@GrailUK Preservation means being available for future generations to enjoy and study. The Library of Congress preserves all sorts of media - including video games, believe it or not.
As the author mentioned in the article, we collectively have lost incredible amounts of media over decades and even centuries because people didn't care enough to take care of things.
Did you know that "Monty Python's Flying Circus" was almost recorded over?
@Ryu_Niiyama Interesting question. The short answer is you're correct - it's either talk to the university, track down copies at libraries, or purchase on the secondary market.
The longer answer: assuming that the publisher owned all of the copyrights, and assuming that the copyrights were transferred to the university, the copyrights will not expire until 95 years after publication. There's nothing preventing a copyright holder from sitting on their IP until it expires.
"A specific number of years after an author’s death their work can be distributed and preserved for free (though you can't just sell a copy of a Shakespeare play, for example, unless you own the rights)."
This is incorrect. Once something enters the public domain, it's a free-for-all. There's nothing stopping me, IP-wise, from printing and selling copies of "Romeo & Juliet." It happens all the time.
(I have a Masters in Library and Information Science. Librarians know more about copyright than you might think.)
Comments 3
Re: Talking Point: Nintendo And The Industry Needs To Get Serious About Game Preservation
@GrailUK Preservation means being available for future generations to enjoy and study. The Library of Congress preserves all sorts of media - including video games, believe it or not.
As the author mentioned in the article, we collectively have lost incredible amounts of media over decades and even centuries because people didn't care enough to take care of things.
Did you know that "Monty Python's Flying Circus" was almost recorded over?
Re: Talking Point: Nintendo And The Industry Needs To Get Serious About Game Preservation
@Ryu_Niiyama Interesting question. The short answer is you're correct - it's either talk to the university, track down copies at libraries, or purchase on the secondary market.
The longer answer: assuming that the publisher owned all of the copyrights, and assuming that the copyrights were transferred to the university, the copyrights will not expire until 95 years after publication. There's nothing preventing a copyright holder from sitting on their IP until it expires.
Re: Talking Point: Nintendo And The Industry Needs To Get Serious About Game Preservation
"A specific number of years after an author’s death their work can be distributed and preserved for free (though you can't just sell a copy of a Shakespeare play, for example, unless you own the rights)."
This is incorrect. Once something enters the public domain, it's a free-for-all. There's nothing stopping me, IP-wise, from printing and selling copies of "Romeo & Juliet." It happens all the time.
(I have a Masters in Library and Information Science. Librarians know more about copyright than you might think.)