US woman to pay 1.92 mln dlrs in music piracy case

[Lacedaemonian]

Mortified but would we have any legal quarrel? I am not so sure that we would.

I have often looked at ebooks as a sneaky way of reading when I am pretending to work, but they seem to be really expensive for what they are. I can never see this industry suffering like the music industry though.

[Teresa Edgerton]

Originally Posted by Lacedaemonian

Mortified but would we have any legal quarrel? I am not so sure that we would.

It depends. Every original piece of writing we produce is instantly in copyright.

If it's something we haven't published (that is, posted on line, or otherwise distributed it to a large number of people), or have posted/published with a copyright notice, it remains copyright material and we would indeed have legal grounds to seek action.

If we post it here, it's most definitely copyright, and there would be grounds for legal action. There is a copyright notice at the bottom of every page, and this is in the Forum Rules (a link to be found at the bottom of every thread):

1. While members are regarded as holding copyright over their own postings, once you post to the public forums, you grant the chronicles network non-exclusive permission to publish the content

[Dimentio]

Originally Posted by weirdside

In yet another case of injustice in this country, a not-so-wealthy Brainerd, MN (about an hour from where I live in WI) was ordered by a judge to pay 1.92 million dollars for illegally downloading 24 songs.
Now, I don't agree with stealing music (I use amazon mp3) but come on, 80 grand per song? She obviously won't be able to pay for it.
This is my favorite comment from the RIAA attorney: "She infringed my clients' copyrights and then she tried to cover it up."
She tried to cover it up.
Apparently these illegal downloaders are being treated on the level of foreign spies.
At most she should have to pay 24 dollars, at the going rate of a buck a song.
It's ridiculous, it really is.

Is there any link to this story?

[Lacedaemonian]

Originally Posted by Teresa Edgerton

It depends. Every original piece of writing we produce is instantly in copyright.

If it's something we haven't published (that is, posted on line, or otherwise distributed it to a large number of people), or have posted/published with a copyright notice, it remains copyright material and we would indeed have legal grounds to seek action.

If we post it here, it's most definitely copyright, and there would be grounds for legal action. There is a copyright notice at the bottom of every page, and this is in the Forum Rules (a link to be found at the bottom of every thread):

Thanks for clarifying that, Teresa.

[TheEndIsNigh]

Originally Posted by mosaix

That's not strictly true, Lace. You pay the radio and TV company through your broadcasting license, most clubs charge entrance fees or expect you to buy food and drink and I take it the newspaper was bought. The price of all these is adjusted to take into account the fee these organisations have to pay for the privilege of using the music. So you have paid for them.

Originally Posted by C Of K

Radio and music videos carry with them the illusion of being free. It makes them easier to watch and listen to. If everyone had it in their heads that they would be paying another $29.95 this month just to watch a few music videos, I have the feeling less people would watch tv. Instead, you get to see CSI, Lost, Heroes, the news, cooking programs, or whatever else, in a nice package alongside your music videos.

Suddenly, paying to watch tv doesn't seem so bad (for a lot of people anyway. I personally don't have the money for it.)

In the UK (you probably know this) We do all have to pay for TV through the TV licence which funds the BBC. There are other ways of paying for your TV although if you own (even if never switched on - in this way we are all rapists in the UK) you are liable to pay this licence. Now there are other ways of obtaining TV/radio/music pictures from other organisations that would dearly love to see an end to the BBC so they could control the market. Sadly some of our politicians take more notice of the owners of the organisations than the public (some who, also sadly, don't appreciate the what they get from the BBC) and those politicians are doing their best to carve up the BBC into 'profitable saleable spin offs' in my opinion.

Without the BBC the cost to people to watch anything would be in the hands of a few 'fairly well off' individuals

The BBC pay for the rights to broadcast all the material they send out for 'free' and so there is no conflict. (again our well informed public don't all appreciate how this music is available for 'free' but I digress.

Originally Posted by Teresa Edgerton

It depends. Every original piece of writing we produce is instantly in copyright.

If it's something we haven't published (that is, posted on line, or otherwise distributed it to a large number of people), or have posted/published with a copyright notice, it remains copyright material and we would indeed have legal grounds to seek action.

If we post it here, it's most definitely copyright, and there would be grounds for legal action. There is a copyright notice at the bottom of every page, and this is in the Forum Rules (a link to be found at the bottom of every thread):

I have read the conditions. So no argument there.

However it does raise a point of caution for all posters to this forum or to any other place of how easy it is to loose your rights.

This is particularly true in those 'competitions' where you have to produce some original work that may be used in promoting a product - say a strap line for cornflakes. You usually loose all rights to the material/drawing/ entry. If the organisers of those 'competitions' go on to make a fortune from your entry you can be happy in the knowledge that you didn't even win the competition and the prize that you missed out on was $10.

[Teresa Edgerton]

You know, I give away tons of writing information that I could (and indeed have, on occasion) be paid for if I did it privately. And I am happy to do it, as a member of this community, because I feel, as a member of this community, that I get much of value in return.

