Copyright

It seems that copyright (and "intellectual property" in general) is in the news a fair bit lately. Canadian parliament is threatening to pass a highly restrictive "DCMA" style law a la the USA.

As a photographer, I value my work. I do not want someone else taking my art to promote their product, for example, but on the other hand, I do not want to have all art hidden away and unaccessable to the world or, especially, future generations.
A common argument is that Walt Disney's original cartoon, "Steamboat Willy" is still under copyright. In other words, it is illegal to show a cartoon that our grandparents enjoyed as kids. Put in perspective, imagine if Shakespeare could not have written Julius Caesar because the original story was not available. Or if Mozart could not have written his operas because the stories he based them on were tied up in legal knots. Please explain to me how this "promotes the arts".

All art is based on the work of others before. In fact many great works were meant as tributes to masters. My fear is that historians will look back on this century as a second dark ages. Where instead of religion holding all power over publishing works, mega-corporations hold artists hostage.

I read a reply on slashdot that may be on the right track (I lost the link) that advocates aboloshing copyright altogether. maybe the pendulum has to swing the other way for a while to restore balance. It may be rough for artists, but then most artists do what they do for love rather than money...

links:
- Against Intellectual Monopoly