FITUG e.V.
Förderverein Informationstechnik und Gesellschaft
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<http://www.planetit.com/techcenters/docs/security-firewalls/news/PIT20010116S0015?printDoc=1
Copyright vs. Freedom Of Distribution: Who Prevails?
by Judith N. Mottl (01/16/01; 9:00 a.m. ET)
URL: http://www.PlanetIT.com/docs/PIT20010116S0015
It's an argument that will be debated during the 107th Congress, in state supreme courts and in federal courts nationwide: Who can dictate what users, distributors or manufacturers can do with Internet content? The reason this is an argument and not just a discussion is that the issue is riddled with one of the classic ingredients of the spy novel: terrific technology, technology that lets today's computers perform better than some stereo systems and turns a copper line and a 17-inch computer monitor into a fulfilling, TV-like experience. But there's also big money -- not only in the form of revenue from the sale of rights to online broadcasts, simulcasts and content publication, but also in the form of awards from verdicts, trial settlements and punitive damages attainable from the violation of those rights.
"The envelope has become forced at this point," says Eric Scheirer, an analyst at Forrester Research who tracks copyright issues in the Internet industry. "It's about money and about control. There are millions of users, and the parties involved can't afford to ignore that."
Today, powerful media industry coalitions -- including the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) and the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) -- as well as top media outlets such as The New York Times and NBC, to name just two, are deliberating in and out of court over whether the distribution of content through the Internet, as well as through digital media such as CD-ROM, is protected under current copyright laws and enforceable through royalty contracts.
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