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The document discusses the history of copyright and how it has increasingly restricted creativity and innovation over time. It begins in 1774 when copyright was first established in England as a limited term, but publishers later argued it should be permanent. This tension between limiting and controlling the past to enable future creativity is a recurring theme. The document then outlines how copyright duration kept expanding in the US from 14 years to life plus 70 years, and how fair use and other exceptions are now threatened by digital rights management and anti-circumvention laws. It argues this trend makes society less free and enables established companies to control and exclude competitors. Open source and free software are presented as an alternative to proprietary control of creativity.












