I swear, each time I think Big Media couldn’t possibly be more heartless, they somehow find a way.
At issue this time is a new WIPO treaty that would allow free international trade of book copies made in formats that reading-impaired people could use. This can only be a good thing, right? More readers, and thus a bigger market, and thus more sales?
Well, no, because that would mean that publishers wouldn’t have absolute control over the distribution of “their” works. So, as usual, Big Media is doing its “but but but PIRACY BLKAHRFAUHGUORHEG” dance in order to maintain its ever-threatened cultural gatekeeper status, and, as usual, the US government is buying the, err, “argument.”
And so, on Big Media’s say-so, the US and other rich nations are opposing an effort to make it easier for the reading-impaired to read books. Great. As if our reputation wasn’t already in the toilet.
When is this copyright-absolutist nonsense going to end?
Please spread the word about this, and link people to the original BoingBoing post (as usual, Cory Doctorow is awesome).
(H/T: Shakesville)
