Book Review:

Sonia K. Katyal, Ending the Revolution, 80 TEXAS L. REV. 1465 (2002) (reviewing Lawrence Lessig, The Future of Ideas (2001) and Siva Vaidhyanathan, Copyrights and Copywrongs (2001)).

Abstract:

This review examines two books that struggle with the relationship between intellectual property and the law in cyberspace.  According to Professor Katyal, both authors present a stark view of a future with only two possibilities: domination by corporate ownership or complete deregulation.  They propose that to avoid a loss of technological innovation, a new system of decentralized regulation that allows free-form artistry without fear of liability must replace adherence to the traditional legal ownership principles that will destroy creativity. Lessig recommends balancing private rights and public interests by limiting intellectual property rights.  Vaidhyanathan goes further in suggesting that creativity has flourished without intellectual property protections and that copyrights are unnecessary and potentially destructive to creativity. Professor Katyal submits that there is an alternative view: laws and technological innovation each control different parts of cyberspace.  She argues that while some areas of the internet are subject to legal control, other areas, such as peer-to-peer frameworks, are outside the sphere of the law.  She concludes that, contrary to the predictions of the two reviewed authors, the digital revolution is far from over.