Subject: Re: Berlin maps - (and Belgian Enclave News)<br/>
Date: Aug 07, 2002 @ 00:51<br/>
Author: anorak222 (&quot;anorak222&quot; &lt;wolfi.junkmail@...&gt;)<br/>
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<div id="ygrps-yiv-54988772">--- In BoundaryPoint@y..., Ernst Stavro Blofeld &lt;blofeld_es@y...&gt; <br/>
wrote:<br/>
<br/>
<blockquote><span title="ireply"> &gt; Does anyone know the legal basis of asking this kind<br/>
&gt; of money for the maps? Who owns the copyright of these<br/>
&gt; maps?<br/>
<br/>
 </span></blockquote>I seem to remember TV documentaries about him. If memory serves, he <br/>
used to be the cartographer who made these maps, when he worked for <br/>
the border guards. Now he makes his life from running this document <br/>
centre. He&#39;s also the author of this book: <br/>
<a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://www.amazon.de/exec/obidos/ASIN/393086388X">http://www.amazon.de/exec/obidos/ASIN/393086388X</a><br/>
<br/>
<blockquote><span title="ireply"> &gt; Should the copyright not now be the property of all<br/>
&gt; workers and farmers of the former East Germany, since<br/>
&gt; they have owned the maps all along anyway? Or, at<br/>
&gt; least, some non-profit organisation of the united<br/>
&gt; Germany?<br/>
<br/>
 </span></blockquote>Well, that&#39;s not how it works. &quot;The workers and farmers&quot; is a void <br/>
concept. Legally, what was euphemistically called &quot;people&#39;s <br/>
property&quot;, was property of the East German government or a body owned <br/>
by it (e.g. a company founded by it, the military, etc.). All of that <br/>
was inherited by the (former West, now United) German govt in 1990, <br/>
who then decided what to do with it. Rights are not the main assets <br/>
thus inherited. Real estate, factories etc. are.<br/>
<br/>
That said, German law works different than Anglo-Saxon <br/>
law. &quot;Copyright&quot; doesn&#39;t exist as a concept. The actual author of a <br/>
work cannot be denied &quot;Urheberrecht&quot; (the right to decide what <br/>
happens with his work). &quot;Verwertungsrecht&quot; (the right to make money <br/>
with it) is separate, it may be with someone else. But maybe Mr. Koch <br/>
has both, who knows.<br/>
<br/>
<blockquote><span title="ireply"> &gt; Does anyone know if the maps are on public display in<br/>
&gt; any library or archive? If so, copies should be<br/>
&gt; possible to obtain at a more modest fee, and certainly<br/>
&gt; scans at an even more welcomming price.<br/>
<br/>
 </span></blockquote>I&#39;d like to know too. The research would take some time though ...<br/>
<br/>
Regards</div>