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Movies => Press Releases and Film News => Topic started by: claws on June 03, 2011, 11:06:45 AM

Title: Embedding YouTube Videos May Soon Be a Felony
Post by: claws on June 03, 2011, 11:06:45 AM
QuoteTechdirt reports that Senate bill 978 – a bill to amend the criminal penalty provision for criminal infringement of a copyright, and for other purposes – may be used to prosecute people for embedding YouTube videos.

According to Mark Masnick, if a website embeds a YouTube video that is determined to have infringed on copyright and more than 10 people view it on that website, the owner or others associated with the website could face up to five years in prison.

Read Masnick's article here. He explains how the new law would expand copyright violations from reproducing and distributing to performing – including streaming video over the internet.

As readers of Infowars.com know, many videos are removed from YouTube after copyright owners complain about infringement. This happens with thousands of news clips every year. Most people are familiar with the now common black box replacing a video that says the video has been removed for copyright reasons.

If enacted, this law will go one step further and turn people who embed a copyrighted video into criminals. It will also set the stage to criminalize linking to copyrighted information — like corporate media news sources — and shut down the alternative media.

It will also make people think twice about putting up all kinds of videos, from news reports to clips from documentaries and other educational material.

It does not take a vivid imagination to realize the political implications of this legislation.

Source: http://www.infowars.com/embedding-youtube-videos-may-soon-be-a-felony/

Might as well just shut down YouTube  :thumbdown:
Title: Re: Embedding YouTube Videos May Soon Be a Felony
Post by: akiratubo on June 03, 2011, 11:42:15 AM
From the article ...

QuoteHe explains how the new law would expand copyright violations from reproducing and distributing to performing

Simply performing would be a copyright violation?  Like, a bar-band doing god-awful covers of classic rock could be busted for copyright violation, and so could the bar owner for sponsoring it?

Or does this apply only to the internet?
Title: Re: Embedding YouTube Videos May Soon Be a Felony
Post by: Rev. Powell on June 03, 2011, 12:23:33 PM
Quote from: akiratubo on June 03, 2011, 11:42:15 AM
From the article ...

QuoteHe explains how the new law would expand copyright violations from reproducing and distributing to performing

Simply performing would be a copyright violation?  Like, a bar-band doing god-awful covers of classic rock could be busted for copyright violation, and so could the bar owner for sponsoring it?

Or does this apply only to the internet?

I haven't read through this whole thing so I'm not sure what he's saying, but as stated that would not really be an expansion of copyright laws.  If a band performs someone else's songs in a paid concert, they're already supposed to pay the songwriter royalties.  (As a practical matter it's pretty much on the honor system except when you get to hugely profitable bands).

These kinds of alarmist articles frustrate me.  The writer ends his tirade with "It will also be used by the political establishment to eliminate the internet activity – primarily in the form of alternative media – of those who oppose what is shaping up to be a totalitarian state."  A state in which it's illegal to post the latest Lady Gaga single online, but still perfectly legal to make or buy it, is a totalitarian state?  Maybe being a little heavy handed there? 

It's already illegal to post copyrighted material on YouTube.  People do it all the time and risk nothing more than the revocation of their YouTube account.  We couldn't put every copyright violator in jail, and if this bill passes it won't change a thing about the status quo. 
Title: Re: Embedding YouTube Videos May Soon Be a Felony
Post by: dean on June 03, 2011, 12:27:09 PM
Well said Rev.

Then you have the next issue of a foreign agent like myself posting threads with embedded video when it isn't illegal for me to do so in my country, but I'm doing it on an [I assume] American site.  Makes the mind boggle!