Research Catalog

Title

The public domain : enclosing the commons of the mind / James Boyle.

Author

Boyle, James, 1959-

Publication

New Haven : Yale University Press, [2008], ©2008.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

xvi, 315 pages; 25 cm

Summary

"In this enlightening book, James Boyle describes what he calls the range wars of the information age - today's heated battles over intellectual property. Boyle argues that just as every informed citizen needs to know at least something about the environment and civil rights, every citizen should also understand intellectual property law. Why? Because intellectual property rights mark out the ground rules of the information society, and today's policies are unbalanced, unsupported by evidence, and often detrimental to cultural access, free speech, digital creativity, and scientific innovation." "Boyle identifies as a major problem the widespread failure to understand the importance of the public domain - the realm of material that everyone is free to use and share without permission or fee. The public domain is as vital to innovation and culture as the material protected by intellectual property rights, he asserts, and he calls for a movement akin to the environmental movement to preserve it. With a clear analysis of issues ranging from Jefferson's philosophy of innovation to musical sampling, synthetic biology, and Internet file sharing, this timely book brings a positive new perspective to important cultural and legal debates. If we continue to enclose the "commons of the mind," Boyle argues, we will all be the poorer."--BOOK JACKET.

Subjects

• Public domain (Copyright law)
• Intellectual property

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (p. 249-296) and index.

Contents

Preface. Comprised of at least jelly? -- 1. Why intellectual property -- 2. Thomas Jefferson write a letter -- 3. The second enclosure movement -- 4. The Internet threat -- 5. The farmers' tale : an allegory -- 6. I got a mashup -- 7. The enclosure of science and technology : two case studies -- 8. A creative commons -- 9. An evidence-free zone -- 10. An environmentalism for information.

ISBN

• 9780300137408
• 0300137400

LCCN

99931985984

OCLC

• ocn223872292
• SCSB-5446272

Owning Institutions

Columbia University Libraries