[Jedi Master Pikachu]

There are still old American stories that are not in the pd because they keep on getting their copyright renewed.

Personally view this move by the British government.

[Jedi Master Pikachu]

Personally view this move by the British government as a move in the good direction.

[weegee]

Tarzan books are in the public domain but the ERB estate trademarked the literary character in the later years in an effort to prevent others from using the character.

I believe the Oz characters have been written into new works by a number of authors with the characters in the public domain.

While Disney Inc. has tried to keep Mickey Mouse from ever becoming public domain, they have litigated to get Winnie the Pooh INTO the public domain because they did not create the character and don’t want to pay royalties/licensing fees.

They did voluntarily pay the ERB estate when they made their Tarzan film but it may not have been necessary.

None of the original authors see a dime more either way. They are dead.

In the music biz, many artists couldn’t make money off their own songs because they did not own their own publishing and also because of crooked accounting processes.

If the works lapse into the public domain, the creators of these works will be able to release the “signature” version even if there is a cheaper “no frills budget” release.

Why was it okay for Ted Heath’s music to lapse into the public domain but not Cliff Richards’? Why Louis Armstrong but not Elvis?

The arguments are hollow.