For the CTEA (which is the one called the Mickey Mouse Act), that was only a few years after the EU copyright harmonisation in '93. Disney lobbied heavily for that, of course, and it was in their interest to do so, but it's likely it would have passed anyway if the EU had tied favourable trade deal conditions to harmonising copyright duration; the Senate report for the act specifically cites trade with the EU as a motivation.
The Copyright Act of 1976 increased the duration specifically in order to comply with the Berne Convention the US would end up joining. There's not a particular reason for why '76, other than legislators finally decided the US would join what was considered the international standard.
Both of these were more or less coincidences, in my opinion.
The Copyright Act of 1976 increased the duration specifically in order to comply with the Berne Convention the US would end up joining. There's not a particular reason for why '76, other than legislators finally decided the US would join what was considered the international standard.
Both of these were more or less coincidences, in my opinion.