The Truth About P2P File Sharing
P2P (peer-to-peer) file sharing sites are where people upload files they've purchased to share so others can download them for free. These sites are used to trade songs, software, and movies, but such items are copyrighted materials - and by giving them away to others, it deprives the creators of additional sales. In addition, files downloaded off P2P sites are often 1) filled with viruses and 2) contain poor-quality copies. As popular as file sharing is, the fact is that such "sharing" without buying your own copy is unethical and illegal. It's not sharing - it's copying, and that's the same as stealing.
Simply put, unless you pay for it, you don’t have the right to own a copy of it. And unless you own a copyright of the work, you don’t have the right to make copies of it and give out (distribute) to others. How would you feel if you had files posted that others downloaded and used without your permission? (Especially if you were selling them?) Read more below to understand why.
1. It’s Illegal!
The unauthorized reproduction and distribution of copyrighted music is just as illegal as shoplifting a CD. Sharing music on peer-to-peer networks (such as Ares, BitTorrent, Gnutella, and BearShare) is against the law. The rules are very simple...
Unless you own the copyright, it’s not yours to distribute.
2. It’s a Drag!
It’s a drag to the entire artistic community that creates music. It is a drag to the singer/songwriters who get their copyrights plundered. It is a drag to the musicians who are deprived of their dream of making a living from their art. And a drag to the record stores which have closed because of the substantial revenue losses. All parties involved lose income from the lack of sales of their products.
As stated by the Recording Industry Association of America...
“Plain and simple: piracy is bad news. While the term is commonly used, “piracy” doesn’t even begin to describe what is taking place. When you go online and download songs without permission, you are stealing. The illegal downloading of music is just as wrong as shoplifting from a local convenience store – and the impact on those who create music and bring it to fans is equally devastating. For every artist you can name at the top of the Billboard music charts, there is a long line of songwriters, sound engineers, and label employees who help create those hits. They all feel the pain of music theft.
“One credible analysis by the Institute for Policy Innovation concludes that global music piracy causes $12.5 billion of economic losses every year, 71,060 U.S. jobs lost, a loss of $2.7 billion in workers' earnings, and a loss of $422 million in tax revenues, $291 million in personal income tax and $131 million in lost corporate income and production taxes.”
3. It's the Law.
In 2007, at the RIAA’s first end user lawsuit to go to trial, a defendant from Minnesota was found liable of copyright infringement and ordered - by a jury of her own peers - to pay $222,000 for sharing 26 songs.
Federal law provides severe civil and criminal penalties for the unauthorized reproduction, distribution, rental or digital transmission of copyrighted sound recordings. (Title 17, United States Code, Sections 501 and 506). The FBI investigates allegations of criminal copyright infringement and violators will be prosecuted.
A lot of the same rationale for not using pirated music applies to using pirated software too. Read 10 Reasons Why Students Shouldn't Copy or Use Unlicensed Software.
The Business Software Alliance notes that there's a (pretty big) reward offered for reporting software piracy: https://reporting.bsa.org/USA/home.aspx.
Here’s the bottom line:
Most of us would never even consider stealing something—say, an iPod or a piece of clothing—from a friend’s house. Our sense of right and wrong keeps most of us from doing something so selfish and antisocial. And most of us would never even consider walking out of a record store with an unpaid for CD. Our sense of right and wrong keeps us from behaving so dishonestly. Yet when it comes to stealing digital recordings of copyrighted music, some people still seem to think the same rules don’t apply—even though criminal penalties can be as high as five years in prison or $250,000 in fines.
Take a look at this list at www.comparemusicdownloadsites.com. What makes these sites legal is that each has its own licensing agreement with individual record companies. When they sell a copy, both the company and the artist are compensated for their work.
Legal Music Purchase/Download Sites:
Legal Movie & TV Show Purchase/Download Sites:
Here's a list of sites provided by the Motion Picture Association of America that legally sell movies and shows online.
"For Students Doing Reports." For Students Doing Reports. Recording Industry Association of America. Web. 21 June 2010. >.
"Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)." Content Protection. Motion Picture Association of America, Inc., 2010. Web. 21 June 2010. http://www.mpaa.org/contentprotection/faq.
"Who Really Cares About Illegal Downloading?" MusicUnited.org. Web. 6 June 2010. <http://www.musicunited.org/1_whocares.html>.
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