Understanding copyright : intellectual property in the digital age

Digital technology has forever changed the way media is created, accessed, shared and regulated, raising serious questions about copyright for artists and fans, media companies and internet intermediaries, activists and governments. Taking a rounded view of the debates that have emerged over copyright in the digital age, this book:

Looks across a broad range of industries including music, television and film to consider issues of media power and policy. Features engaging examples that have taken centre stage in the copyright debate, including high profile legal cases against Napster and The Pirate Bay, anti-piracy campaigns, the Creative Commons movement, and public protests against the expansion of copyright enforcement. Considers both the dominant voices, such as industry associations, and those who struggle to be heard, including ordinary media users, drawing on important studies into copyright from around the world.

Offering media students and scholars a comprehensive overview of the contemporary issues surrounding intellectual property through the struggle over copyright, Understanding Copyright explores why disagreement is rife and how the policymaking process might accommodate a wider range of views.

• About the authors p. vii
• Acknowledgements p. viii
• 1 Introduction: Understanding copyright in the digital age p. 1
• Introduction p. 1
• Our approach to understanding copyright p. 2
• How this book is organized p. 6
• 2 A brief history of copyright: Where we are and how we got here p. 10
• Why look back? p. 10
• Key copyright moments and distinctions p. 10
• The digital disruption p. 17
• Contemporary debates in the wake of the digital moment p. 20
• 3 Copyright and the creative economy: How the cultural industries exert influence p. 24
• Understanding the 'cultural industries' p. 24
• Managing risk and return in the cultural industries p. 28
• Protecting profits through regulation p. 30
• Campaigning for copyright p. 33
• Lobbying for protection despite unconvincing evidence p. 38
• 4 Technologies and corporations in the middle: How internet intermediaries are drawn into the debate p. 45
• Introduction p. 45
• What are internet intermediaries and why are they important? p. 46
• The war against piracy and file-sharing sites p. 49
• The 'turn to private ordering' and the private interests of intermediaries p. 54
• Intermediaries and other important values p. 58
• 5 Creative workers and copyright: How current and future creators benefit from cultural labour p. 63
• Who are the creators? p. 63
• Understanding and rewarding creative work p. 65
• Assumptions versus reality p. 70
• Creator views and voices p. 72
• 6 Consumers, criminals, patrons, pirates: How users connect to copyright p. 83
• Locating users p. 83
• Framing users p. 84
• User practices p. 88
• User perspectives and discourses p. 92
• Where's the consultation? p. 100
• 7 Copyright policy: How policy represents (or fails to represent) different groups p. 102
• Introduction p. 102
• Power and the policymaking process p. 103
• Copyright on the rise p. 108
• Democratizing copyright policy? p. 115
• 8 The future of copyright: How we can learn from the debate p. 122
• Slight return p. 122
• Changing the debate p. 126
• References p. 129
• Index p. 148