Hacker News new | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submit login

A counter-proposal:

Copyright lasts one year without registration.

At the end of that year, a work must be registered and a $100 fee put up to extend the term to 5 years.

Every five years after that, the registration fee is increased by a factor of 10.

This seems to address most of the problems I have with copyright, beyond the core conceit of whether it's valuable or not. I really don't understand how the Berne Convention's extremes can benefit a people other than as a hegemonic trade concession.




This is a pretty good idea. I wonder what properties would make a $1 billion investment for five years a good investment? Star Wars maybe? That would be at the 40 year mark.

And I am probably confusing copyright with trademark here. I suppose Disney could still own the rights for all star wars merchandise and new content even if they hypothetically lost the rights to A New Hope, due to trademarks, no? Because A New Hope surely isn't worth $1 billion for five years.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: