Aye, but instead the reality is that copyright can only expire by running out its term. If a company gets acquired, its copyrights get transfered to the new owner. If a company goes out of business, the copyright either gets sold to cover bankrupcy or becomes the property of the people who owned the company. If a person holding a copyright dies, it goes to their heir(s), and finally, if someone dies without heirs, it becomes state property in the US.
The only way for a copyright to expire is either by running out its term, or by the current copyright holder voiding it.
Let's go further and tax it. If it's still worth something for you after X years, claim it, but also pay the tax. When calculating piracy damages, use the same value as what you declared as taxable. If you want society to defend your rights, pay for it.
Not a bad idea - some entity must show legal ownership via chain of custody and make a claim every year, if they can't do so, it becomes public domain with an extra 1 year grace period or something.
No, it should be non-transferable (but commissionable, so that companies can still own copyright if they paid employees to generate works), have a fixed short term (say, 20 years), and should be voided when the copyright holder expires before the copyright itself expires.
I'm pretty sure if a copyright owner dies without heirs the copyright is orphaned, it doesn't become state property in the US. That's the problem. If the work became public domain it would make more sense.
That's the sort of provision that is effectively unenforced, and is hence null in practice. I expect most states do not know whether they own any IP from dissolved companies, nor will they prosecute anyone who "infringes" such rights.
Ignorance of the law is no defense against prosecution, and any claim that "it's null in practice" is about as bad legal advise as you can give.
Even if the company went bust, and the former owners died, and they have no legal heirs, that copyright is STILL active and now lies with the state, whether the state knows that or not.
It might be called an orphan work, and it might take a whole lot of digging to discover it's now owned by the state, but it is owned, and they do have the right to prosecute over infringement if someone at any point goes "hang on, we own this, and we can make close to 50% of our annual budget by prosecuting".
The only way for a copyright to expire is either by running out its term, or by the current copyright holder voiding it.
It's such a great system.