The correct answer is (E).
Copyright Law and the World Wide Web
Step 1: Read the Passage Strategically
Sample Highlighting
The World Wide Web, a network of electronically produced and interconnected (or "linked") sites, called pages, that are accessible via personal computer, raises legal issues about the rights of owners of intellectual property, notably those who create documents for inclusion on Web pages. Some of these owners of intellectual property claim that unless copyright law is strengthened, intellectual property on the Web will not be protected from copyright infringement. Web users, however, claim that if their ability to access information on Web pages is reduced, the Web cannot live up to its potential as an open, interactive medium of communication.
The debate arises from the Web's ability to link one document to another. Links between sites are analogous to the inclusion in a printed text of references to other works, but with one difference: the cited document is instantly retrievable by a user who activates the link. This immediate accessibility creates a problem, since current copyright laws give owners of intellectual property the right to sue a distributor of unauthorized copies of their material even if that distributor did not personally make the copies. If person A, the author of a document, puts the document on a Web page, and person B, the creator of another Web page, creates a link to A's document, is B committing copyright infringement?
To answer this question, it must first be determined who controls distribution of a document on the Web. When A places a document on a Web page, this is comparable to recording an outgoing message on one's telephone answering machine for others to hear. When B creates a link to A's document, this is akin to B's giving out A's telephone number, thereby allowing third parties to hear the outgoing message for themselves. Anyone who calls can listen to the message; that is its purpose. While B's link may indeed facilitate access to A's document, the crucial point is that A, simply by placing that document on the Web, is thereby offering it for distribution. Therefore, even if B leads others to the document, it is A who actually controls access to it. Hence creating a link to a document is not the same as making or distributing a copy of that document. Moreover, techniques are already available by which A can restrict access to a document. For example, A may require a password to gain entry to A's Web page, just as a telephone owner can request an unlisted number and disclose it only to selected parties. Such a solution would compromise the openness of the Web somewhat, but not as much as the threat of copyright infringement litigation. Changing copyright law to benefit owners of intellectual property is thus ill-advised because it would impede the development of the Web as a public forum dedicated to the free exchange of ideas.
Passage Notes
Paragraph 1
Web creates IP issues for creators of docs
IP owners: must tighten copyright law
Web users: tighter laws keep Web from being open/free
Paragraph 2
Reason for debate: ability to link
Links immed. access. → problem for laws
Does linking = infringement?
Paragraph 3
Who controls distrib on the Web?
Analogy: outgoing phone message
Owners = distributors
Linking ≠ distribution
Owner can restrict access
Ex: password
Owner restrictions preferable to tougher laws
Changing laws a bad idea
Discussion
Beware of familiar topics! Intellectual property on the Web, the Topic of this Law passage, is a well-known topic and nearly everyone has an opinion; remember to stay focused on what's presented in the passage, not your own opinions.
Paragraph 1 sets forth the conflict. Some owners of intellectual property rights feel stronger protection is required, but Web users fear this will limit the potential of the Web. The paragraph ends with a strong sense of the Scope (the conflict over strengthening copyright law). The author's Purpose doesn't emerge right away, but you can guess that she'll probably take a side.
Paragraph 2 explains the root of the issue: Web page links, and the problems created by the instant accessibility these links afford. The author also poses what she sees as the underlying question in the debate over increased protection—does linking to someone else's Web page constitute copyright infringement?
Paragraph 3 provides an analysis, by analogy, that demonstrates the author's view. According to the author, linking to a Web page is not copyright infringement. This statement reveals the author's Purpose: to analyze the need for increased copyright protection and advise against it. The Main Idea is therefore that changing copyright law to further protect owners would impede development of the Web and is thus ill-advised.
(E) Inference
Step 2: Identify the Question Type
Any question that asks about what the author would be "most likely to agree with" is an Inference question.
Step 3: Research the Relevant Text
Documents placed on Web pages are discussed briefly in paragraphs 1 and 2, but the author discusses them primarily in paragraph 3.
Step 4: Make a Prediction
The author says a few things in paragraph 3 about documents placed on the Web: They're still controlled by their owners; linking to them isn't copyright infringement; and restrictions on access to those documents "would compromise the openness of the Web," as would copyright infringement litigation. Even if you can't predict the correct answer, you know that it will be a statement that must be true based on these claims made by the author.
Step 5: Evaluate the Answer Choices
(E) is correct because it must be true based on the author's statements in the last two sentences of the passage.
(A) is a 180. The final sentence of the passage explicitly states that copyright laws should not be strengthened. Furthermore, the author offers passwords as a possible safeguard for authors who want to better protect their documents.
(B) is a subtle Distortion: The passage says that password protection would compromise the openness of the Web somewhat, not that it would significantly threaten to reduce the number of people using the Web for communication.
(C) is Extreme. The author has provided a suggested means of limiting access (a required password), so she wouldn't agree that limiting access is impossible.
(D) contradicts the author's view. The last sentence of the passage clearly indicates that the author considers changes to copyright law potentially harmful to public interest.
