According to the Australia, Sir Cliff Richard is leading a push to have the period of copyright in the UK extended from 50 to 95 years. The reason? Some of his songs, such as “Move It” from 1958, are about to fall out of copyright.

As always, the underlying point not addressed is the rationale underlying copyright laws. Is it to allow perpetual quasi-ownership of something you have created? Is it to allow a reasonable reward by a limited monopoly of exploitation? And if so, for how long? And why should the time–presumably enough when the song was created if you are looking at it from an incentive point of view–be extended any further? The Disney/Sonny Bono Effect hits the UK…

8:10 am - posted by . Categories: Copyright
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