Wednesday 6 July 2011

Going gaga over intellectual property, right?

Assuming that the original songwriter has not given permission for the song to be used this way, the Lady Gaga NDP Fun Pack Song saga is a reflection of the lack of respect for intellectual property rights in Singapore.

If this infringement has been approved at the highest level it is a shocking indictment on our moral standards. A standard being led "from the top"?

There is a very simple solution. Again come back to "do to others as you would like others to do to you".

My son, aged eleven, won't even think to violate intellectual property rights like that simply on the premise that one day, one day in the distant future, he might write a song, a piece of music, invent something fantastic etc.

Then what? Would it be fair that people used his work without paying for it, a result of hard work, trial and error, etc?

Likewise he refuses to take something that is not his. Violating intellectual rights is theft. No ifs, no buts.

If Singaporean artists/artistes are not able to see like this eleven-year-old, then they clearly do not have the confidence to be able to produce something quite spectacular and successful.

See also Copyright and Integrity

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