that is not true. i cant find the article, so dont believe me if you like, but an RIAA attorney said it is illegal. i also completely disagree with the previous post stating that copying copyrighted material is the same as taking something from the store. bs. a copy is a copy. it cost no one a dime to make it. as opposed to the $.99 twinkie as far as im concerned, when i buy a cd, any song there is mine anyway i can get it. if its played on the airwaves (goes for tv too) its mine because i payfor it. i cant make a copy for myself?--screw them. i cant record a song on the radio?--screw them. i cant record the lsu game and watch it later?--screw them. i cant give the lsu game tape to my neighbor?--screw them. selective enforcement and prosecution because the RIAA has $$$. the riaa is a dinosaur, and it will soon be extinct. the have been ripping off the public and musicians for generations (arists average $.15/album), and they havent been able to keep up with technology.
So for every album you steal off the internet instead of purchase you're steal $.15 from the artist. For every album you let someone upload instead of buying it there is another $.15. Just because the dollar amounts are small doesn't mean that it isn't theft.
You aren't going to be taken to court for making personal copies. It may be illegal, but no one is going to know. I think it is disrespectful to steal music/movies/etc without paying for it. If you enjoy the music, shouldn't the artist benefit from your enjoyment of their creativity?
well, here's one example "Gabriel (lead counsel for the record labels) asked if it was wrong for consumers to make copies of music which they have purchased, even just one copy. Pariser (the head of litigation for Sony BMG) replied, "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'," she said. Countless studies have shown that the majority of music on portable music players like the iPod comes from sources other than download services. For most people, that music is comprised primarily of songs "ripped" from CD collections to MP3 or some other comparable format. Indeed, most portable music players comes with software (like iTunes) which is designed to facilitate the easy ripping of CDs. According to Pariser's view, this is stealing." http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20071002-sony-bmgs-chief-anti-piracy-lawyer-copying-music-you-own-is-stealing.html
Well, lawyers are hired guns and must ruthlessly protect their clients. Legally RIAA doesn't want to get on a slippery slope by stating that personal copying is not a crime. But they say officially on their site, that they have no problem with it as long as the copies are not shared.
Too bad the RIAA cant do didly chit in Canada where MP3 sharing is alive and well. If you want free MP3's either move to Canada or learn newsgroups. NEVER, EVER use Kazaa or any type of peer to peer sharing program.
So you believe that I can steal cable by splicing into my neighbors wires? Why not, it doesn't cost the cable company a dime for me to take it from next door.
