"On Monday in San Francisco, the Recording Industry Assn. of America's lawsuit against
Napster goes before the federal 9th Circuit Court of Appeal. As attorneys wrangle over
the finer legal points surrounding digital piracy, larger philosophical questions loom:
If technology renders copyright unenforceable, will some artists stop creating? How much
control should an artist have over his work once it enters a public forum? And who should
serve as the gatekeeper for popular art?"
"... In their zeal to liberate music and movies from 'evil' corporations, pirates might
actually be handing the government an excuse to create a distribution system that makes
access to information far stricter than it's ever been."
"[Copyright attorney David] Nimmer says reports of copyright's death are greatly
exaggerated.... 'There have been constant cries over the last 50 years that copyright
will end, but it hasn't happened. Copyright always finds a way to accommodate itself to
new technology.'"
