Legal Issues Not a Concern for File Swappers

[ParrotBoy]

Also, with the rise of de-centralised networks (e.g. Freenet), it won't matter that the company can be shut down, as there is no need for a central server, the users of the system can carry on using it regardless of the demise of the company. So chasing companies is a loser already.

Plus, going after users scares people more, and a company like the RIAA can afford to spend the money to win every case, do there will be less ammunition for the opposition to quote.

**** scary...

If you are interested:
Why Copyright laws hurt culture

[docusk]

I asked last wek if anyone knew if the RIAA 's actions in obtaining govt. help in the UK would be possible. No-one knew so I've written to the Information Commission today to ask. I can't believe we would allow a commercial orga#nisation to penetrate the very heart of our computers for a few measly pounds of royalties for all the fat cats earning millions, literally,
Not the politics of envy but a freedom loviong individual sick & tired of all and sundry sticking their beaks into my private affairs!

'Ere, 'oo kicked me bloody soap box away.....???
Doc:

[ParrotBoy]

Sorry to break this to you, but making even ONE copy of a copyrighed work in the UK is illegal.

In the US you can try to justify yourself with the "personal use bubble" idea - you own the music so you want to be able to use it in various places.

In england, copying a CD onto cassette to listen to it in the car is a fineable offence.

So the UK is already nastier on this than the US, officialy if not in practice, and so they have no leg to stand on to say no to the RIAA

[docusk]

Yes yes yes, I know all that but my point still stands. Is what RIAA is doing in USA i.e. prying into someone's computer in order to bring a civil suit against someone, LEGAL here in the UK.
We also have a Freedom of Information Act but we also have the Data Protection Act.
That may well be a 2 edged sword but even MI 5 have to get a warrant to pry into our phones and computers.
How can the US governement curtail the freedoms of "The most powerful nation in the World" for commercial ends.
My issue isn't about copying the odd track from the radio to a CD to play in the car.
Would FAST get such co-operation from the local "Bill"
Bloody hope not.
Doc.

[kdoggmdf]

I believe that the RIAA should not be allowed to do ANYTHING with the UK because they arent even associated with that country. I also cant believe how our "government" allows this monopolized and money-greedy company to infiringe our rights of privacy and try and sue us and everyone else for unhuman amounts of money that the majority of the United States doesnt make in a lifetime. I just dont understand it. and I cant believe it either. With them doing this in our country, it makes us seem a little more weak and stupid than "the strongest country in the world".

--The RIAA can burn for all I care. I buy their CDs and want to do what I wish with them becuase they are MINE and then they try and sue the people the MADE THEM RICH IN THE FIRST PLACE. They need to go blow a cow and die--

[Dracas]

http://www.dontbuycds.org/

I think Artists deserve pay for their work, but I won't pay RIAA squat for turning fans into enemies.

Bums.

[dosmastr]

Originally posted by Avor
Why not go after individuals? They've tried going after the software developers (Napster). When they were shut down, more just sprang up. Who says it's not going to happen again?

It seems to me they got fed up with it, and decided that going after individuals is going to slow down, or stop, file sharing.

Heck, if I were in no danger of getting prosecuted, why should I care if the developers are getting shut down? It doesn't hurt me at all.

The users are being somewhat threatened now - and most "rogues" on the net really don't have the balls to stay around and fight.

If you don't have money to pay for something, it still doesn't make stealing right Go get a job, or go house to house asking for odd jobs. I did that when I was 12, and it worked fine!

darn straight
seriously, do any of you guys care that napster is gone? nah, we all just switched to kazaa.... but if you hear that YOU personally might get sucker punched with a law suit-- wouldn't that make you think twice? i know many people at work who say they still download from file sharing, but no longer upload--- since that is what the RIAA targets, the distributers not the recipiants... and eventually the amount of seeders will fall below critical mass and the network would colapse..... in theory....

i got a job and paid for it too man, don't pay 20 or even 15 dollars for a CD, you are all right, thats just dumb and expensive.... but if you look around, amazon.com or ebay, or even smaller artists websites, they have CD's for much more reasonible prices. just because they made stealing easy doesn't mean its any less of a crime.

