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Music, Do You Download Music Over A File-sharing Network?
by Jason A. Martin
It can be estimated that millions of people around the world share music over a file-sharing network. For this article, I am addressing the issue in America mainly because I am not aware of the laws in other countries. Do you think it is illegal to download music from file-sharing networks? What about music you already own? An important recent court decision will answer these questions directly and you might be surprised.
Recently the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit heard a case against a Chicago woman, Cecilia Gonzalez. Many plaintiffs including BMG, Sony and others brought the case against her. Gonzalez allegedly had downloaded over 1,000 songs through KaZaA—although she admitted to only 30. Keep that number in mind, 30. Many, if not just about all, people who download files over a file-sharing network don’t stop at one file. Thirty files can be reached in minutes to an hour without thought. In fact, it was alleged that Gonzalez downloaded 1,370 songs in just a few weeks, which is an average of 65 songs per day. If you where caught downloading thirty songs over a file-sharing network, what would your defense be? Let’s look at two specific common defenses and see how a court might react. I have selected two defenses that I feel are most common, because they not only appear in the court case I have referenced, but many others I have surveyed would try to use them as their defense as well.
First Defense: I was simply trying out the songs to see if I liked them and then I planned to buy the ones I liked and erase the ones I don’t. (Simplified: try-before-you-buy) Judge Eastbrook, one of the judges hearing the Gonzalez case, pointed out that this defense is not valid because one had many avenues to hear music before purchasing. Eastbrook names iTunes, radio, internet radio, Yahoo! Music and others as ways to legally try before buying. If this was going to be your defense, you will lose.
Second Defense: I am only downloading music that I already own.
This seems like a great defense, at first. You already own the music and the law allows you to create a backup copy. Ah, but here is where it goes south. Downloading music you already own is not considered fair use under the U.S. Copyright Law and your action is therefore copyright infringement. See UMG Recordings Inc. v. MP3.com, Inc., 92 F. Supp. 2d 349. Furthermore, the try-before-you-buy scenario is really blown away by the fact that you no longer need to buy CD’s in whole. iTunes really helped change the legal arena in this respect because a user can both sample songs at their leisure and purchase single songs. The ability to purchase single songs is the big one.
In the end, Gonzalez lost her case. The thirty songs, that would have cost $29.70 at iTunes, will end up costing her $22,500 in damages—imagine what it would be if the plaintiffs had pushed for a decision on all 1,370 songs. She was given the opportunity to settle for $3,500 before going to court, which she declined—another bad decision. If you download music over file-sharing networks and are caught, what will be your legal defense? About The Author: Jason A. Martin is a Journalism Major (Political Science minor) and future law school student. His blog deals with Politics, Media and the Law. You can view it at http://www.JasonAMartin.com
To keep up to date with Mr. Martin’s articles, visit http://www.jasonamartin.com/subscribe.php
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The information provided in this article is the express opinion of the author. Exchangenet is not responsible for the content!
It can be estimated that millions of people around the world share music over a file-sharing network. For this article, I am addressing the issue in America mainly because I am not aware of the laws in other countries. Do you think it is illegal to download music from file-sharing networks? What about music you already own? An important recent court decision will answer these questions directly and you might be surprised.
Recently the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit heard a case against a Chicago woman, Cecilia Gonzalez. Many plaintiffs including BMG, Sony and others brought the case against her. Gonzalez allegedly had downloaded over 1,000 songs through KaZaA—although she admitted to only 30. Keep that number in mind, 30. Many, if not just about all, people who download files over a file-sharing network don’t stop at one file. Thirty files can be reached in minutes to an hour without thought. In fact, it was alleged that Gonzalez downloaded 1,370 songs in just a few weeks, which is an average of 65 songs per day. If you where caught downloading thirty songs over a file-sharing network, what would your defense be? Let’s look at two specific common defenses and see how a court might react. I have selected two defenses that I feel are most common, because they not only appear in the court case I have referenced, but many others I have surveyed would try to use them as their defense as well.
First Defense: I was simply trying out the songs to see if I liked them and then I planned to buy the ones I liked and erase the ones I don’t. (Simplified: try-before-you-buy) Judge Eastbrook, one of the judges hearing the Gonzalez case, pointed out that this defense is not valid because one had many avenues to hear music before purchasing. Eastbrook names iTunes, radio, internet radio, Yahoo! Music and others as ways to legally try before buying. If this was going to be your defense, you will lose.
Second Defense: I am only downloading music that I already own.
This seems like a great defense, at first. You already own the music and the law allows you to create a backup copy. Ah, but here is where it goes south. Downloading music you already own is not considered fair use under the U.S. Copyright Law and your action is therefore copyright infringement. See UMG Recordings Inc. v. MP3.com, Inc., 92 F. Supp. 2d 349. Furthermore, the try-before-you-buy scenario is really blown away by the fact that you no longer need to buy CD’s in whole. iTunes really helped change the legal arena in this respect because a user can both sample songs at their leisure and purchase single songs. The ability to purchase single songs is the big one.
In the end, Gonzalez lost her case. The thirty songs, that would have cost $29.70 at iTunes, will end up costing her $22,500 in damages—imagine what it would be if the plaintiffs had pushed for a decision on all 1,370 songs. She was given the opportunity to settle for $3,500 before going to court, which she declined—another bad decision. If you download music over file-sharing networks and are caught, what will be your legal defense? About The Author: Jason A. Martin is a Journalism Major (Political Science minor) and future law school student. His blog deals with Politics, Media and the Law. You can view it at http://www.JasonAMartin.com
To keep up to date with Mr. Martin’s articles, visit http://www.jasonamartin.com/subscribe.php
These articles on lifestyle and more
Reprint this article free of charge as long as you keep the author's resource box or bio intact and the links active. A copy of the ezine or URL of the page where the article was reprinted emailed to the author would be very much appreciated. music
Return to the selection of music
You may want to try these articles on music
Music, Do You Know How To Select A Singing Teacher? by Gloria Porter Approximately 483 Words
Music, Why Does New Music Suck? by Delmont Vargense Approximately 773 Words
Music, Tips For Selecting Highly Collectible Reuge Music Boxes by Kim Thompson Approximately 669 Words
Music, Use Sheet Music To Play Your Instrument by David Fishman Approximately 548 Words
Music, How To Buy Your Favorite Music Online Legally For Just Pennies by Antonio Verdu Approximately 633 Words
Music, Powerful Music Collection Software - Orangecd Suite by Robert Snoog Approximately 414 Words
Music, Internalizing The Beat Once For All by Marco Kasel Approximately 1517 Words
Music, Seven Steps To A Successful Auditioin by Marco Kasel Approximately 1222 Words
You may want to try these websites for additional information
http://www.vh1.com/
http://www.music.indiana.edu/music_resources/
http://www.essentialsofmusic.com/
The information provided in this article is the express opinion of the author. Exchangenet is not responsible for the content!
