The entertainment industry’s pursuit of tough new laws to protect copyrighted materials from online piracy is bad for business and for the economy, according to a report being released today by the Committee for Economic Development, a Washington policy group that has its roots in the business world.
NYTimes Piece summarizes things nicely, or read the Committee for Economic Development: Press Release, Summary, Full Report.
“We are sympathetic to the problems confronting the content distribution industry,” said the report, “Promoting Innovation and Economic Growth: The Special Problem of Digital Intellectual Property.” “But these problems – perfect copies of high-value digital works being transmitted instantly around the world at almost no cost – require clear, concentrated thinking, rather than quick legislative or regulatory action.”
There are enlightened business people
I really appreciated the CED authors mentioning that every “infringing” gadget from the player piano to the VCR has increased revenue for the entertainment industry. It was also nice to see a business group noting the lack of innovation that would result from overzealous technology.
People interested in other ways of resolving music piracy might be interest in the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s – proposed voluntary licensing scheme for music downloading.