Check out this great article over at ArsTechnica. The author interviews an attorney who estimates the amount of “infringement” that is ongoing on a daily basis by innocent, unaware people. The amount is staggering, but when you look at the things he is highlighting, you realize just how much infringement is ongoing in your daily life. Some examples:
Tehranian’s paper points out just how pervasive copyright has become in our lives. Simply checking one’s e-mail and including the full text in response could be a violation of copyright. So could a tattoo on Tehranian’s shoulder of Captain Caveman—and potential damages escalate when Tehranian takes off his shirt at the university pool and engages in public performance of an unauthorized copyrighted work.
Singing “Happy Birthday” at a restaurant (unauthorized public performance) and capturing the event on a video camera (unauthorized reproduction) could increase his liability, and that’s to say nothing of the copyrighted artwork hanging on the wall behind the dinner table (also captured without authorization by the camera). Tehranian calculates his yearly liability at $4.5 billion.
I couldn’t agree more with the need for copyright reform. Todays restrictions and lawsuits are just getting ridiculous.
