On Thursday, July 5th, Free Software Foundation founder Richard M. Stallman will be speaking at the University of Toronto’s Mississauga Campus. His topic will be Copyright vs. Community in the Age of Computer Networks.
The talk is co-sponsored by U of T’s Department of Mathematical and Computational Sciences and Knowledge Media Design Institute. It will be a non-technical talk, and everyone from hard-nerds to laypeople are encouraged to attend.
Here’s the abstract for the talk, taken from Greg Wilson’s blog…
Copyright developed in the age of the printing press, and was designed to fit with the system of centralized copying imposed by the printing press. But the copyright system does not fit well with computer networks, and only draconian punishments can enforce it.
The global corporations that profit from copyright are lobbying for draconian punishments, and to increase their copyright powers, while suppressing public access to technology. But if we seriously hope to serve the only legitimate purpose of copyright—to promote progress, for the benefit of the public—then we must make changes in the other direction.
The presentation will take place on Thursday, July 5th at 5:00 p.m. at Matthews Auditorium, Room 137, Kaneff Center, University of Toronto, 3359 Mississauga Road North, Missisauga. The topic will be free as in speech, and admission will be free as in beer.