Re: [ARSCLIST] Gowers considered recommending shorter copyright term

[Don Cox <doncox@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On 28/04/07, D P Ingram wrote:

> On 27 apr 2007, at 23.48, Stephen C Leggett wrote:
>> <<<Gowers considered cutting copyright lifespan 11:19AM, Thursday  
>> 26th April 2007
>> Andrew Gowers has revealed that he considered cutting the 50-year  
>> copyright limit on sound recordings in his government-sponsored  
>> review of UK intellectual property laws and only decided to  
>> recommend that the status quo be retained because it was 'politically
> 
> 
> Very interesting development but I wonder how that would stack up with
> European law as in Europe they seem to have longer periods. This can,
> of course, give problems to release old recordings.

Until recently, Italy had a shorter period.

I think both Italy and Spain are now at 50 years. There would be an
obvious commercial advantage to having a shorter period. The Spanish
label Definitive has been issuing 1950s jazz recordings. 

Naxos seem to be issuing a lot of transfers from early EMI LPs. This
seems pointless as they are all available from EMI in transfers from the
studio master tapes. I guess it is being done to spite EMI.

Regards
-- 
Don Cox
doncox@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx