David Bollier, The Politics of Copyright Law Explained.

Bollier's review of William Patry, _Moral Panics and the Copyright Wars_ Oxford University Press, September 2009. Quoting Bollier: "Patry notes that...copyright law has historically been unimportant to most authors. It is publishers who gain the most; authors' interests are purely secondary. The long terms of copyright protection are simply giveaways to publishers at the expense of the public. One study showed that of about 10,000 books sold in 1930, only 1.7 percent of them are still in print. So most of the authors of that time (or their estates) are making no money from their works, yet all 10,000 books remain under copyright, unavailable for public re-use, until 2025. Patry does a deft job exposing the claims of the film, recording and publishing industries for what they are: contrived moral panics intended to defend their short-term business interests...."