Infringement nation: copyright 2.0 and you

320 Pages·2011·3.705 MB·English

by  Tehranian, John

infringement nation
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Infringement Nation
COPYRIGHT 2.0 AND YOU
John Tehranian
1
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Copyright © 2011 by John Tehranian
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Tehranian, John.
Infringement nation : copyright 2.0 and you / John Tehranian.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-19-973317-0 (hardback : alk. paper)
1. Copyright--United States. I. Title.
KF2994.T44 2011
346.7304’82--dc22
2010044077
_______________________________________________________

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Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper
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For Katie and Majid
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Contents
Acknowledgments xi
Photo and Illustration Credits xiii
Introduction: Th e Copyright Wars xv
I. Copyright Relevance xvi
II. Copyright Consciousness xviii
III. Copyright’s Law/Norm Gap xix
A. Th e Default Rule of Use as Infringement xix
B. Technological Change and the Law/Norm Gap xx
C. Th e Misadventures of Captain Copyright and the Battle to
Shape Public Opinion xxi
IV. Chapter and Verse xxiv
A. Th e Individual as Infringer xxiv
B. Th e Individual as Transformer xxv
C. Th e Individual as Consumer xxvii
D. Th e Individual as Creator xxviii
E. Th e Individual as Reformer xxix
1 . Th e Individual as Infringer 1
I. Infringement Nation: A Gedanken Experiment 2
II. Th e Gedanken Experiment Deconstructed 5
III. Th e Making of the Infringement Nation 14
2 . Th e Individual as Transformer 15
I. Revaluing Rubber Cement 15
II. Th e Triumph of Instrumentalism: A History of Copyright’s Early Years 17
A. Th e English Origins of American Copyright Law 17
B. Th e Creation of American Copyright 19
C. Wheaton: Th e Apparent End of Natural-Law Copyright 21
D. E arly Copyright Jurisprudence: Abridgement, Translation, and
the Primacy of Transformative Use 22
E. Th e Law in Cultural Context: Norms in the Republic’s Early Years 25
vii
viii Contents
III. Et Tu, Fair Use? Natural-Law Redux 27
A. Folson v. Marsh: Justice Story and the Betrayal of Utilitarian Copyright 27
B. Th e Hegemony of Natural-Law Copyright: Folsom and Its Progeny 31
IV. Transformative Use and Progress in the Arts 35
A. Th e Importance of Transformative Use 35
B. Fair Use’s Failure to Promote Progress in the Arts 39
C. Borrowing and Progress in the Arts: “Smells Like Teen Spirit” 45
D. Th e Permission Problem: Th e Endowment and Entitlement Eff ects 47
V. From Fair Use to Fared Use 49
3 . Th e Individual as Consumer 51
I. Locating Users in the Copyright Skein 54
A. Utilitarian, Labor-Desert, and Personhood Justifi cations for Copyright 54
B. Copyright Th eory and the Debate over Term Extensions 55
C. Considering User Interests and Rights 57
II. A Th eory of Consumption and Communication: Comparing the Treatment of
Identity Interests for Tangible and Intellectual Property 59
A. Property Rights and Personhood 59
B. Regulating Consumption, Customization, and Contextualization:
Intellectual Property Law and the Mediation of Identity Interests 61
C. Intellectual Property and Identity Politics: Four Case Studies 65
III. Parchment, Pixels, and Personhood: Th e Unauthorized
Possession and Private Use of Copyrighted Works 76
A. Access to Knowledge and Information and the Importance of
Private Use Rights 77
B. Th e Historical Protection of Unauthorized Possession and Private Use 79
C. Th e Growing Th reat to Possession and Private Use Rights 83
IV. Conclusion 90
4 . Th e Individual as Creator 93
I. Art, Aura, and Authenticity 93
II. Th e Emperor Has No Copyright: Reexamining Copyright’s Registration
Requirement 96
A. C hallenging the Conventional Wisdom on American Copyright Protection:
Content Hierarchy and the Registration Requirement 96
B. Registration and the Pivotal Role of Statutory Damages and
Attorneys’ Fees 97
C. Hierarchy and the Unsophisticated Content Creator 100
D. Registration and the Failure of the Notice Function 109
E. Registration, Remedies, and International Treaty Obligations 114
III. Hierarchy and Reform 116
A. Section 412 Reform and Its Discontents 117
B. Hierarchy in Hollywood 121
C. Consecration, Critical Th eory, and Music 123
IV. Caveats and Considerations for Reform 124
Contents ix
5 . Th e Individual as Reformer 127
I. Restoring Balance to Copyright Law 127
II. Restoring the Balance Between Users and Creators 129
A. In Terrorem: Copyright Overreach 129
B. Reforming Copyright’s In Terrorem Regime 135
II. Restoring the Balance Between Sophisticated and Unsophisticated Parties 147
A. Tempering the Size of Statutory Damages Awards 147
B. Protecting Unsophisticated Creators 151
III. Restoring the Balance Between Transformers and Creators 152
A. Th e Problem with Fair Use: Transformation, Progress in the Art, and Free
Speech 152
B. Reconciling First Amendment Rights and Copyright Protection: An
Intermediate Liability Proposal 155
IV. Toward a Copyright 2.0 166
Conclusion: Copyright, Consecration, and Control 169
I. IP as Hegemonic Battleground 170
A. Guantanamo’s Greatest Hits: Music, Torture, and Copyright Law 171
B. Th e Exemption of State Governments from Infringement Liability 174
II. Of Procedure and Substance: Th e Modern Hierarchies of Protection 176
A. Love and Law: Th e Modern Clash 176
B. Copyright Registration and the Sacralization of Cultural Production 178
C. Aesthetic Judgment as Hegemonic Project 180
IV. Th e Future of Infringement Nation 187
Notes 189
Table of Cases 263
Index 271