Lower court’s ruling stands: Downloading music is not a crime [View All]

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Source: The Raw Story

(Reuters) – The Supreme Court let stand on Monday a ruling that a traditional Internet download of sound recording does not constitute a public performance of the recorded musical work under federal copyright law.

The justices refused to review a ruling by an appeals court in New York that the download itself of a musical work does not fall within the law’s definition of a public performance of that work.

The not-for-profit American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) appealed to the Supreme Court. It said the ruling has profound implications for the nation’s music industry, costing its members tens of millions of dollars in potential royalties each year.

The federal government opposed the appeal. U.S. Solicitor General Donald Verrilli said the appeals court’s ruling was correct and comported with common understanding and sound copyright policy.

Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/10/03/supreme-court-rejects-internet-music-download-case/