Were we smarter 100 years ago..? The 1909 Copyright Act Hearings

James Boyle has been rereading the legislative history of the 1909 Copyright Act. He has come to the conclusion that 100 years ago we were smarter about copyright, about disruptive technologies, about intellectual property, monopolies and network effects than we are today. At least, the legislative hearings were much smarter. The hearings he’s looking at took place in 1906 — thanks to the wonder of Google books you can read them yourself, if you are really nerdy.