Supreme Court upholds First Sale Doctrine
Apr. 1st, 2013 11:45 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
thewayneDefinite YAY. I buy lots of books, movies, and music second-hand.
The basic story is that a guy from Thailand(?) discovered that, while he was going to university there, books were cheap. He came to the U.S. to complete his degree, and found that the same cheap book was VERY expensive over here. So he set up an import business where his relatives there would buy and ship books to him here, which he would sell.
He was sued by John Wiley & Co., publisher, and judged against, and ordered to pay a fine of $600,000. His appeals finally got to the SCOTUS, where it decided 6-3 for him.
A SCOTUS decision against him could have devastating ripples throughout the economy. Say goodbye to a bulk of eBay. Favorite used book stores would die. Potential problems for public libraries lending DVDs and music.
I'm sure Wiley et al will be all over DC, lobbying for new legislation. I really hope they continue to fail and First Sale Doctrine continues to be upheld.
I don't think that I'll ever understand the book industry. I find a nice book on Python 3 and it's $45. I look at Amazon, and it's $30. I think tech books of all disciplines are the worst offenders.
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2013/03/scotus-first-sale-decision/
The basic story is that a guy from Thailand(?) discovered that, while he was going to university there, books were cheap. He came to the U.S. to complete his degree, and found that the same cheap book was VERY expensive over here. So he set up an import business where his relatives there would buy and ship books to him here, which he would sell.
He was sued by John Wiley & Co., publisher, and judged against, and ordered to pay a fine of $600,000. His appeals finally got to the SCOTUS, where it decided 6-3 for him.
A SCOTUS decision against him could have devastating ripples throughout the economy. Say goodbye to a bulk of eBay. Favorite used book stores would die. Potential problems for public libraries lending DVDs and music.
I'm sure Wiley et al will be all over DC, lobbying for new legislation. I really hope they continue to fail and First Sale Doctrine continues to be upheld.
I don't think that I'll ever understand the book industry. I find a nice book on Python 3 and it's $45. I look at Amazon, and it's $30. I think tech books of all disciplines are the worst offenders.
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2013/03/scotus-first-sale-decision/
