I really think this whole Copyright/Intellectual Property kerfuffle has much to do with the relative size of the creator's head. Honestly, if I was George Lucas, I would most likely be stuck on myself as well. But after you have been acclaimed and told over and over how amazing your work is, you want less and less for someone to mess with it. If it's terrible fan fiction or parody, the creator cries desecration, then sues your pants off. If, God forbid, it's actually good then the creator beats you, takes your idea, and finally sues your pants off for good measure.
Money loss simply doesn't explain the lengths some of these Artists/Creators go to squash the creativity of fans. However, the vindictive tenacity of a swollen ego, I think, explains it quite nicely. :)
Many long-serving creators such as George Lucas (and even Disney might count as one) are furious about how their "fans" treat their intellectual property. And they press charges against them wherever they can. For them, anything from fan fiction to fan culture may seem as a defilement of their work. But a lot more people might call that "paying tribute" or "paying homage" to the creator... Seems like this is a matter of opinion, which the one with the bigger paycheck and better lawyers decides upon :)
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ReplyDeleteJesse, I agree, the swollen ego has reached an all-time high. Jenkins says, (and I agree), "media companies give out mixed signals because they really can't decide what kind of relationships they want to have with this new kind of consumer"(p 138). "Look but don't touch, buy but don't use [media content]."
ReplyDeleteWho cares!? Let us enjoy your product as it was intended, let us buy ourselves into debt with your add-on purchases, let us fill our homes with unnecessary movie paraphernalia. Let us do what we do best, consume and then...create something from that.