RIAA Eyes Next Possible Targets: CD Burners, Radio Listeners

[dajoki]

RIAA Eyes Next Possible Targets: CD Burners, Radio Listeners
Jason Mick (Blog) - October 9, 2007 8:54 AM
http://www.dailytech.com/RIAA+Eyes+Next+Possible+Targets+CD+Burners+Radio+Listeners/article9218.htm


The RIAA's recent case and a pending case in the UK provide some insight into whom it might prosecute next

The Recording Industry Association of America is the oft villainized copyright-infringement watchdog for the music industry in the U.S. Its letters to music sharers have led to thousands of settlement over the last few years. Now, following its recent success in the jury civil trial Capitol Records, et al v. Jammie Thomas, which resulted in a jury verdict of $222,000 in damages, many wonder who the RIAA might target next.

The RIAA might have given a clue during testimony by music industry lawyers in the Thomas case. During the case Jennifer Pariser, the head of litigation for Sony BMG, was called to testify. Pariser noted that music labels make no money on bands touring, radio, or merchandise, so they are particularly vulnerable to file sharing. She went on to say that when people steal music the label is harmed.

Pariser believes in a very broad definition of stealing that is echoed by many supporters in the RIAA. She believes that users who buy songs are entitled to one, and only one copy. Burning CDs is just another name for stealing, in her mind. "When an individual makes a copy of a song for himself, I suppose we can say he stole a song." Making "a copy" of a purchased song is just "a nice way of saying 'steals just one copy'."

Such logic has been a driving force behind efforts to "rights manage" music including the current DRM found on Apple's iTunes files and Microsoft's DRM, which is also widespread.

While it seems unlikely that the RIAA would be able to effectively identify "burners", such litigation remains a legal possibility for the RIAA and major music labels, in the minds of their lawyers.

Another possible avenue of legal action for the RIAA is the pursuit of businesses that play unauthorized music in stores. The Performing Rights Society (PRS), Britain's version of the RIAA, may give the RIAA some possible ideas with its pending litigation. The PRS is suing the Kwik Fit Group, a car repair shop in Edinburgh, for £200,000 in damages. The case revolves around the complaint that Kwik Fit employees brought in personal radios which they played while working on cars, which could be heard by colleagues and customers. The PRS says this amounts to a public "performance" and should have entailed royalties.

[acmavm]

1. That's one mega-greedy witch. Maybe everyone should just

quit buying music altogether. See how well the record labels do then.

[Az]

2. Until Copyright law is reinstated they have no room to complain

RIAA and their Corporate masters have no room to complain. They have stolen from the public the right to ideas and works that should be ours. The original Copyright law stipulated that a creator could benefit from sole ownership of their ideas for 7 years. After that the work was to enter into the public domain and serve the public good. But Corporate interests have pushed that back year after year until now nothing ever comes out from behind Copyright law. They have stolen more from us than we could ever steal from them.

[shain from kane]

3. If the workers had turned on the car radios as they worked, would they be liable for listening

to the radios?

[Buzz Clik]

4. More and more artists are abandoning labels entirely.

I hope this buries RIAA entirely.

[Initech]

6. Trent Reznor (NIN) is the latest.

Radiohead just released their new CD independantly. I'm betting that there will be more in the next year or two. And I say, good. Fuck the RIAA.

[kysrsoze]

23. I bought the new Radiohead last night. Can't wait until I get the link tomorrow

What they're doing is outstanding, so didn't do the 1-cent download. I paid what I thought was a fair price for no distribution - $9, including the debit card transaction fee. I usually buy all my new CD's as soon as they come out for $8 plus tax, or order them from yourmusic.com for $7 shipped.

[Initech]

25. I did the $0 download but I plan on buying the box set.

And I agree, I love the way they're doing this. I hope more bands follow suit.

[Buzz Clik]

43. So many artists are totally pissed at their labels and the RIAA...

... you can hear the death knell.

[Initech]

5. Oh lordy how I fucking hate these greedy assholes.

[niyad]

7. so a band performing its own music is stealing? what is it stealing? and overhearing someone's

way-too-loud personal radio is hearing a performance? and here I thought it was, at worst, a violation of noise ordinances, at least, annoying and ill-mannered.

[Occulus]

27. What about a party?

Party of 100; by RIAA illogic, 99 of them are thieves.

