That is ALWAYS the problem with intellectual property law (not to mention modern court systems): they always require going to court to hash out the underlying question, and they allow the big fish (Royal Library, Microsoft, International Conglomerate #4, etc) to use the court not as a legitimate means of settling dispute but rather as a bludgeon - because even defending against frivolous lawsuits will cost money for paperwork and lawyer time and filing fees, and they've got an army of lawyers that can kick out a frivolous lawsuit variant every 5 minutes or so.
A. Nony Mouse
Many of these things cannot be settled without going to court in each separate country, and the putative copyright holders know that the mere idea of landing in court can be a deterrent even when the chance of the court upholding the copyright is negligible.
Lego is a good example of a Danish company that actively pursues intellectual property rights against Megablocks in one country after another, and consistently loses.
Ec
WikiEN-l mailing list WikiEN-l@Wikipedia.org http://mail.wikipedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikien-l
_________________________________________________________________ It's finally here! Download Messenger 7.0 - still FREE http://messenger.msn.co.uk