Student Resources

Illegal File Sharing and Copyright in a Nutshell

What is it?

As a concept, copyright is very simple: it occurs when you put words on paper, transmit words via email, record your own music, write computer software, or create images. Once you do any of these, your work is protected by copyright. If someone else wants to use it, they must get permission from you. If they use the material without your permission - it's copyright infringement. It's that simple.

A more formal way of presenting this concept is to say that copyrighted material includes almost all forms of original expression fixed in a tangible medium. Once it is fixed in this tangible medium (you cannot copyright a thought or daydream) it enjoys legal protections even if no formal copyright notice is filed or attached.

Copyright infringement is any reproduction, display, or distribution (sharing) of copyrighted material without permission of the copyright owner.



File Sharing

Sharing copyrighted files using a peer-to-peer application such as Limeware, Bit Torrent, or DC++ is copyright infringement.

Even if you paid for the material (e.g., Itunes, own the CD), sharing it is infringement. Buying a copy of a song or film does not give you permission to distribute it.

If you do not have permission from the copyright holder to distribute the file, and you share it, you are guilty of infringement.



How Do They Catch Me?

When you install file sharing software such as Limewire, the software puts itself in your Start Up folder. So everytime you start your computer, and the whole time that it's running, the file sharing application is running in the background, doing what it was designed to do: share your files.

Even if you are not using it to search for, or download, material, the application is hard at work serving up whatever files you've saved to other people, including agents who are working for copyright holders.

Representatives of the authors and copyright holders such as the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) are using the same file sharing software to search for copies of their songs and films being shared from your computer. When they find them, they send the University or Apogee a "take down" notice, and you lose your network access.

You could lose a lot more!!!



Getting Sued

In a worst case scenario, you could be sued by a copyright holder for infringement. This is not a situation you want to find yourself in. It is going to cost you real money because you will be taken to court and will need a lawyer to defend you. Just ask the nine University at Albany students who were sued by Arista Records this year (2008).

The question you have to ask yourself is: Is it worth jeopardizing my undergraduate or graduate education for a free copy of an episode of Family Guy?



Strict Liability

Copyright is a strict liability offense. Under the federal copyright statutes, neither intent nor knowledge of infringement is necessary to hold a person liable.

In practical terms, this means that you cannot plead ignorance to escape liability. And the liability can be serious. Sound recording copyright infringements can be punishable by up to five years in prison and $250,000 in fines. Copyright holders have been known to seek damages of up to $150K per song.



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