joeross.me

David Post, writing at The Volokh Conspiracy:

The Report proposes a series of rather radical — in the Jeffersonian sense — reforms, from dramatically shortening the copyright term (a no-brainer, actually) to expanding fair use and limiting the damages from infringement claims.

The report’s recommendations don’t go quite as far as my suggestion that fair use should be assumed rather than merely an affirmative defense, but Professor Post is right to highlight the opportunity for the GOP to differentiate on this issue.

In fact, I’m not sure there is much in there with which I would disagree, excepting the over-the-top (and even italicized) final sentence of the report’s conclusion:

Current copyright law does not merely distort some markets – rather it destroys entire markets.

That’s wrong. The current US copyright regime limits access, hinders creativity, and dampens innovation, thereby frustrating copyright’s Constitutional purpose. That fact, and I do consider it a fact, must be the foundation of the copyright reform we need in this country.