Take a complicated issue such as copyrights in the Digital Age. Throw in a generous helping of French politics and stir it with a dash of socialist ideology. The resulting concoction might not taste very good to executives of Apple Computer, and indeed could force the computer maker to change the way it does business in the Fifth Republic.
On Mar. 16, France’s National Assembly is expected to vote on legislation known as the author’s rights law. Among its many provisions, the bill calls for lightening the punishment on unauthorized downloads of copyrighted music. Currently digital pirates can be fined more than $300,000 and see jail time. Under the new legislation, offenders would get a relative slap on the wrist — a miniscule 38 euro fine — or less than $50, if the downloading is intended for personal consumption. Illegal sharing would cost offenders 150 euros, or about $180.