[Zodiak]

8. Fuck the RIAA

They have been destroying music and musicians for decades, and now they are destroying their own customers.

Personally, I hope the entire industry tanks. That way the musicians can take their music back and distribute it themselves.

[htuttle]

9. Next RIAA Proposal: Nobody gets to listen to music anywhere ever again

Of course, then they'd start worrying about the songs just going through people's heads...

STOP HUMMING OR YOU'LL GO TO JAIL!!

[varkam]

36. ROFL

:rofl:

Thanks for that

[FormerDittoHead]

10. FORTUNATELY - President Clinton will put the RIAA and MPAA in their place!

By putting credit card swipers on the sides of our TV's....

[Bitwit1234]

11. You know what instead of picking up, people are going to stop

buying ANY CD altogether. They will say if the industry is this greedy, they won't help them make any money.

Can you see all the millions and millions they are making and then the S.O.B. want more. It is outrageous.

[shain from kane]

15. I buy used CDs, at yard sales, flea markets, Goodwill, and pawnshops. Sometimes I have to

wait, because something isn't available, but almost everything eventually shows up.

[Occulus]

28. A couple years back, the RIAA expressed an interest in royalties from those sales, too.

I don't think it ever went anywhere, though.

[shain from kane]

32. I remember over 20 years ago there was a music shop in this area

that would rent or lease records on a daily basis, but it was attacked in court and discontinued the practice. The public library has CDs and records (and videotapes and DVDs), but the selection is limited, and hardly worth the effort to record on other media.

[Bake]

34. The industry has gone after some used-CD shops.

A lot of shops have stopped carrying them or closed altogether.

Greedy bastids.

Bake

[populistdriven]

39. The RIAA is shutting down those shops in FL :(

My favorite shop of 13 years just closed because of the draconian law the RIAA wrote and is now state law.

http://politics.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/05/08/0042227

[shain from kane]

40. Used CDs can be purchased through E-Bay, and shipments cross state lines. They may have a

Supreme Court case on their hands, under the interstate commerce clause. I'm certain that E-bay would definitely be a friendly party to any litigation.

[populistdriven]

51. How would eBay collect my fingerprints I wonder...

[shain from kane]

41. One year, I remember spending part of our vacation visiting used book and record stores

in Florida. Are there any restrictions on those items?

[populistdriven]

50. Stores must fingerprint individuals trading in CDs, copy their state identification, pay them credit

Florida's new legislation goes well beyond the measures of a traditional pawn shop law. The state now requires all retailers selling second-hand CDs to acquire a permit and invest in a $10,000 security bond through the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Stores must fingerprint individuals trading in CDs, copy their state identification, and pay them only in store credit; traded CDs must be held for 30 days before being resold. With the new legislation already in effect, at least one retailer is reported to have discontinued sales of used items as a result. Pawn shop laws in many other states, which tend to be less restrictive than those in Florida and Utah, often go unenforced.

The policy also affects the sale and trade of used video games and DVDs, though to a lesser degree. Video game retailers are not required to acquire a permit, and they only need hold traded games for 15 days before they can be sold. This 15 day buffer could theoretically boost the number of new copies sold.
http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/46853


For retailers in Florida, for instance, there's a "waiting period" statue that prohibits them from selling used CDs that they've acquired until 30 days have passed. Furthermore, the Florida law disallows stores from providing anything but store credit for used CDs. It looks like college students will need to stick to blood plasma donations for beer money.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070507-record-shops-used-cds-ihre-papieren-bitte.html

In Florida, the new legislation requires all stores buying second-hand merchandise for resale to apply for a permit, would be required to thumb-print CD sellers and get a copy of their state-issued identity documents, such as a driver's license. Furthermore, stores could only issue store credit—not pay cash—in exchange for traded CDs, and then would be required to hold them for a 30-day period, before re-selling them.
http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/ill_advised-politicians/latest-piracy-havens-sweating-the-crackdown-used-cd-shops-258491.php

[NashVegas]

54. I Have Mixed Feelings on That

I work in a business where people get a lot of CDs for free. *Most* of us don't abuse this by either taking more than we'd actually listen to, or selling for any other reason than desperation (glamour jobs don't always pay so well) but those who do? Out of hundreds I've worked with, there are three who are regular sellers at the used shops and it's disgusting.

