In this case, if the author is
: dead, there probably is a need to create an incentive for
: the estate to publish.  However, the incentive should be
: significantly less than one would give to a living author to
: create an incentive to continue producing new works.

Until recently, 1978 I think it was when the 1976 Copyright Act
went into effect, unpublished works were protected by so-called
common law copyrights under state law.  When a work was published
it lost that common law protection and at that point the
work became eligible for federal copyright protection.
 

--
Peter D. Junger--Case Western Reserve University Law School--Cleveland, OH
 EMAIL: junger@samsara.law.cwru.edu    URL:  http://samsara.law.cwru.edu   
        NOTE: junger@pdj2-ra.f-remote.cwru.edu no longer exists