Book People Archive

A Review of Lawrence Lessig's "The Future of Ideas"

http://writ.news.findlaw.com/books/reviews/20011121_katyal.html

Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2001| FindLaw's WRIT

PRIVATE PROPERTY, THE PUBLIC USE OF CREATIVITY, AND THE INTERNET: A
Review of Lawrence Lessig's The Future of Ideas

By SONIA KUMARI KATYAL


America is embroiled in a complex and passionate debate about the
function of intellectual property in fostering creativity and
innovation on the Internet. Accordingly, a host of recent
Internet-related cases-- ranging from the Napster action to the
indictment of Dmitry Sklyarov under the Digital Millennium Copyright
Act-- have garnered intense media attention.

These cases have launched a virtual culture war that rages across
generations in the United States. And, at each turn, Professor
Lawrence Lessig has been there, quietly invoking common sense and a
respect for innovation in the face of powerful anti-piracy
initiatives from Hollywood and the music industry.

Lessig is a professor at Stanford Law School and the author of a
previous book entitled Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace. He is also
the brilliant leader of a new-- and growing-- generation of academics,
practitioners, and programmers who seek to critically redefine the
nature of digital intellectual property by exposing the limits of
law in a high-tech world.

Towards that end, Lawrence Lessig's new book, The Future of Ideas,
is an incredible resource for anyone who wishes to grapple with the
difficult intersection between private property and the public use
of creativity on the Internet.

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