[QuadList] OT: "Deterioration" Determination?

[Walter Forsberg]

Hello All-

Just wondering what the group's thoughts were on what constituted
"deterioration" of videotape.

Obviously, this term is a super-vague one, yet one that the Copyright Law
employs to qualify exemption for duplication-without-permission under
Section 108 (c). The existentialist in me would like to say that all
videotape is deteriorating from the point of inception, aka "we're ALL dying
from the moment we're born," but this all-encompassing definition doesn't
make a good legal argument. (I've been told by lawyers that this is called
an argument weakened by "over-determination.")

So, what things can we point to as hard evidence of "deterioration"? Dropout
may have been original to the recording process, but maybe also a symptom of
shedding. Storage conditions may have not been ideal, or in keeping with IPI
temp. & humidity standards, yet if a large number of tapes were stored in
the same bad conditions, how could one determine deterioration without a
control tape perfectly stored for the same amount of time?

Any comments on what is undeniable evidence of "deterioration," other than,
say a tape being melted? Is there anyone out there with a Magic Bullet?

Thanks in advance,
Walter Forsberg
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