Copyright term extension and orphan works

摘要

This article examines three recent topics in copyright policy from an economic perspective: (i) term extensions, (ii) the orphan works problem, and (iii) mass digitization projects. Copyright term extensions will make it even more difficult to locate rights holders in the future than it is at present; however there are some recent legislative proposals to address this problem. Term extensions will also make finding works more difficult, but here mass digitization projects may be helpful.