http://www.subpoenadefense.org/

The San Francisco Chronicle writes about the record companies' copyright war, its effects on ordinary people, and some resources for targets of the subpoenas:

The RIAA is applying a unique provision of the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act that gives copyright owners the power to issue a subpoena requiring Internet service providers to disclose the names of suspected copyright infringers.

The RIAA needs only a court clerk's authorization to serve the subpoenas, which privacy advocates say bypasses many of the usual hurdles to obtaining a court order like requiring a judge's review of any evidence to support such an action.

If a person learns the RIAA has subpoenaed the ISP to learn their identity, they should seek legal advice to protect their rights, said Glenn Peterson, a partner in the law firm McDonough Holland & Allen PC of Sacramento.


The firm is one of several legal firms listed on a Web site - www.subpoenadefense.org - that has been set up as a resource for people served by RIAA subpoenas.

The subpoenas themselves raise other new legal issues, such as whether they interfere with federal laws designed to protect the identities of minors on the Internet, Peterson said.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


Again, let's stop the propaganda and missinformation the RIAA has given the masses...let's just clarify this...

PIRACY[b] is when you copy a copyrighted piece of work and [b]SELL it. Pirates usually make MANY copies and sell them for PROFIT.

SHARING is the is sharing. Not selling, NOT making money OFF the copyrighted work.

A computer hard drive is a RECORDING DEVICE just like a cassette, a MiniDisc, a CD, a VHS tape etc.

The RIAA and others freaked when the power was given more to the people.


And hey, this subpoenas...they're going after minors, isn't that against minors privacy rights?

Oh forgot this article...
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin...296516.DTL

ANd did you know that a former Republican White House official is going to head the RIAA...the music industry is getting politized so hard. What lies beneath all the music is spooky.

FlyingCloudPassenger said:

Capitalism will eat everything it can. Even it's own tail, when it comes down to it.

I'm waiting for them to come and get me, I'll be hiding in the box if you need me

FlyingCloudPassenger said:

piracy can also be defined as obtaining a copy of a copyrighted work without paying for it.

XxAxX said:

So when you tape something off TV, you're a pirate. When your girlfriend or boyfriend made you a love song mix tape or CD, their pirates, when you copied a song from the radio you're a pirate?

It's fair use via personal use.

I checked the mirror, nope, not Johnny Depp like...Rrrr.

i'll double check but i believe the 'fair use' law applies only to people who have legitimately acquired a copyrighted piece of material and THEN make a copy of it.

yeah. here ya go:from: http://www.copyright.gov/...iruse.html

Can I Use Someone Else’s Work?
Can Someone Else Use Mine?



How do I get permission to use somebody else's work?
You can ask for it. If you know who the copyright owner is, you may contact the owner directly. If you are not certain about the ownership or have other related questions, you may wish to request that the Copyright Office conduct a search of its records or you may search yourself. See the next question for more details.


How can I find out who owns a copyright?
We can provide you with the information available in our records. A search of registrations, renewals, and recorded transfers of ownership made before 1978 requires a manual search of our files. Upon request, our staff will search our records at the statutory rate of $75 for each hour. There is no fee if you conduct a search in person at the Copyright Office. Copyright registrations made and documents recorded from 1978 to date are available for searching online. For further information, see Circular 22, How to Investigate the Copyright Status of a Work, and Circular 23, Copyright Card Catalog and the Online File.


How can I obtain copies of someone else's work and/or registration certificate?
The Copyright Office will not honor a request for a copy of someone else's protected work without written authorization from the copyright owner or from his or her designated agent, unless the work is involved in litigation. In the latter case, a litigation statement is required. A certificate of registration for any registered work can be obtained for a fee of $30. Circular 6, Access to and Copies of Copyright Records and Deposit, provides additional information.


How much of someone else's work can I use without getting permission?
Under the fair use doctrine of the U.S. copyright statute, it is permissible to use limited portions of a work including quotes, for purposes such as commentary, criticism, news reporting, and scholarly reports. There are no legal rules permitting the use of a specific number of words, a certain number of musical notes, or percentage of a work. Whether a particular use qualifies as fair use depends on all the circumstances. See FL 102, Fair Use, and Circular 21, Reproductions of Copyrighted Works by Educators and Librarians.
[emphasis added]

How much do I have to change in order to claim copyright in someone else's work?
Only the owner of copyright in a work has the right to prepare, or to authorize someone else to create, a new version of that work. Accordingly, you cannot claim copyright to another's work, no matter how much you change it, unless you have the owner's consent. See Circular 14, Copyright Registration for Derivative Works.


