More legal background available (where else?) on the web

By Peter Vogel

My column a few weeks ago about downloading music (“Potential fines for sharing music files staggering,” Oct. 22) touched off some emotional feedback. Particularly worth sharing is the following note, with a few grammatical corrections, from a young reader.

Hi, Mr. Vogel,
I am a high-school student who just recently read your article, and it alarmed me greatly. First of all, my uncle showed it to me, telling me that I have to DELETE every single music file I have. I have about 10 GB of music and hope to add more if you can clear this up for me.

My music is my life, and if I didn’t have it, then my life would not be as rich as it is now. I would get an iPod, but at the moment I cannot afford to get one, because it’s not a “necessity,” according to my family. My computer is at the shop because it is having some problems so I need answers fast before any drastic changes are made.

I’m a little confused: are you saying that if I download music from LimeWire I am going to get fined, or do you mean that if I shared the downloaded song with a friend I would then be fined? It’s all confusing. Could you clear it up for me?

My uncle is freaking out because, technically, he would be blamed if a lawsuit happened. Do I have to delete every file of music that I have? Is it necessary? I will be showing my uncle your response, and it’s very important to me.

My music means the world to me; I wouldn’t be whole without it. My family doesn’t understand that; they think I should choose a “top whatever number of songs,” but that would just break my heart because it’s like picking a favourite child. It would mean a great deal if you respond to me.

Grade 10 student

I’m guessing there aren’t too many readers of this newspaper in the school-age category. It seems there aren’t many young people reading papers, period. One thing we can be sure of: they are downloading and sharing music to such an extent that the industry model of artists, labels, music companies, and retailers is no longer viable.

I thought for quite a while before responding.

What an interesting note. I, of course, have no way of knowing if you are indeed a high-school student, or if you are in Canada, for that matter. However, that doesn’t change the nature of the question.

My article was written from the Canadian perspective, and as it pointed out, at that time, and at this time of writing, there is no Canadian law that can be used against you. That could change, though. This issue is a moral or ethical one.

In the U.S. people like you are having to pay the industry fines, the lowest of which are usually in the $2,000 range. That hasn’t happened in Canada.

What interests me most about your note is the passion with which you describe your attachment to the music you have. The music industry might need to hear accounts like yours, and change its tactics. Would you be willing to pay, even a little, for music? How much? Ten cents a song? What would it take to stop you downloading?

Note that my column wasn’t telling readers to stop downloading. It was just setting out the facts, as best we knew them, at that point.

This is a really fine topic to discuss with your family. For now, by all means share this response with your family. I’d be happy to exchange notes with your uncle, for instance. His reaction to the column is very interesting. Does he know of your passion for music?

Another reader took issue with the cautionary aspect of the column. He rightly challenged me for mentioning LimeWire’s copyright notice, pointing out that the company is American and its notice has no effect here.

I just read your article on the RIAA case. I think your article is misleading: your caution to parents and the closing quote from LimeWire (obviously not Canadian). I’d like to offer some corrections. I’m not sure if you are aware of these points.

There are important implications of the Copyright Act in Canada that have been tested in the courts:

1. Making copies for personal use is legal, irrespective of the music source.

2. Making files available on the Internet is not sufficient evidence of infringement.

That said, there are significant risks, and it could be a bit of a mine-field for the file-sharers.

The rebellion south of the border seems to exist because of the greed of the RIAA, who are unwilling to adapt to new technology and adopt new business models. The RIAA protects the traditional record labels and not the artists, who receive little of the proceeds. Many of the analysts I listen to say that the heavy-handed tactics of the RIAA are not supporting their cause, and eventually U.S. law will have to change to reflect popular opinion.

Fortunately in Canada music artists are compensated by the recording media levy. It has always seemed a little unfair that I need to pay music artists every time I backup my computer. All I can say is, thank God we live in Canada.

I am in agreement with this correspondent on a couple of points. The industry is a greedy one; artists would agree, I suspect. When a CD costs $15 or more, and just a small fraction of that finds its way to the recording artists and writers, there is going to be grumbling.

The business model has to change to reflect today’s wired world. There is little evidence that the RIAA’s actions in the U.S. are having any effect on the volume of downloading.

Online music sales through the likes of iTunes aren’t coming close to offsetting the drop in CD sales in recent years, a drop many in the business attribute to downloading and file sharing.

For some background from the Canadian legal perspective, see the corporate site of Cassels Brock www.casselsbrock.com, a firm specializing in music law. Use the search term “220,000,” the penalty assessed in a recent RIAA case.

OLPC update

About a year ago this space carried a column on a project by technologist extraordinaire and MIT professor Nicholas Negroponte to bring computer power to the poorest nations on earth.

Starting Nov. 12 the One Laptop Per Child program will briefly offer a Give 1, Get 1 Program in North America. For $399 you can purchase two XO laptops: one will be sent to empower a child to learn in a developing nation, and one will be sent to your child. More information: www.laptopgiving.org.

Peter Vogel is a Physics and Computer Sciences teacher at Notre Dame Regional Secondary School (www.ndrs.org). Suggestions and comments may be sent via e-mail to peterv@portal.ca.