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International Copyright: An Unorthodox Analysis American Association Of Law Schools' Intellectual Property Section's Symposium On Compliance With The Trips Agreement, Hugh C. Hansen

Faculty Scholarship

Professor Hansen reviews the development of copyright from its traditional domestic orientation to the modern emphasis on globalization and harmonization. His commentary analogizes modem trends in international copyright to religious equivalents. He notes that the current players include a "secular priesthood" (the traditional copyright bar and academics), "agnostics and atheists" (newer academics and lawyers, particularly those concerned with technology and the culture of the public domain) and "missionaries" (whose task it is to increase copyright protection around the world and who are primarily driven by trade considerations). The copyright "crusade" has been driven by this last group. The author compares …