Donald P. Harris has self-archived "The New Prohibition: A Look at the Copyright Wars through the Lens of Alcohol Prohibition" in SSRN.
Here's an excerpt:
This Article argues that legislators, commentators, and the copyright industry must entertain laws that embrace filesharing, and seek other ways to incentivize artists and other creators. The Article traces Alcohol Prohibition of the 1920s and 1930s as an historical example of laws that were inconsistent with the vast majority of society's morals and norms. Looking back, one can see many similarities between the Alcohol and Filesharing Prohibitions. The Article suggests, then, that lessons learned from the failed "noble experiment" of Alcohol Prohibition should be applied to the current filesharing controversy. Doing so, the Article advocates legalizing certain noncommercial filesharing. A scheme along these lines will comport with societal norms and will force new business models to replace outdated and ineffective business models.
| Scholarly Electronic Publishing Bibliography 2010 | Digital Scholarship |
