Copyright in Digital Age

The rapid development of digital technologies, in spite of all the advantages, involves the expenses. One of such expenses is the actual liquidation, blurring of the legal system of copyright protection, which has been establishing and perfecting during the decades and which just a few years ago worked effectively. Now it doesn’t. But if to say that on the digital market the established system of copyright protection doesn’t work, it won’t be true. But this untruth has almost approximated to the truth. And the truth is that if the author of a digital work doesn’t take deliberately any specific measures to protect his right on authorship, right on use and other rights, he can deprive of them in the twinkling of an eye.

The measures that are in question are not so simple, they are rather laborious and burdensome and besides, as a rule, they imply some technical (or computer) skills of the author. And that’s why, as a rule, they are not employed or employed seldom. As a result in the sphere of copyright on digital works there are so many violations that it’s possible to say that there is nothing there except violations.

Compare, for example, what’s more difficult to copy an ordinary photo or a digital one? If to take or scan an ordinary photo at least some efforts are needed, then the copying of a digital photo comes to keystroke.

The replication of an ordinary photo will present some more difficulties. The replication of a digital one is a simple keystroke. The copy of an ordinary photo will always differ from the original, besides, as a rule, for the worse. None of experts will distinguish the copy of a digital photo from the original.

Copyright on the photo, replicated in a usual way, can’t be removed. Copyright on a digital photo, published or given for publication, is removed (or substituted) with a few clicks of the computer mouse.

This is just a small part of examples, lying on the surface, which only open a huge layer of problems, connected with a digital nature of new objects of copyright.

The digital author has at his disposal a part of supplementary technical and organizational methods, allowing to protect his copyright on digital works. These rather laborious methods are directed at shifting the digital works to the usual legal field and at making it possible to use them in the juridical practice as usual not digital works.

The other way is an adaptation of existing legal base, alternation of laws so that digital works could get with ease in the sphere of their action. However, here the lawmakers get on so-called slippery field. The easiness of copying, replicating, falsifying is primordially characteristic of digital works, owing to their nature, and no human laws are able to change their nature. Everything, that can be copied, will be copied. And you can do nothing with it.

Otherwise, the United States took chances to create such a legal base. As a result, DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) appeared. While working out this act, its creators tried to attach to digital works the same great importance in the circulation, as ordinary works have. However, in opinion of majority of independent experts, in case of application of the act, the circulation of any digital works of copyright is covered by limitations of such scale that they overstep all the reasonable limits and involve serious expenses. No wonder, that after coming into force, the act wasn’t applied, no one was made answer for it. Until Dmitriy Sklyarov came to the USA . That is he, who became the first victim of this act. Just that very fact provoked wild reaction in the whole world: the public hoped that the act would play a role of “fright”, but wouldn’t be applied in great scales. The more so as the juridical practice in the USA is precedent and the launch of the act automatically means its application in the very great scales.

Nevertheless, let’s examine this case in detail.

Copyright in Digital Age - Part 2 >>

Copyright in Digital Age - Part 3
Copyright in Digital Age - Part 4
Copyright in Digital Age - Part 5
Copyright in Digital Age - Part 6
Copyright in Digital Age - Part 7


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	Copyright in Digital Age The rapid development of digital technologies, in spite of all the advantages, involves the expenses. One of such expenses is the actual liquidation, blurring of the legal system of copyright protection, which has been establishing and perfecting during the decades and which just a few years ago worked effectively. Now it doesn’t. But if to say that on the digital market the established system of copyright protection doesn’t work, it won’t be true. But this untruth has almost approximated to the truth. And the truth is that if the author of a digital work doesn’t take deliberately any specific measures to protect his right on authorship, right on use and other rights, he can deprive of them in the twinkling of an eye. The measures that are in question are not so simple, they are rather laborious and burdensome and besides, as a rule, they imply some technical (or computer) skills of the author. And that’s why, as a rule, they are not employed or employed seldom. As a result in the sphere of copyright on digital works there are so many violations that it’s possible to say that there is nothing there except violations. Compare, for example, what’s more difficult to copy an ordinary photo or a digital one? If to take or scan an ordinary photo at least some efforts are needed, then the copying of a digital photo comes to keystroke. The replication of an ordinary photo will present some more difficulties. The replication of a digital one is a simple keystroke. The copy of an ordinary photo will always differ from the original, besides, as a rule, for the worse. None of experts will distinguish the copy of a digital photo from the original. Copyright on the photo, replicated in a usual way, can’t be removed. Copyright on a digital photo, published or given for publication, is removed (or substituted) with a few clicks of the computer mouse. This is just a small part of examples, lying on the surface, which only open a huge layer of problems, connected with a digital nature of new objects of copyright. The digital author has at his disposal a part of supplementary technical and organizational methods, allowing to protect his copyright on digital works. These rather laborious methods are directed at shifting the digital works to the usual legal field and at making it possible to use them in the juridical practice as usual not digital works. The other way is an adaptation of existing legal base, alternation of laws so that digital works could get with ease in the sphere of their action. However, here the lawmakers get on so-called slippery field. The easiness of copying, replicating, falsifying is primordially characteristic of digital works, owing to their nature, and no human laws are able to change their nature. Everything, that can be copied, will be copied. And you can do nothing with it. Otherwise, the United States took chances to create such a legal base. As a result, DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) appeared. While working out this act, its creators tried to attach to digital works the same great importance in the circulation, as ordinary works have. However, in opinion of majority of independent experts, in case of application of the act, the circulation of any digital works of copyright is covered by limitations of such scale that they overstep all the reasonable limits and involve serious expenses. No wonder, that after coming into force, the act wasn’t applied, no one was made answer for it. Until Dmitriy Sklyarov came to the USA . That is he, who became the first victim of this act. Just that very fact provoked wild reaction in the whole world: the public hoped that the act would play a role of “fright”, but wouldn’t be applied in great scales. The more so as the juridical practice in the USA is precedent and the launch of the act automatically means its application in the very great scales. Nevertheless, let’s examine this case in detail. Copyright in Digital Age - Part 2 >> Copyright in Digital Age - Part 3 Copyright in Digital Age - Part 4 Copyright in Digital Age - Part 5 Copyright in Digital Age - Part 6 Copyright in Digital Age - Part 7