Re: Abandoning property (Was: Copyright Extension Bill Passes Congress)

On Thu, Nov 5, 1998, Moritz Roettinger <moritz.roettinger[_at_]dg23.cec.be> wrote:
>
> On Tue, 3 Nov 1998, Lance Purple <lpurple[_at_]netcom.com> wrote:
> >
> > - If you leave your car, your wallet, etc. abandoned in a
> > public place for several years, it typically ceases to
> > be your property.
>
> Is this really the case in US law? In the European countries I am
> familiar with this is not the case. You would have to actively
> declare that you abandon the object. Even then, in the case of a
> car left alone for years on a public parking, you would be obliged
> to pay for its removal. If I leave my wallet abandoned you should
> ask first whether it is just forgotten (property still belongs to
> the owner) or really abandoned. Abandoning property is a legal
> figure which is very rare in practice.
>
> > Should a published but out-of-print work be considered "abandoned"
> > after x years and become public-domain?
>
> Certainly not. Copyright is the intellectual property right of the
> author. The decision about a reprint is typically taken by the
> publisher who has different interests. (Please also don't forget
> that publication is no prerequisite for copyright protection.) If
> the publisher refuses a reprint, why should the author's copyright
> protection be put into question?

Because if it has no value in the market, there's nothing to "protect", is there?

Michael A Scarpitti
Assistant Editor
Materials Evaluation
The American Society
For Nondestructive Testing
1711 Arlingate Lane
Columbus, Ohio 43228-0518
(800) 222-2768 X207
(614) 274-6003 X207
fax (614) 274-6899
e-mail mscarpit[_at_]asnt.org Received on Fri Nov 06 1998 - 14:02:26 GMT