Re: when will this madness stop?
The pressure group claims "Naruto has the right to own and benefit from the copyright in the Monkey Selfies in the same manner and to the same extent as any other author."
I can see merit in the argument that the monkey[0] has the right to benefit to SOME extent from the copyright on the picture, by virtue of having SOME involvement in its creation, for instance through a percentage of the proceeds being used in support of preserving its habitat. In this case I'd consider 25..30% to be a fair rate, less in a case where it's something like an IR trigger placed along a known track. In some cases this support may have already been (partly) fulfilled via nature reserve access permit fees and the like.
But, while IANAL, assigning copyright to an entity which can neither express consent with the terms of an usage contract, nor appoint a representative who can do so on its behalf (and ipso facto, neither accept nor reject a representative claiming to represent it)? Excuse me, that's monkey business.
[0] Does he actually answer to the name ?
Biting the hand that feeds IT
