Victory for modelers?

Saw this press cutting in the Modeling Madness website:

The NDAA, including the requirement that the Defense Secretary prohibit defense contractors from requiring licenses or charging fees for the manufacturing, distribution or sale of model toy replicas of military equipment, passed the U.S. House of Representatives this afternoon. This is a significant victory for fairness and common sense. Our next step is to make sure that this provision remains intact as the bill goes to conference with the Senate. Rep. Andrews will continue to work hard to make sure that this becomes law.

We all encourage US modelers to contact their representatives and congressmen to ensure that HR 4806, The Military Toy Replica Act, stays in the 2007 Defense Bill.

Hmmm, I think this is good news for modelers worldwide as the manufacturers can cut back the passed-on licensing fees, making model kits slightly cheaper. I find it weird seeing ‘Official Boeing Product – Produced Under Licence’ printed on the box my Hasegawa 1/72 F-15C Eagle. Makes you wonder how greedy US corporations are. The fighter aircraft are government property anyway and the names are usually assigned by the US DoD. Under US law, government property are public property and therefore not subject to Intellectual Property laws.