Colin Davidson
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profile
),
08 May, 2012 @ 09:30am
Re: Re:
I beg to differ.
The jury was asked to decide whether Oracle had proven that Google had infringed on Oracle's copyright in the Java API, assuming Structure, Sequence and Organization of an API can be copyrighted (the last part was an explicit instruction from the judge and a matter of law that the judge will decide, but did not want to do until after the trial). Pretty reasonably, given the judge's directions, the jury found that Google had infringed. As a secondary part of the same question, they were asked whether the infringement was excused by fair use. This was the issue the jury could not decide. Given the state of copyright law in the US and the judge's directions to the jury, there was nothing unreasonable or confused about the jury's finding. With all due respect, Mike, while perhaps your view is how a reasonable law OUGHT to be, you are the one who is confused (about how the law IS).
Colin Davidson
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profile
),
08 May, 2012 @ 08:03am
Re: Special situation
If you really think this is a special situation, you need to go read Eric Flint's introduction to the Baen Free Library (http://www.baen.com/library/intro.asp). The free library allows you to download, free of charge, ebooks that authors have "donated" at their own discretion. If Harry Potter is such a special case, why are 25 Baen authors giving away works that could be charged for? Note that David Weber's "On Basilisk Station" became the best seller in Baen's backlist AFTER it was made available as a FREE ebook.
Potterville is NOT a special situation, nor is it a new phenomenon - the Baen free library has been in existence since at least October 11, 2000 and is still going strong.
Again, ask yourself why 25 authors would allow their works to be freely distributed if they didn't get any benefit from it?
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Re: Re:
I beg to differ.
The jury was asked to decide whether Oracle had proven that Google had infringed on Oracle's copyright in the Java API, assuming Structure, Sequence and Organization of an API can be copyrighted (the last part was an explicit instruction from the judge and a matter of law that the judge will decide, but did not want to do until after the trial). Pretty reasonably, given the judge's directions, the jury found that Google had infringed. As a secondary part of the same question, they were asked whether the infringement was excused by fair use. This was the issue the jury could not decide. Given the state of copyright law in the US and the judge's directions to the jury, there was nothing unreasonable or confused about the jury's finding. With all due respect, Mike, while perhaps your view is how a reasonable law OUGHT to be, you are the one who is confused (about how the law IS).
This is all explained fairly clearly within this Groklaw article: http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20120507122749740. You do have to hunt a bit for the explanation, though.