[pp.int.general] WIPO DG mentions Pirate Party in speech to Blue Sky conference

[Scott Elcomb]

On Tue, Mar 1, 2011 at 5:24 AM, Jack Allnutt
<j.allnutt at pirateparty.org.uk> wrote:
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> I've just stumbled upon the transcript of a speech the Director General
> of the World Intellectual Property Organisation gave on the 25th
> February to the Blue Sky Conference entitled "Future Directions in
> Copyright Law" where he mentions the Pirate Party. It's worth giving the
> whole transcript a read but here's the party where he talks about us:

Even more important to my mind is the DG's position on Copyright:

"Digital technology and the Internet have had, and will continue to
have, a radical impact on those balances. They have given a
technological advantage to one side of the balance, the side of free
availability, the consumer, social enjoyment and short-term
gratification. History shows that it is an impossible task to reverse
technological advantage and the change that it produces. Rather than
resist it, we need to accept the inevitability of technological change
and to seek an intelligent engagement with it. There is, in any case,
no other choice – either the copyright system adapts to the natural
advantage that has evolved or it will perish."

The Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization
says Copyright must adapt or die... For me this was very unexpected.


"In order to effect a change in attitude, I believe that we need to
re-formulate the question that most people see or hear about copyright
and the Internet. People do not respond to being called pirates.
Indeed, some, as we have seen, even make a pride of it. They would
respond, I believe, to a challenge to sharing responsibility for
cultural policy. We need to speak less in terms of piracy and more in
terms of the threat to the financial viability of culture in the 21st
Century, because it is this which is at risk if we do not have an
effective, properly balanced copyright policy."

It's my belief that Pirates should respond to this challenge - that we
should open constructive dialog with this DG.  Even if he considers
some of our views extreme, it also sounds like he'd be willing to
listen to and discuss our views and potential solutions.  One view I
think we share outright with Mr. Gurry is that Copyright needs to be
less complex; one thing I'd certainly like to see!

-- 
  Scott Elcomb
  http://www.psema4.com/   @psema4

  Clerk of the Pirate Party of Canada
  http://www.pirateparty.ca/