[kdoggmdf]

If it is illegal, it isnt us, the consumers, fault. Its theirs; the RIAA. They overprice their CDs everywhere, including Amazon and all those other places. I have NEVER gotten a CD under $8.99 before. That is crazy. And I dont even use CDs for Godsake. I just copy the files onto my computer when I get one and then never use the damned CD again. Its a waste of money for me. Thats why I stopped using CDs like 2 years ago. Sure, I sitll buy SOME CDs, but the majority of music now comes from online. And i dont use that **** Kazaa. Thats just stupid. I use IRC networks, Direct Connect, even AOL Instant Messenger to trade music. I still compensate artists because I still buy CDs but not nearly as often as I used to. I think that the RIAA needs to stop trying to sue us for getting around their overpriced b/s CDs and create something where we can get the songs we want for under a dollar and not have to worry about getting into trouble and paying inexcusably insane amounts of money for it.

[Necide]

I disagree with the earlier comment about downloading music being the same as walking into a record store and stealing CDs off the shelf.

When you download music, you aren't pilfering physical goods which cost money to manufacture and require the paid efforts of many people - factory workers, printing press operators, truck drivers, etc.

I'm not saying it isn't stealing, and I'm not saying it IS stealing. I'm only saying it's not the same thing.

[Kandar]

Originally posted by Necide

When you download music, you aren't pilfering physical goods which cost money to manufacture and require the paid efforts of many people - factory workers, printing press operators, truck drivers, etc.

I'm not saying it isn't stealing, and I'm not saying it IS stealing. I'm only saying it's not the same thing.

How exactly is it not the same thing?

A man spends money developing, marketing and promoting a product in the belief that it will sell, only for you to acquire his work without handing over any cash. That’s one less sale of an official shelf copy.
You have taken something for which you have not paid for and that is theft however you dress it up.

[kdoggmdf]

Maybe it is theft, but cant you see that what the RIAA doing is still NOT RIGHT? Plus, we have a right to download music with the price of a CD now and **** and they keep going up. The RIAA needs to change the prices of CDs before they do ANYTHING else with file-sharing or anything for thta matter. I dont care how much they try and sue. Im not going to get caught and I will not buy another music CD until the prices are lowered.

[docusk]

My original point from last week was that I wanted an opinion from some kind legal Eagle of a Brit as to whether actions like the RIAA's would be legal here in view of our Informatio act and the data Protection Act. It seems that in the USA the authorities positively help some cheapskate commercial mafia.
Doc

[homerjay]

i live in ireland. i can't believe that if the RIAA asked my isp for my information that they would get it. how is that possible?
also, if the police raid a house without a warrent, any evidence found is made void, it can't be used in court - so how can the RIAA prove that they downloaded music off me just by quoting my IP address?

[AcidBurn196]

Wow..

All i have been hearing is about how they are gonna track you thru kazaa and nail you.. Is that seriousley possible? With Kazaa, their network is based on many users can have the same screen name, and isnt that hard to track that person then? if i am wrong just let me know, but that is what i have heard, cause if that is true, then im still gonna download off kazaa. But if for some odd reason they try and bring down Kazaa, then ill just use one of the many other progs out there, cause i havent bought a cd in years, and i dont intend on buying one soon. So if they lower the price's of cd's then heck yea, they will get more people to buy them, but at the rate their goin at... no way.

[Dracas]

It's preeeeeeeeeeetty easy to grab an IP address for a username on Kazaa, since its a Peer to peer network, an IP has to be assessed by the software to know where to send the file download

Every transfer and contact you make with another file sharer on KaZaA, DC++, etc.. requires an IP address

Bam. Even I can trace an IP address back to an end user and address from my computer, so don't go thinkin' yer invincible or anonymous, it doesn't work that way over TCP/IP