"The addition of a creation to the public domain is an integral part of the social bargain inherent in intellectual property law. It is one of the general benefits received by the public in return for providing protection to authors and inventors. It should not be viewed simply as a form of punishment imposed on authors and inventors when for some reason, such as failure to respect formalities, they lose control of their creations. Viewed another way, 'the public domain is the accumulated wisdom of the ages'....

...The treatest betrayal of the public domain that could ever occur is that Congress would confer protection above and beyond that necessary to stimulate a desired creative activity. Such an error could happen if protection is vague, excessive, unjustified, or misconcieved."

--Robert W. Kastenmeier and Michael J. Remington, "The Semiconductor chip Protection Act of 1984: A Swamp or Firm Ground ?", Minnesota Law Review, Volume 70(2), December 1985, pages 417-470, at page 459, 460. Internal citation is to Brown and Kaplan, Cases on Copyright, 3rd edition (1978).