I know this goes back a bit… but excuse my delayed reaction. I was reading over some clippings I keep from various publishing resources so that, when I need material for this news spot, or my monthly newsletters, or anything I write, or when I do speak to groups… I have things to refer to and speak about that are both of interest and importance to publishers.
Without one more shred of information, I can tell you without fear of contradiction, (in my humble personal opinion-just in case they have lots of lawyers!) that Stanford University’s Fair Use Project is the rough equivalent of Hugo Chavez let loose in publishing. One comment speaks volumes.
Anthony Falzone, the Executive Director of this project wrote in his blog after the J.K. Rowling/Harry Potter copyright infringement case victory last fall that “we think it is wrong”. How anyone with a brain and the civil understanding of copyright can believe this is beyond me. Then, I remembered… there is a move afoot all publishers need to be aware of. It is infiltrating academia and is trying to infiltrate society in general…
Copyright is a capitalist concept, serves only to line the pockets of the already wealthy, is a way for the wealthy to hold down the oppressed, and should be abolished.
Read that again. One more time if you are still upright in your chair.
The movement is a small and growing one.
You, as publishers, should do everything you can to spread the word among authors, media, and anyone else who will listen. If this movement gets a foothold, or as I like to say, has Velcro (and by the way, Velcro is a registered trademark of somebody and used with all due respect), the industry has breathed its last breath.
Unfortunately, the Fidel Castros of the copyright movement also believe that somehow, at the point of a gun, if necessary, publishers will be forced to continue publishing materials even though there will no longer be a profit motive, anyone can copy as much and as many of the titles of a publisher as they please for free, and basically, publishing will become a government sponsored public service.
I am admittedly sensationalizing, condensing, and leaning. Of course, I am a publisher in a publisher’s world. It is the only position I care about. Take away my income through some cry of capitalist pig, and I WILL take up arms against you if necessary.
Oddly, you would think AUTHORS of all people would be furious, opposed, fighting mad, and the like. But, as usual, maybe the Guild has told them to be quiet… who knows… maybe the Guild supports this form of publishing collectivism… or just maybe… nah…
Have a great one!
No Comments, Comment or Ping
Reply to “Look Out for the Fair Use Project, and Other Misguided Academia!”