Picking The Locks: Redefining Copyright Law In The Digital Age

Information wants to be free. At least that’s what Internet activists and many consumers say in support of free online content.

But when we stream a new film online or listen to music on Spotify, we don’t always consider — or care about — the artists who are losing out.

The debates over intellectual property, copyright and traditional ideas of enforcement have been hot topics of late. The fall of Napster in the late ’90s and the current battle between publisher Hachette and Amazon show that copyright law needs to be rewritten to fit digital standards.

In his new book, Information Doesn’t Want To Be Free: Laws For The Internet Age, author Cory Doctorow argues that creators can make money even when their content is available online free of charge. For creators to succeed in the digital age, he says, copyright law must be reformed to reflect an age in which tech platforms control content.

Full piece here: http://www.npr.org/2014/11/03/360196476/picking-the-locks-redefining-copyright-law-in-the-digital-age

Note: In addition to additional text there is a 7 minute audio piece at the NPR site.