Copyright term, film labeling, and film preservation legislation : hearings before the Subcommittee on Courts and Intellectual Property of the Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives, One Hundred Fourth Congress, first session, on H.R. 989, H.R. 1248, and H.R. 1734 ... June 1 and July 13, 1995 (1996)

Record Details:

Title:
Copyright term, film labeling, and film preservation legislation : hearings before the Subcommittee on Courts and Intellectual Property of the Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives, One Hundred Fourth Congress, first session, on H.R. 989, H.R. 1248, and H.R. 1734 ... June 1 and July 13, 1995
Date:
1996
Publisher:
Washington : U.S. G.P.O. : For sale by the U.S. G.P.O., Supt. of Docs., Congressional Sales Office
Volume:
Copyright term, film labeling, and film preservation legislation : hearings before the Subcommittee on Courts and Intellectual Property of the Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives, One Hundred Fourth Congress, first session, on H.R. 989, H.R. 1248, and H.R. 1734 ... June 1 and July 13, 1995
Leaf #:
000127
Language:
English
Subjects:
Copyright -- United States, Copyright -- Motion pictures United States","Motion pictures -- Labeling United States","Motion pictures -- Conservation and restoration United States
Collection:
Books and Government & Law
Format:
Books
Contributor:
Boston Public Library
Sponsor:
Kahle/Austin Foundation and Omidyar Network
Coordinator:
Media History Digital Library
Description:
Date Added:
July 19, 2022
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121 with "moral rights." To the extent this is true, the Act could threaten the constitutional goal of promoting the production and dissemination of copyrighted works and the traditional practices and relationships that are fundamental to the daily operation of copyright intensive industries in the U.S. If writers or directors are given 'moral rights," they could insist that their films be letter-boxed, rather than "panned and scanned." Letter-boxing is the technique used to present a film on a square TV screen by diminishing the size of the picture, leaving thick black lines across the top and bottom of the screen. Anyone who has ever spent any time in a video store can attest to the fact that, generally, the public finds letter-boxing a distracting interference with their enjoyment of the film. In addition, writers and directors could prevent conversion of films to videocassette in any format, claiming that both letterboxing and panning and scanning adulterate the "artistic integrity" of their films. Writers and directors could also leverage their "moral rights" to increase compensation. The studios would pass on that increased cost of production to distributors and, in turn, to video retailers. We the retailers would have to absorb that increased cost (although our margin of profit is far smaller than those of screenwriters and directors) and pass it on to our customers. Finally, negotiations over "moral rights" could lead to very substantial delays in the release date of a videocassette. That is the most likely outcome for many films. Almost