Somebody infringed my copyright. What can I do?
A party may seek to protect his or her copyrights against unauthorized use by filing a civil lawsuit in federal district court. If you believe that your copyright has been infringed, consult an attorney. In cases of willful infringement for profit, the U.S. Attorney may initiate a criminal investigation.


Could I be sued for using somebody else's work? How about quotes or samples?
If you use a copyrighted work without authorization, the owner may be entitled to bring an infringement action against you. There are circumstances under the fair use doctrine where a quote or a sample may be used without permission. However, in cases of doubt, the Copyright Office recommends that permission be obtained. [emphasis added]


Do you have a list of songs or movies in the public domain?
No, we neither compile nor maintain such a list. A search of our records, however, may reveal whether a particular work has fallen into the public domain. We will conduct a search of our records by the title of a work, an author's name, or a claimant's name. The search fee is $75 per hour. You may also search the records in person without paying a fee.


I saw an image on the Library of Congress website that I would like to use. Do I need to obtain permission?
With few exceptions, the Library of Congress does not own copyright in the materials in its collections and does not grant or deny permission to use the content mounted on its website. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item. To the greatest extent possible, the Library attempts to provide any known rights information about its collections. Such information can be found in the “Copyright and Other Restrictions” statements on each American Memory online collection homepage. If the image is not part of the American Memory collections, contact the Library custodial division to which the image is credited. Bibliographic records and finding aids available in each custodial division include information that may assist in assessing the copyright status. Search our catalogs through the Library's Online Catalog. To access information from the Library’s reading rooms, go to Research Centers.

and in more detail:from: http://www4.law.cornell.e...7/107.html

Title 17, Sec. 107. - Limitations on exclusive rights: Fair use

Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include -

(1)

the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;


(2)

the nature of the copyrighted work;


(3)

the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
[emphasis added]


(4)

the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.
[emphasis added]



The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors
[This message was edited Wed Jul 30 15:09:51 PDT 2003 by XxAxX]

and, just to make it clear what copyright protection extends to:from: http://www.copyright.gov/...1.html#102

§ 102. Subject matter of copyright: In general26

(a) Copyright protection subsists, in accordance with this title, in original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression, now known or later developed, from which they can be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated, either directly or with the aid of a machine or device. Works of authorship include the following categories:

(1) literary works;

(2) musical works, including any accompanying words;

(3) dramatic works, including any accompanying music;

(4) pantomimes and choreographic works;

(5) pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works;

(6) motion pictures and other audiovisual works;

(7) sound recordings; and

(8) architectural works.

(b) In no case does copyright protection for an original work of authorship extend to any idea, procedure, process, system, method of operation, concept, principle, or discovery, regardless of the form in which it is described, explained, illustrated, or embodied in such work.

which means that copying a sound recording without authorization is theft because the copyright owner has the follwing exclusive rights


:from: http://www.copyright.gov/...1.html#106

§ 106. Exclusive rights in copyrighted works36

Subject to sections 107 through 122, the owner of copyright under this title has the exclusive rights to do and to authorize any of the following:

(1) to reproduce the copyrighted work in copies or phonorecords;

(2) to prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work;

(3) to distribute copies or phonorecords of the copyrighted work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending;

(4) in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audiovisual works, to perform the copyrighted work publicly;

(5) in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and pictorial, graphic, or sculptural works, including the individual images of a motion picture or other audiovisual work, to display the copyrighted work publicly; and

(6) in the case of sound recordings, to perform the copyrighted work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission.

Wait, I've got something for you...!

XxAxX said:

Thank you for taking time out of your unbusy day to post this information. If it weren't internet users like you who have nothing to I don't know what the rest of us would do with out you.

I may stand corrected. I read through all that stuff WHEN I have TIME.

Thanks again.

you should read it. especially if you are 'sharing' files illegally on the internet and are laboring under the delusion that there's nothing wrong with this

XxAxX said:

I completely agree with XxAxX and I'm surprised that FlyingCloud would take a swipe at her in his last post as he is typically so nice. Now me on the other hand I'm known to take swipes at people

Hey! I was in a bad mood that day! Somedays the moon arises in Cancer...

But I will read it and maybe disallusionize meself...

I really do appreciate the info.

Buh bye!

awww y'know, i get preachy here sometimes. and, i DO tend to cut and paste huge chunks of stuff rather than re-type it. 'pologies for the lecture!