Here's a good rule of thumb to follow: If a popular song, movie, tv show or computer game is offered as a free download on a file-sharing service such as LimeWire, Bittorrent or Kazaa, it's almost certainly an illegal copy. It doesn't matter if you're downloading for "personal use" or that you're not selling the files to anyone. If you download copyrighted material without the owner's permission, you have violated the law, and there's a chance you will be called on it.
With services like iTunes, or Napster, you pay a small fee to download music. And because Napster and iTunes have agreements with recording labels, there are no legal or copyright concerns. If you are paying for the file, chances are the site offering it is adhering to copyright laws. Unless you know for sure the files you are downloading or sharing are not copyrighted, there is always a risk that you can find yourself named in some class-action lawsuit filed by the RIAA or the MPAA.
And yes, there are programs such as PeerGuardian, Protowall and others that will help to anonymize your Bittorrent activities. Will they protect you percent? Maybe today Is it worth the risk? You can safely download by using sites that only search for legal files. Don't get a false sense of security by thinking why would anyone go after you when there are millions of people downloading files.
There are individuals who are paid solely to seek out copyright infringements. Use common sense; a box-office hit movie currently in the theatres is most likely a pirated copy whether it is being offered on the Internet for download, or by some guy on a street corner selling DVDs on a blanket. Independent filmmakers and struggling musicians often willingly allow their projects for download, hoping to create enough of a fan-base to generate some buzz about their work. If you are interested in a particular form of data whether it be a song, movie or computer program, it pays to check the creator's website to see if they have legal, downloadable files to offer.
Follow these tips, and can you'll be able to download with a clear conscience and no fear of fines or legal action. This article was posted by Bob Rankin on 7 Aug Posted by: MistyD 09 Aug Excellent article. I was reading the other day where they were suing someone and pulling in their employer, asking for every hard drive the person owned, asking to talk to anyone who had used the computer going back years.
Scary stuff. Posted by: DeanGray 11 Aug A lot of the time independent record labels, independent musicians, and unsigned musicians without a record contract with any record label will allow sharing of their music on p2p as they see p2p as a good tool for promotion of their music according to downhillbattle.
This is probably the case with most of these labels and artists. There may be some indie labels that will sue you but I've never heard of it since TVT withdrew their suit.
Like you said don't get a false sense of security, but according to EFF. If you want to be safe and still share files on p2p only share files with an Open Source license, a creative commons license, or public domain material. Best Intentions. Posted by: Dave S 11 Aug If so, how do they do this?
Also, if someone has downloaded a song but the person owns the vinyl, cassette, or CD with the song, can RIAA still sue since we have aleady bought the music? If you connect and download, they have your IP address. Most ISPs will roll over and give you up. And yes, downloading a digital copy of a song that you already own on physical media is "technically" illegal.
Personally I have no qualms about downloading a replacement copy of a song on a damaged CD, but the record company would argue that you have to buy a new one. Posted by: Jon E. I am a professional musician, independent songwriter and producer.
I wonder how many people who defend the practice of "internet file sharing" would be willing to freely "share" their means of earning a living. Should accountants "share" their spreadsheets? Journalists their source files? Manufacturers their design specifications? Of course not, those products have implied and real value. However, that is not the norm. If someone accessed your wireless router, you would not be legally liable, but you would have to have real evidence to back up your assertion.
Many people claim that someone else did it but they lack evidence to prove it. For example, a year-old great-grandmother with a wireless router that is not password-protected is going to get more people to believe that she didn't download something than a college student with a password-protected router.
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What now? Yes, this is somewhat standard in these cases. Option 1: What if you just ignore the notice? Business Formation. Choosing a Business Structure.
Sole Proprietorships. It comes with other perks too, like the ability to bookmark titles. At the beginning of began a string of events.
These saw movie companies sue torrent users, particularly those who visited the YTS website. The companies succeeded in finding these users by going through the YTS database. This is because a YTS operator had just signed a settlement deal with these movie companies.
This led to the sharing of inordinate amounts of information that was enough to find numerous users. The following is an update on the situation. After it was reported that movie companies sue torrent users, it was revealed that the YTS database was handed over to major filmmakers. These companies utilized the database to file lawsuits against the users, demanding direct settlements from them. Most users are expected to simply pay up, considering that failure to do so can lead to serious legal action.
According to the available data from a Colorado federal court, the copyright holders claim that YTS operators illegally pirated copies of movies. Meantime, movie rights holders have started identifying the Does and taking them to court. Rogers alone has seen the number of Norwich orders related to alleged copyright infringement rise to in from 13 in and zero in , according to court documents.
Tamir Israel, a lawyer at the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic, said the structure of these lawsuits encourages people accused of copyright infringement to simply pay up.
CIPPIC, which intervened in some of the Voltage cases, has noticed smaller movie studios around the world using lawsuits — or the threat of them — as a way to make more money from their films rather than actually deter people from pirating content. It seems geared more towards an ongoing compensation mechanism and less towards this deterrence. The court acknowledged that the ease of sharing movies online has a negative effect on the paid content market, but it refused to allow Voltage to lump all the Does together.
Indeed, defendants named in these lawsuits can expect to take on the cost of slogging through federal court, whether they hire a lawyer to fight the charges or settle. Sign up to receive the daily top stories from the Financial Post, a division of Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.
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