Larry Lessig flagellates himself about losing the Eldred case, which upheld the legality of copyright extensions. He … shouldn’t: Eldred was unwinnable. (The Court’s 7-2 vote is one clue). Besides, the worst of the Sonny Bono Copyright Term … Extension Act’s effects can still be made to disappear, if courts deem it “fair use” to copy an old work whose copyright owner …

copyright protection be limited in its duration (often shorter than the current term). We show that just as an absence of … have an expected or average life of only about 15 years; and (3) copyright registration and renewals are highly responsive … to economic incentives for the shorter the expected life of a copyright and the higher the registration and renewal fees …