EFF: Congress Shouldn’t Turn the Copyright Office Into A Copyright Court
Congress Shouldn’t Turn the Copyright Office Into A Copyright Court While most people are focused on net neutrality, surveillance, and tax reform, a few legislators are quietly mulling over a different problem: copyright reform. Five years ago, Representative Bob Goodlatte, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, launched a series of hearings and studies that he said would lead to comprehensive copyright reform. EFF and many others testified on the merits and problems in virtually every facet of copyright law, and we all waited expectantly for the “ Next Great Copyright Act .” For better or worse, that dramatic reform never happened. Instead, we got the CASE Act , a bill to create a small claims process for copyright. The impetus behind this bill comes largely from photographers and other visual artists, who want a way to bring small-value copyright claims with lower expenses. They are legitimately concerned that the cost of litigation puts strong copyright protection out of ...
