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Copyright Term Extension Act Awaits President's SignatureBoth houses of Congress passed the Copyright Term Extension Act on October 7, lengthening the current life-plus-50-year copyright term by 20 years. Although library and consumer groups opposed the legislation, major corporations like Disney and Time Warner lobbied extensively for its passage. "Many major industries said, 'If we don't lengthen the term of copyright, we won't make as much money,'" ALA Legislative Counsel Adam Eisgrau told the Associated Press. "Making money isn't what copyright law is about. The purpose of the law is to provide a sufficient incentive to authors and inventors to create information, not because there is a constitutional entitlement to compensation but because the information created was regarded as a public good.'' The measure retains a limited exception for libraries, archives, and nonprofit educational institutions crafted in intense negotiations last year. President Clinton has indicated that he will sign the bill. |
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