The U.S. copyright system, like most, is based on the very notion that the public has an overt interest in protecting intellectual property, and not merely in restricting it. Stated in another way, the public interest in copyright is not limited to the notion of fair use or the public domain, but rather extends to the entire system of copyright. While the public certainly has an interest in securing cheap access to copyrighted materials, society's primary interest is in ensuring the production and distribution of original materials so that there exists something to access.

It is essential that policy makers keep in mind that the copyright system replaced private patronage as the mechanism for permitting creators to live through their craft. By permitting creative genius to be fuelled by market forces, we unleash the cultural power and potential of the public at large, freeing creative impulses from the tyranny of government control and making creative works accessible to the public at large. While the copyright system carries with it the potential for abuse, it remains by far the most powerful tool for fostering creativity and democratizing cultural production and access thereto.

[W]e recognize that the creative process indeed is an evolutionary one, and that present creators draw upon past expression for inspiration. The copyright community relies upon the idea/ expression dichotomy, and the concept of fair use. As a consequence, copyright owners have a greater interest in preserving limitations to copyright protection to permit new forms of expression than do general members of the public. Creators need to stand on the shoulders of giants, right? For Lessig and his allies, fair use is little more than a useful slogan.

The U.S. copyright system, like most, is based on the very notion that the public has an overt interest in protecting intellectual property, and not merely in restricting it. Stated in another way, the public interest in copyright is not limited to the notion of fair use or the public domain, but rather extends to the entire system of copyright. While the public certainly has an interest in securing cheap access to copyrighted materials, society's primary interest is in ensuring the production and distribution of original materials so that there exists something to access.

It is essential that policy makers keep in mind that the copyright system replaced private patronage as the mechanism for permitting creators to live through their craft. By permitting creative genius to be fuelled by market forces, we unleash the cultural power and potential of the public at large, freeing creative impulses from the tyranny of government control and making creative works accessible to the public at large. While the copyright system carries with it the potential for abuse, it remains by far the most powerful tool for fostering creativity and democratizing cultural production and access thereto.

[W]e recognize that the creative process indeed is an evolutionary one, and that present creators draw upon past expression for inspiration. The copyright community relies upon the idea/ expression dichotomy, and the concept of fair use. As a consequence, copyright owners have a greater interest in preserving limitations to copyright protection to permit new forms of expression than do general members of the public. Creators need to stand on the shoulders of giants, right? For Lessig and his allies, fair use is little more than a useful slogan.