The Times Online reports that Britain is considering doubling the length of copyrights on pop classics, in an attempt to march in step with American laws. Currently Britain’s copyright protection lasts 50 years, while in the U.S. copyrights go for 90.

Their justification?

James Purnell, the new minister for creative industries, believes the change will allow record companies to generate extra revenue to look for new talent and nurture it. Purnell, who will outline his plans in a speech next week, said: “The music industry is a risky business and finding talent and artists is expensive. There is a view that long-term earners are needed so that the record companies can plough money back into unearthing new talent.”

Frankly, I dispute this idea. It isn’t expensive to unearth raw talent: it’s expensive and time consuming to become talented. Finding talented people is actually pretty simple. What’s expensive is the ridiculous process that the music industry goes through to market and promote their music.

You see, the problem isn’t that a couple of pop classics will be protected. It’s that all works will be. You are robbing the public of their property by keeping it from entering the public domain, with absolutely no reasonable recompense.

Let their dying business model die. Let new ones, based upon building on our shared cultural heritage begin.