[TransitJohn]

12. Way back in the bad old days

of LPs and cassette tapes, I thought once you bought the album, you were legally entitled to make as many copies for personal use as you wanted. Is this not still the case?

[kysrsoze]

19. Yes, fair use is still legal for both audio and video. You're still allowed to make copies for pers

onal use.

[Fox Mulder]

13. If they want to prosecute people who burn CDs...

then they're going to have to prosecute every fucking person in this country.

Fuck the RIAA.

[juno jones]

14. And what about restaurants and other places

that play music as a form of ambiance? Of course, I wouldn't mind not having to listen to other people's favorite drivelly top 40 music 24/7, but it sounds like they want to go too far. I hope all musicians leave this music-mafia in the dust. I am never buying a commercially produced CD again. Only stuff put out by the bands themselves (easy to do with independent artists and the internet).

[htuttle]

16. They already have to pay

Bars, restaurants, stores -- pretty much all of them have to pay extortion to the RIAA (or ASCAP) already to avoid getting sued.

What this British precedent is saying is that if you listen to a boom box without headphones on, you should also have to pay because people walking by can hear it.

[blogslut]

21. I thought ASCAP

...made the establishment pay for mixed tapes and recording. That's the way it happened at a restaurant I worked at in the eighties. The ASCAP dude said that store-bought recordings were fine because the record companies artists got their money, but home-mix tapes were not ok. They were also cool with the playing of radio stations. Did something change since the 1980's?

As for CD burners, I believe there's already a precedent set from the era of the tape recorder - favoring the home tapist.

[junkiebrewster]

29. HUGE difference between ASCAP and RIAA

ASCAP money actually goes to the artists!!!

But seriously, bars generally pay ASCAP or other performance rights organizations (BMI, SESAC, etc.) which collect money for the composers / copyright holders of the songs.

PRO's are a good thing. Songwriting royalties are oftentimes the only money artists see.

[AX10]

59. I am pro-ASCAP/BMI/SESAC.

The RIAA is just an arm of the corporate record labels.

[wuushew]

17. Bill signed the DMCA October 28 1998

I don't expect any change under Clinton II. :(

[A-Schwarzenegger]

18. Wouldn't it be easier to just make everybody license their ears?

[Junkdrawer]

20. How about forcing everyone to wear headphones that filter out...

all copyrighted content? And a quarter slot for temporary access?

Get my secretary on the phone....

[shain from kane]

26. Cochlear implants that play only purchased music and Rush Limbaugh. n/t

[devilgrrl]

22. Where are recording artists on the RIAA? Surely they have something to say about this!

Anyone know?

[Occulus]

24. I clearly recall being maligned by the DU Copyright Apologist Corps for saying

that exactly this could happen. "How are they going to enforce it?" they sneeringly asked. "What are they gonna do- go after someone playing their radio in a shop?"

See? SEE?? There was something to worry about, after all.

I am never giving in to the copyright apologists again. These people need to learn to shut up, because they and the companies and trade associations they cheerlead are doing a LOT more harm than good.

Next, the RIAA will try to get police forces to look for any and all music that can be heard beyond a property line, and punish the "sharers" accordingly. And just how far off base am I, when the equivalent in Britain is doing what amounts to exactly that?

Are we heading toward a period in which people won't be allowed to play a CD they bought in a manner in which can be heard by someone who didn't buy it? Are we going to soon be disallowed from playing music CDs even at parties we hold for friends?

[damntexdem]

30. As much as I support intellectual property rights.

It may be time to chuck them all out, if that's necessary to stop this witch hunt.

I will no longer advise anyone to refrain from 'stealing' music -- I'll advise protecting oneself from prosecution, the smartest way being to not record, but I will no longer refer to such actions as 'stealing.'

[Withywindle]

31. Last desperate thrashings of a dying dinosaur...

...we can hope, anyway.

[Solon]

33. Godsdammit all to hell, it isn't STEALING, its Copyright infringement...

at least the original case mentioned. I fucking HATE the RIAA and the MPAA and their fucking memes that spread this fucking lie! All the other shit is FAIR USE and people are protected by the law when doing those things. Fucking greedy ass pigs, and their fucking scum sucking lawyers can go to fucking Gehenna for all I care. Fucking shitholes.

