Subj : Re: Old DOS BBS Programs
To   : Xerxes
From : Grimpen
Date : Thu Jun 16 2022 10:21:00


 Xe> I don't know - but it reminds me of the guy who ran Commodore USA a few
 Xe> years ago (he passed away a couple of years ago).

 Xe> He couldn't figure out who owned the IP/Copyrights to Commodore, so he
 Xe> just started selling Commodore branded stuff until somebody sued him
 Xe> (and they did).
....
 Xe> So yea, appearantly you can just claim to own something until someone
 Xe> sues you, lol.

I liked the old copyright requirement where you had to re-register your
copyright every 20 years or so. If a property wasn't valuable to the original
author, it reverted to the public domain. Neatly solves the problem of
Abandonware.

If you consider computer games as art (which I do), the current copyright
regime adds a whole extra layer of challenge. Unlike a painting or a poem, you
also need the platform the game is played on to be preserved, plus deal with
old copyright protection measures. Preservation is a challenge, and you also
end up where who still owns the copyright may be obscured. Suddenly you are
facing potentially multiple court cases (like in your example) with different
claimants. 

Even with the library and preservation carve-out under the DMCA, that still
means going to court and using it as a defence, which just might not be worth
it for most cases.

I'm always reminded of Emily Dickinson's poems. Apparently she had wanted her
poems destroyed after she died. Does that mean you shouldn't read her poetry?
Does that mean that preservation of art takes precedence over the artists
wishes?

-Grimpen

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