2004/12/06

IP Policy : the tyranny of the lobbyists


Democracy isn't just about everyone being able to vote. Who influences and drafts legislation? Who gets to sit on influential bodies endorsed by a government. We have a once every 4 or 5 year "nuclear option" to keep our elected representatives in-line - big industry has continual, well-financed influence. And they are using it: FT.com / Comment & analysis / Columnists - James Boyle: A natural experiment:

"So how do we decide the ground-rules of the information age? Representatives of interested industries come to regulators and ask for another heaping slice of monopoly rent in the form of an intellectual property right. They have doom-laden predictions, they have anecdotes, carefully selected to pluck the heartstrings of legislators, they have celebrities who testify - often incoherently, but with palpable charisma - and they have very, very simple economic models. "

Found via Lessig

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