Synopses & Reviews
The story of copyright is the history of the entertainment industry, including books, music, movies, television, computers, and the internet. Since its inception in America 210 years ago, copyright law has been the primary protector of the right of authors. Over the course of its history, however, myriad technology developments have produced constant pressure on the law, forcing copyright to adapt or expand to accommodate our creations.
In The Illustrated Story of Copyright, Professor Edward Samuels explains in a straightforward and colorful style the history and intricacies of copyright. From the printing press to the photocopying machine, the phonograph to MP3, this comprehensive guide explains the basic principles of copyright law and brings to life the relevant copyright technologies.
Samuels takes copyright, commonly perceived to be difficult subject, and gives it a fresh and engaging edge. The Illustrated Story of Copyright is an essential tool to navigate the complex partnership of creativity and property rights.
Review
"[Professor Samuels] gives us a lively sampling of both copyright law and copyright lore . . . With its informal humor, its social history, its non-legal style, and its snappy illustrations, [
The Illustrated Story of Copyright] will place the current controversies over digital technologies in their historic continuum . . . Absolutely absorbing from cover to cover."—Ralph Oman, former Register to Copyrights
"The Illustrated Story of Copyright succeeds brilliantly."—New York Law Journal
"A lively and informed introduction to copyright law, The Illustrated Story of Copyright is as timely as it is readable."—Paul Goldstein, Stanford Law School, author of Copyright's Highway
"Copyright is often seen as an impediment to personal enjoyment, or as the engine of corporate greed. In this hostile environment, Professor Edward Samuels's The Illustrated Story of Copyright . . . is a welcome corrective. Samuels brings to life the inventors, investors, authors, and users whose sometimes competing interests shaped the . . . contours of modern copyright law."—Jane C. Ginsburg, Morton L. Janklow Professor of Literary and Artistic Property Law, Columbia University Law School
"Not since Benjamin Kaplan's magisterial and prophetic An Unhurried View of Copyright, published in 1967, has anyone written so lucid and entertaining a book about this nearly dead but intrinsically fascinating subject . . . Samuels manages to convey in words and pictures all that any layman needs to know about . . . copyright, along with the latest in technology . . . His book should find a place on the desk of every publisher and also on those of songwriters, illustrators, art directors, and computer hackers."—Atlantic Monthly
"Readers will enjoy learning how copyright applies to pop-culture products, from movies to musicals to computer software."—Booklist
"Copyright expert Samuels succeeds admirably in his goal of providing an easy-to-understand review of copyright for the general public . . . [A] first-rate, accessible introduction to a hot topic."—Library Journal
About the Author
Edward Samuels has taught copyright, conmtracts, commerical law, bankruptcy, and legal method at New York Law School for twenty-five years. He has written numerous articles on copyright.