This bill protected copyrighted works for fourteen years after the date of creation with an opportunity for one fourteen-year extension if the creator was still alive (Yu 143). However, today, copyright lasts seventy years past the death of the creator if the rights are owned by an individual, and one hundred twenty years past the creator’s death if the rights are owned by a company (“Copyright Terms and the Public Domain,” copyright.cornell.edu). Some might say this is irrelevant because 1790 was a different time –and they would be right- but were there not authors in 1790 who wished to protect their works from plagiarists, were there not artists whose paintings were faked? It is apparent from looking at the historical progression of copyright law, that it has strayed from its original goal of fostering new ideas, and expanding artistic
This bill protected copyrighted works for fourteen years after the date of creation with an opportunity for one fourteen-year extension if the creator was still alive (Yu 143). However, today, copyright lasts seventy years past the death of the creator if the rights are owned by an individual, and one hundred twenty years past the creator’s death if the rights are owned by a company (“Copyright Terms and the Public Domain,” copyright.cornell.edu). Some might say this is irrelevant because 1790 was a different time –and they would be right- but were there not authors in 1790 who wished to protect their works from plagiarists, were there not artists whose paintings were faked? It is apparent from looking at the historical progression of copyright law, that it has strayed from its original goal of fostering new ideas, and expanding artistic