Re: copyright under stress

On Thu, Jun 22, 2000, Robert Cumbow <rcumbow[_at_]grahamdunn.com> wrote:
>
> Specifically, you would need to post copyrighted works whose total
> aggregate retail value exceeds $2,500 in any one 180-day period, AND
> at least 10 copies of each of those works would have to be downloaded,
> before the NET Act would apply. So if you posted, say, 150 infringing
> books on your site, you might be getting close. On the other hand,
> you could reach the same retail value threshold by offering as few as
> a dozen unauthorized software programs.

Actually, you could do it with just one unauthorized program, if you stray from this mass market, or even drop just to the not-quite-so-mass market. Graphic design programs (to cite just one example) can easily run several thousand dollars. I have been out of the industry for a few years, but in 1994, a copy of Macromedia Director (used to edit animation and film on a Macintosh) had a MSRP of around $2999.

I point this out because it reinforces the real reason this act was passed -- to protect software companies, especially those whose business models is built on selling fewer copies at a much higher price (because of the economic model relevant to the industry, not from gouging).

-David

David Hale
<dhale[_at_]aggt.com> Received on Fri Jun 23 2000 - 13:39:26 GMT