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Authors

J. Ryan Miller

Abstract

Jessica Litman's book focuses on the Copyright Act, in relation to modern entertainment technology. For example, each time an image from the Internet is viewed through a personal computer, the viewer has reproduced the original image, because a computer's RAM makes a temporary copy in order to allow the image to be viewed. The entertainment industry's concern about potential copyright infringement resulted in the enactment of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Professor Litman provides a history of the negotiation and lobbying that created the Copyright Act of 1976, and then provides a commentary regarding Napster and the expanding amount of media coverage given to entertainment and educational material available online. She suggests that existing copyright protection that is applied to technological advancements does not comport with practical interpretations of copyright law. Finally, Professor Litman proposes a revised Copyright Act, focusing on the commercial impact that results from the use of copyright.

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