Re: Fw: Amazon's Ebook License A Scam, Says Doctorow

From: "Erica Frank" 

Erica wrote: Nope. This has been tested in court--Vernor v Autodestk; Vernor was in
the habit of buying secondhand copies of software at yard sales &
selling them on Ebay; Autodesk claimed that was a violation of
copyright; the courts ruled that digital files, like everything else,
are "sold" rather than "licensed" if the terms of transfer matched the
legal terms for a sale.

Joseph writes: But there is the point I see making the difference - '...if the terms of transfer matched the
legal terms for a sale...' In other words, while it is convention to sell the print book as a package of transferred rights, it seems possible to limit the terms, and so the rights of the purchaser.

Erica wrote: The most important of those points was a lack of return/destroy
conditions: 

Joseph: In other words the original owner can sell under any terms they choose! Just because a secondhand market probably helps sales of new goods, it does not of itself mean the original owner *must* offer any particular terms. But, as with all contracts, unless an alternative is stated, convention rules!

Erica: (You cannot sell a
car with the condition, "you may only drive this on weekends." You may
not sell a book with the condition, "you may only read this under
fluorescent lighting." And you can't sell either with the condition,
"you may not resell this later.")

Joseph:In fact the law imposes many restrictions on car ownership and use, and these laws are imposed nationally and locally. Indeed, *how* you drive and now increasing how you dispose of a car is legislated over.

Erica:--but the oddness of tech doesn't
change the way the law works. 

Joseph: Totally agree - and some of my vociferous statements to that effect may be found in the archives of this list, over some years ;-).

Joseph

Joseph Harris - Debt Control Man
http://www.controlyourdebtcrisis.co.uk
Author: Control Your Debt Crisis on Your Own Terms
http://twitter.com/debtcontrolman 
SAQ - SAve the cheQue


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