As a followup to yesterday’s post, in one of my emails was a link to the following BBC story – "Egypt ‘to copyright antiquities.’ This law will require individuals or companies to pay royalties whenever they make a copy of a museum artifact or monument. The article quotes Mr. Hawass (chair of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities) as saying that "Even if it is for private use, they must have permission from the Egyptian government." This law would be applied to all countries, and I would have to assume to the Internet and Second Life as well. A little looking around found several versions of the story – and some seem to imply that it applies to exact copies only. A version of this story in the New York Times also states that "However, UNESCO and Lufti’s organization are trying to develop the idea — which still has not won wide backing — that a nation has the right to defend how its folklore and heritage are used internationally." This would certainly affect SL and the Internet. Once again I see both positives and negatives to this and how it could impact education. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
RSM
Ancient History Ramblings 