I say this not to receive any accolades (my shoulders bruise easily), but as the preamble to what I have to say next.

If someone were to gather up all my pearls of wisdom and reproduce them in my exact words, and then make copies and distribute them, I would most certainly feel that I had been robbed of something that belonged to me, and the fact that all of those same phrases, and sentences, and paragraphs were scattered around here for anyone to read would not make one whit of difference to how I would feel and what I would do.

* * *

As a side-note, I wonder if any of you have ever had your house burglarized? Where I used to live, it happened three times. I didn't so much mind losing the things that were stolen -- the TV and the sewing machine were broken anyway (Handy tip: if you're poor, don't rob people in your own neighborhood; they've nothing worth stealing) -- but what surprised me was how violated I felt because someone had taken my things.

[j. d. worthington]

Originally Posted by Teresa Edgerton

As a side-note, I wonder if any of you have ever had your house burglarized? Where I used to live, it happened three times. I didn't so much mind losing the things that were stolen -- the TV and the sewing machine were broken anyway (Handy tip: if you're poor, don't rob people in your own neighborhood; they've nothing worth stealing) -- but what surprised me was how violated I felt because someone had taken my things.

Ditto (eerily, down to the "three times" bit). And the last time, it wasn't even a sensible burglary in any way I can think of; simply to annoy. (I'm dead certain, though could never prove to others, that it was the exiting manager of the property I was just then renting, and the burglary took place because of something my then-wife did which irritated the man. The only things taken were some fire tiles, a few minor tools -- screwdrivers and the like -- and the like.) And yes, the feeling of being violated is enormously strong, and doesn't ever quite fade away (at least, in my experience). It may seem to, but it can be reawakened verrrry easily....

[Rinman]

I'm way behind in this thread yes, but I'm jumping ahead (yeah I'm probably going to get yelled at but I don't care - I'm used to it )

I don't see why she has to pay such a large amount for something like this. I can see a much smaller amount possibly, but if you're going to charge an amount, charge every person in the world that downloads music.

I have over 1600 songs on my iPod. At least 1000 are downloaded. I guarantee persons on this forum have downloaded music at one time or another. My mom is computer-illiterate and still willing to argue with me and she downloads music - why not charge her or myself? Why not charge her boyfriend who downloads music even less seldom than her? Yeah we live in Canada-land and all, but whether we live in the States, Canada, Germany, or wherever (I'm just firing off countries that come to my head), if you're going to charge people gajillions of dollars, charge everyone gajillions of dollars and not just one person because it's pointless.

Spend that time that you could have used charging that one person downloading the music looking for killers and child preditors (spelling?) rather than something like this.

Yeah really. I'ma go kill someone with a downloaded song tomorrow. Go! iPod song number 2654 - Sandstorm by Darude bahahaha RUN!!

[Ursa major]

Originally Posted by Rinman

I guarantee persons on this forum have downloaded music at one time or another.

I'm not going to yell at you, but would just like to point out that I have never downloaded music. (The music I listen to is on my own CDs** and I do not possess anything that resembles an iPod. )

While blanket statements can seem arresting when you are posting them, they are very rarely accurate and so lose their power.




** - And vinyl, but I lack a working means of playing them at the moment.

[j. d. worthington]

I'll chime in with Ursa there. I agree that in stating that you "guarantee persons on this forum have" etc., you are quite accurate... but then, several people have said as much, so this isn't news. On the other hand, the way the post is phrased, it smacks very much of the sort of thing we saw earlier: i.e., accusations of hypocrisy and the like on the part of those protesting this sort of behavior. In some cases that may (or may not) be true; but it does come across as rather presumptuously intimating (at least) that people aren't being honest on this score... something the truth of which I doubt you could "guarantee"....

[Urlik]

Originally Posted by Ursa major

I'm not going to yell at you, but would just like to point out that I have never downloaded music. (The music I listen to is on my own CDs** and I do not possess anything that resembles an iPod. )

While blanket statements can seem arresting when you are posting them, they are very rarely accurate and so lose their power.




** - And vinyl, but I lack a working means of playing them at the moment.

have you thought about a USB record deck/turntable?
simply plug it in and record your vinyl onto your hard drive** then either burn it onto a CD or play it in winamp or windows media player

**this is legal under the fair use policy as long as it is for your own personal use and you don't distribute it

[Ursa major]

I have thought about such a deck, Urlik, but the truth is that I have, over the years, purchased CD versions of almost all of what I have on vinyl, so it seems rather pointless.

And if I really have to listen to an LP, my mother's house is not that far away and has a working turntable.

[mosaix]

Originally Posted by Ursa major

but would just like to point out that I have never downloaded music.

Nor me.

[chopper]

i desperately need one of those turntables, though i can't afford one - all my b-sides and 12" remixes languish in vinyl obscurity! (let's face it, how many Family GoTown or Catherine Wheel fans are going to upload their ancient b-sides, eh?)

[Ursa major]

Fans of their ancient A sides and many more besides...?