After attempting to read the post you linked to, I get to use this icon for the first time. :-)
OTW is a non-profit organisation set up a few months ago by a group of fans from LJ. Their original aim was to set up an online fanfic archive: this would be non-commercial (do you remember the Fanlib controversy?) and would allow any sort of story to be posted, with the sole exception of things which were actually outright illegal (I'm sure you remember Strikethrough).
OTW also wants to be able to contest cease-and-desist letters from IP holders on the grounds of Fair Use, rather than automatically caving into them without question as many other oranisations do - which means they need a legal defence fund to be built up through donations etc. And since they started, they've also added additional projects like a fandom Wiki and even an academic journal.
Lots of people think this is great news.
Lots of other people have reacted with immense quantities of drama and hatred. :-)
There's opposition to the fact that the OTW people are "self-appointed spokespeople for fandom". That they are ignoring certain elements of fandom, or over-generalising. People who've already created their own archives or wikis feel threatened. There's endless debate because OTW's mission statement mentions the fact that most people in this area of fandom have, historically, been women. And many people are worried that OTW's belief in the legitimacy of fanfic will bring too much unwelcome public attention and lawsuits.
And so on, and so on.
Personally I think it's a good idea, but may be over-ambitious. They're still getting organised and recruiting volunteers; it'll probably be mid-year before anything actually goes public. But fandom loves drama.
I love that shot of Buffy It's one of my favourites. From 'Earshot', when she's reading Wesley's mind.
Sounds like a good idea to me too, at least in theory. Plus, if the guy in that post is against it, I'm pretty much in favour of it on general principle. :-) (Funny how people always start trotting out the "FemiNazi" argument the second something isn't male-dominated...)
OTW is a non-profit organisation set up a few months ago by a group of fans from LJ. Their original aim was to set up an online fanfic archive: this would be non-commercial (do you remember the Fanlib controversy?) and would allow any sort of story to be posted, with the sole exception of things which were actually outright illegal (I'm sure you remember Strikethrough).
OTW also wants to be able to contest cease-and-desist letters from IP holders on the grounds of Fair Use, rather than automatically caving into them without question as many other oranisations do - which means they need a legal defence fund to be built up through donations etc. And since they started, they've also added additional projects like a fandom Wiki and even an academic journal.
Lots of people think this is great news.
Lots of other people have reacted with immense quantities of drama and hatred. :-)
There's opposition to the fact that the OTW people are "self-appointed spokespeople for fandom". That they are ignoring certain elements of fandom, or over-generalising. People who've already created their own archives or wikis feel threatened. There's endless debate because OTW's mission statement mentions the fact that most people in this area of fandom have, historically, been women. And many people are worried that OTW's belief in the legitimacy of fanfic will bring too much unwelcome public attention and lawsuits.
And so on, and so on.
Personally I think it's a good idea, but may be over-ambitious. They're still getting organised and recruiting volunteers; it'll probably be mid-year before anything actually goes public. But fandom loves drama.
I love that shot of Buffy
It's one of my favourites. From 'Earshot', when she's reading Wesley's mind.
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Lots of people think this is great news.
Sounds like a good idea to me too, at least in theory. Plus, if the guy in that post is against it, I'm pretty much in favour of it on general principle. :-) (Funny how people always start trotting out the "FemiNazi" argument the second something isn't male-dominated...)
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