Re: [QD-Filosofia] Statement of the Free Software Foundations Europe & Latin America to the 2005 WIPO general assemblies
Ricardo Andere de Mello <[email protected]> Sat, 01 Oct 2005 18:04:49 -0300
| Newsgroups | gmane.org.user-groups.quilombo |
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e cad=EA a vers=E3o espanhola/portuguesa... vou repassar para a lista da fsfla. []s, gandhi Rafael Evangelista wrote: > Pela FSFLA n=E3o assina ningu=E9m? E FSF e FSF India n=E3o assinam em c= onjunto? > > > Ricardo Andere de Mello wrote: > >> [ http://fsfeurope.org/projects/wipo/statement-20050930.en.html ] >> >> Statement of the Free Software Foundations >> >> Free Software Foundation Europe >> >> Free Software Foundation Latin America >> >> towards the 2005 WIPO general=20 >> assemblies >> >> Mr. Chairman, >> >> on behalf of the Free Software Foundations Europe and Latin America, >> let me express my congratulations to you and your colleagues on your >> chairing this historic general assembly. The Free Software Foundatio= ns >> are globally active centres of expertise acting in a network of sist= er >> organisations based in India, Latin America, Europe and the United >> States of America. >> >> Our area of expertise are the issues raised by a digitised society a= nd >> economy, questions which are addressed effectively by Free Software; >> as defined by the freedom of unlimited use for any purpose, the >> freedom to study, the freedom to modify and the freedom to=20 >> distribute.. >> >> Through the Free Software Foundation Europe the FSFs participated in >> all sessions of the Development Agenda IIM process and also followed >> the broadcasting treaty negotiations with great interest. Our commen= ts >> relate to both activities. >> >> Mr Chairman, >> >> much has been said and written about the knowledge society that >> humankind is about to enter. Looking at the regulatory initiatives, >> one stumbles upon a paradox: While society is getting ready to unlea= sh >> human creativity as it has never done before, regulatory proposals >> seek to create new barriers. >> >> The Broadcasting Treaty is a good example of such a new barrier for >> which the potential benefits and costs seem unequally matched in >> disfavor of humankind. >> >> The result of ignoring the wisdom of approaching crucial legal >> regulation can be seen in another area: software patents have been >> introduced without evaluation, and according to the findings of >> several renowned institutions we now have to realise that they are >> harmful to competition and stifle innovation. For your information: >> these institutions include Massachussetts Institute of Technology >> (MIT), the Boston University School of Law, Price Waterhouse Coopers= , >> US Federal Trade Commission and Deutsche Bank Research. >> >> The situation has degenerated to the point that a vice president of >> IBM, Mr Wladawsky-Berger, likened software patents to weapons of mas= s >> destruction in a New York Times interview. >> >> Similar experiences seem possible with the Broadcasting Treaty. >> >> Erecting additional barriers and raising all barriers by introductio= n >> of criminal sanctions against commercial infringement at a time when >> humankind is still struggling to fully understand the implications o= f >> the digital age would be hasty and unwise. >> >> Mr. Chairman, >> >> the traditional toolset of WIPO revolves centrally around limited >> monopolies, such as Copyrights, Patents or Trademarks. These have >> often been treated on the basis that more is always better, an >> approach that ignores both Liebigs law of the minimum as well as >> Shelfords law of tolerance: Not only will increasing the dose of the >> non-limiting factor have no positive effect, an overdose can be=20 >> toxic.. >> >> Finding the proper balance between too little and too much is the >> challenge that lies before any regulation. Given the fundamental >> impact of all regulations made on WIPO level, wisdom would suggest a >> conservative approach: >> >> New regulations should only be introduced if scientific evidence and >> evidence from a public review period conclusively show it to have a >> positive effect. >> >> Old regulations should be reviewed periodically as to whether they a= re >> still up to the needs of the time, or whether they require=20 >> adjustment.. >> >> In the light of the wisdom of Liebig and Shelford, agreeing to the >> creation of a WIPO Research and Evaluation Office (WERO) would seem >> trivial, so would the search for alternative means of fostering >> creativity. >> >> As the secretariat and member states correctly pointed out repeatedl= y >> in the past: WIPO exists to promote creativity. At the time of its >> inception, most alternative means of fostering creativity were not y= et >> concieved, in particular those related to digitalisation. Now that >> they exist, what would seem more natural for WIPO than exploring the= m? >> >> The discussions around the Development Agenda have proven to be most >> difficult, also because of procedural discussions, which indeed took >> the majority of the time spent in the IIM process. After these had >> been largely resolved, substantive discussion took place, cut short = by >> the need to come to a formal outcome that could be presented to this >> general assembly. >> >> Not continuing what was begun, or changing from a horse to a mule >> midstream, as the honored Indian delegate so eloquently put it, woul= d >> be wasting the time and effort spent on this initiative by all sides= , >> North and South. For this reason we strongly support the notion of >> letting the IIM process finish what it began. >> >> Mr Chairman, >> >> Thank you for your attention. >> >> Statement by Mr. Georg C.F. Greve <[email protected]> >> Free Software Foundation Europe, President >> > > _______________________________________________ > Quilombodigital-filosofia mailing list > Quilombodigital-filosofia-lWjjnNBg0S7cOli+L/M/[email protected] > http://listas.quilombodigital.org/mailman/listinfo/quilombodigital-filo= sofia=20 > --=20 Ricardo Andere de Mello Presidente do Quilombo Digital 55 (11) 3271-7928 / 55 (11) 9917-7722 _______________________________________________ Quilombodigital-filosofia mailing list Quilombodigital-filosofia-lWjjnNBg0S7cOli+L/M/[email protected] http://listas.quilombodigital.org/mailman/listinfo/quilombodigital-filoso= fia