Here is something to keep in mind regarding copyrights, and other protection of intellectual property: It is a means to insure the creators of intellectual property get compensated. If the marketplace comes up with means by which they are able to get compensated beyond the normal routes, then it is possible to have the public domain show up.
I have done game designers. Rather than try to protect what I have with paranoia over someone stealing my ideas. I get my ideas up on the web first, in full exposure. If any of my designs happen to become relevant, because someone takes them and runs with them, I would bank on curiousity to reveal I was an originator of the idea. My belief now is that an idea is FAR more likely to get lost today than stolen, so I am in favor of exposure for what I have worked on. I have seen enough stories of individuals trying to patent chess variants, for example. They end up killing off any chance of having their design catch on if they do that.
