Copy, Transform and Combine...a Recipe for the Digital Age

Is there any originality left in the world? Is it naive to think that it ever existed in the first place? These are the questions I’m pondering after viewing Kirby Ferguson’s four-part video series Everything is a Remix. I highly recommend that you check it out as it is well worth the 37 minute runtime. Or, if you’re running short on time, you can check out his related TED talk on creativity.

In these videos, Ferguson cites example after example of supposed original works that can trace their roots back to previous creations, some of which were themselves built on even earlier works. From songs and films to the lightbulb and the personal computer, there is no shortage of examples it seems.

Part four of the series explores how our legal system is at odds with a creative process that builds upon the works of others as it views these creative works through the awkward lens of property. Ferguson points to the rise of the market economy as a source of the problem, wherein a distinct competitive advantage is enjoyed by those who copy as they are able to avoid the costly price of development associated with the original. This dilemma gave rise to the introduction of copyright and patent laws whose intent was to secure a limited period of exclusivity for the originator where copying would not be allowed. Afterwards, that work would enter into the public domain where it could be built upon in order to spawn new ideas and new inventions.

This was the original intent of these cornerstones of creative protection and was directly reflected in their subtitles. The Copyright Act of 1790 was an act for the encouragement of learning and the Patent Act of 1790 was an act to promote the progress of useful arts. I was a little surprised to learn that these pieces of legislation were so focused on growth and provided protection for the individual but at the same time recognized the importance of the common good. Interestingly enough, I found another TED talk by Lettie Ransley that discusses the Statue of Anne, also known as the Copyright Act of 1710, as it relates to written works in the digital age. Passed 80 years prior to the US copyright act, this British legislation is coincidentally also described as an act for the encouragement of learning.

Today, copyright and patent laws are discussed almost exclusively in terms of protecting the owner’s rights from infringement. The video introduces two new species in the opportunistic litigation ecosystem: sample trolls and patent trolls, companies who make their living off of suing over intellectual property rights infringement, no matter how small. What benefit do these companies provide to the public? How do these self-serving practices live up to the original intent of these legal protections? There is virtually no discussion about the common good or the proliferation of new ideas built on the work of others. Perhaps now is the right time to remix the current distorted notions of copyright and intellectual property in this digital age and get back to our roots.