The Copyright That Never Grew Old

The Today programme this morning mentioned something about the copyright
of Peter Pan at before ten to nine. No accusation of BBC bias from me this
time, but it is a bizarre story.

The story is that a sequel to Peter Pan is planned to replace the
royalties that will cease when the European copyright expires in 2007,
having already been extended. It was said, however, that the British
copyright will never expire. It seems that Great Ormond Street Hospital,
holder of the Peter Pan copyright, might support the retroactive copyright
extension in the EU and US, where Great Ormond Street Hospital has not
been given this unique priviledge.

Does it make any difference who the copyright holder is, when copyrights
are retroactively extended? Are those who oppose retroactive copyright
exension or support tools that might be used to violate copyright hurting
defenceless little children?

BBC website story:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/3582220.stm

Great Ormond Street Hospital's Peter Pan page:
http://www.gosh.org/about_us/peterpan/copyright.html

Tim Ivorson