[varkam]

35. So I guess burning a CD of music that you purchased...

so you can listen to it in your car is now going to get you sued? Good grief the RIAA has really jumped the shark. I guess if I listen to music in my car, I'd better make sure that my windows are up, lest someone else hears it and I get sued for "sharing".

:eyes:

[dajoki]

37. What about the hardworking...

people listening to the radio to make their day go by a little quicker. This is bullshit!!

The PRS is suing the Kwik Fit Group, a car repair shop in Edinburgh, for £200,000 in damages. The case revolves around the complaint that Kwik Fit employees brought in personal radios which they played while working on cars, which could be heard by colleagues and customers. The PRS says this amounts to a public "performance" and should have entailed royalties.

[Initech]

38. They can have my iPod when they pry it from my cold dead hands!

[porphyrian]

42. Good luck with that one. - n/t

[Solar_Power]

44. Rich pop stars need that fifth house really badly

So please buy more CDs

[Melynn]

48. I've heard that most artists only make pennies on the sale of a CD

Most of the money goes to the record company. I've also read that most artists make their money off tours and the sale of merchandise. I don't know if that is true. Maybe someone else who knows the recording industry better than me could illuminate us on this subject.

[NashVegas]

55. Major Labels Are Now Going for a Major Cut of Merchandise, Too

A friend who is an artist manager was telling me this recently.

A band that starts out on an indie and establishes itself has leverage if they want to make the jump to a major. But if you get your start with a traditional development deal or signed outright, you'll be lucky to get 30% of your merchandising rights.

Labels are also inserting themselves into licensing for advertisements, and ad rights. There is a MAJOR huge label that has a video website. Most of their artists are on there. The artists who are not on their are the ones that are holding out on making deals for advertising rights (ie, ads placed in the video stream).

One of the side effects of abolishing freely-distributed music, if the majors have their way, is they will be able to crush indies.

[AX10]

60. A dollar for each unit sold.

If you sell 1 million CD's, you get 1 million dollars gross.
Top artists who produce their own albums entirely get about 3-4 dollars per unit (depending on the total cost of each unit, usually it is a percentage of sales, not a fixed number). A new CD costs 18 dollars, 70% of that goes to the label.

[walldude]

45. The Dead and Dave Matthews have the right idea

Tour incessantly and allow your fans to record the shows. Nothing beats live music. The labels and RIAA are in a panic because they see their ship sinking. Soon most artists will release their music independently over the internet. There will be no need for the RIAA and no need for record labels. Smart musicians and smart fans are going to be the downfall of record companies.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

46. Oink, oink, oink...the pigs need more slop in the trough.

Here's a great definition of "stealing"...

Warner / Reprise / Atlantic rushed CDs to market during the rapid transition from vinyl to CD. As a result, many "classic rock" CDs were mastered from 3rd generation tapes (or worse), sometimes the vinyl masters, which weren't EQed for the digital format.

Then...in the instances of Jimi Hendrix, for example...the CDs were "remastered."

People bought the CDs a second time.

Then the Hendrix family gained control of the master tapes and the CDs were issued again on MCA.

This time it was supposed to be the "official" format.

People bought the CDs a third time. I'm one of those people.

So...as an example...my copy of "Electric Ladyland" cost somewhere around $40 to $50, if you include all three generations.

Jennifer "Burning Is Stealing" Pariser can kiss my royal Italian ASS.

:grr:

[ncteechur]

47. I think I'll make a copy of this thread, just for spite.

[dajoki]

52. Go ahead...

You have my permission.:rofl:

[Melynn]

49. Is there another industry that treats it's customers this shabbily?

The RIAA treats it's customers like they are criminals. Is it any surprise that the RIAA is going in the tank?

[dajoki]

58. Insurance Co.'s for one n/t

[shadowknows69]

53. Screw that

I pay for my itunes and it allows me to burn CDs from my downloads. Don't own an ipod so if i want my music to travel thats how I have to roll.

[Beelzebud]

56. Fuck the RIAA. Buy concert tickets and Tee Shirts.

Want to support your favorite artist? Go to their live shows. Buy their Tee shirts on their websites. They don't see jack shit from CD sales, and there have been cases of a few bands actually OWING money to the record label after recording an album.

Fuck the RIAA and anyone that carries water for them.

[killbotfactory]

57. Boycott CD's released by RIAA members

http://www.riaaradar.com/