There's nothing in the Orphaned Works Act that does anything that Section 104 of the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act doesn't already do a thousand times better.
The problem is that the Orphaned Works Act isn't about the preservation or the restoration of our historical documents and photos. That particular wording isn't even in there!
Instead this bill defines an 'Orphaned Work' as any work that doesn't have the creator's information clearly attached and who's owner can not be found by searching the Copyright office. Never mind that the Copyright office does not have a searchable database or image recognition software! Our Senator's feel confident that corporate America can fill this void . . . at a reasonable price, of course!
No, this bill is all about legalizing copyright infringement and then rewarding the infringer with unlimited use! If this bill passes, your only reward for diligently protecting your copyright will be a 'reasonable licensing fee' whether you agree with the pilfered use or not!
Why would our Representatives do something like this? The short answer is, lower and fewer payments for artistic works, and less need for new hires. The longer answer is tied to the full name of this bill and who wrote it.
S.2913 is otherwise known as: The Shawn Bentley Orphaned Works Act 2008. Shawn Bentley was the VP of Intellectual Property and head lobbyist for Time Warner Cable.
A quick Google search will show that Shawn Bentley was a lawyer and lobbyist for none other than Time Warner Cable. As the VP in charge of intellectual property, his job description included *acquisition*, management and protection of Time Warner's intellectual property.
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