JauntyWunderKind, that's the US legal system for ya. Apparently everything is done to appease the corporations, world be damned. And apparently it is legally allowed to pay lawmakers to convince them to pass certain laws (wtf?!?!?).

IMO, copyright term need to be significantly reduced. To something around 1-5 years, from effectively fucking eternity it is today. With copyright term this short, it'll still fulfill its original purpose — to allow the creator to earn their money — but reduce the abuse potential to around nothing. Just imagine the world without this rampant RIAA and MPAA hegemony. As it stands now, copyright is stifling creativity.