Let’s not celebrate copyright law extension

The Herald reports:

The Government is introducing sweeping changes to copyright law, which will see songs like I See Red by Split Enz, Dragon’s April Sun in Cuba and Hello Sailor’s Gutter Black enjoy extended copyright protection.

Copyright protection for these songs would expire in the next two years without the law change.

As they should. It was released 48 years ago. 50 years is more than enough time to be copyrighted. Without finite copyright limits we would be paying copyright of Shakespeare and Mozart.

I think the maximum copyright term should be 50 years or life + 20 years.That is enough to reward the creator and if they die, their children.

Copyright reform as been on the cards since the last Government entered into trade agreements with the UK and the EU that promised to align some parts of New Zealand’s domestic law with international standards.

The changes must be made by May 1, 2028.

The laws extend the copyright protection period for most works by 20 years, so they are protected for either 70 years from the creator’s death or 70 years from publication.

So we have to do it, under the FTAs. But that doesn’t mean we should try and sell it as a good thing for NZ. It will mainly benefit huge multinational studios.

Copyright for life + 70 years means it could be 150 years until something enters the public domain.