Copyright Reform

Copyright Reform

This topic will consider various proposals to reform U.S. copyright law. This law is long, complex, incomprehensible in many respects, and lacking in normative heft. It is also the work product of 1950's era thinking and has proven to be brittle at times when one tries to apply it to situations that Congress could not and did not foresee in 1976 when it enacted the current law. Current copyright controversies, such as the Viacom v. YouTube and Cablevision cases, will serve as topics for reform. students and readers of this Legal Encyclopedia will be expected to chose a copyright reform topic for their papers for the topic, and each student will have an opportunity to present their thoughts about their reform proposal to the topic.