Congress proposes new federal agency to enforce copyright law...

[trekgeezer]

....and wants to give them the right to seize your computer! Of course this has made the MPAA all grins and giggles.

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20071206-congress-copyright-reform-seize-computers-boost-penalties-spend-money.html

[CheezeFlixz]

More and more right slipping away. I'm all for busting the big bootlegger, but the bill needs to lose the language about seizing family computers for so called illegal downloads.

I agree with this statement ...

"Gigi Sohn, president of Public Knowledge, said in a statement, "seizing expensive manufacturing equipment used for large-scale infringement from a commercial pirate may be appropriate. Seizing a family's general-purpose computer in a download case, as this bill would allow, is not appropriate."

Doesn't this country have bigger problems to worry about?

[asimpson2006]

More and more right slipping away. I'm all for busting the big bootlegger, but the bill needs to lose the language about seizing family computers for so called illegal downloads.

I agree with this statement ...

"Gigi Sohn, president of Public Knowledge, said in a statement, "seizing expensive manufacturing equipment used for large-scale infringement from a commercial pirate may be appropriate. Seizing a family's general-purpose computer in a download case, as this bill would allow, is not appropriate."

Doesn't this country have bigger problems to worry about?

We do have bigger problems to worry about, like how we are going to get out of this war, but remember if some big shot famous person can't buy a summer home in another country b/c someone illegally downloaded a movie, that's more important.

[Andrew]

The studios are all worried about a snowball effect.  That and being forced to change their current business plan, due to the changing face of the world.  Don't you worry that a new version of copyright would probably be much better for society than the current system.

Well, obviously it is time for me to pull out the addresses of my home state's two Senators and one Representative (DE - we're small) and send them a letter telling them what I think of the proposed law.

[ulthar]

What's funny (in a way) is that the whole publishing industry is undergoing severe gyrations due to the 'modern' age of public information exchange.

I have done some consulting work on various textbook projects for some of the big houses like McGraw-Hill and Houghton Mifflin.  They are all in a scramble in how to hold on to their business model in the age of the Internet.  Wiley, Elsevier and the other peer review journal publishers are also in a similar scramble.

The copyright laws are probably going to be re-written many times over the next 10-20 years.  So long as the big boys throw money in to try to protect their interests, the laws will reflect 'their will.'  The key problem is that they no longer have a monopoly on 'information exchange,' and the cat is out of the bag, so to speak.

[trekgeezer]

The problem with the RIAA is the same, there current business model (ripping off the artists) isn't working anymore. CD sales have actually gone down since they started their little crusade or going after kids, little old ladies, and dead folks for illegal downloads.

I read an article the other day that WalMart had informed Sony BMG and Warners that they are going to pull all their music in the WMA format off their download siite betwee mid-December and mid-January if they don't provide them with MP3's of said music.

Walmart wants to provide both formats, which to me means the WMA (with DRM) files will go away eventually, because no one wants the restrictions they entail.

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3i6efb69eb2243cb842be35f0eab40082d

[316zombie]

so how am i supposed to know if a downloading site is legal or not?and how do they catch me? i don't get it at all! a lady here in wichita was fined 28 thou because her teenagers and their friends were downloading music and sharing their files,she knew nothing about it,but she has now lost her home to pay the fine!!

[CheezeFlixz]

Here is my question if I bought a 8-track of any artist and by buying that 8-track I have paid for the rights to that album for personal use, why can't I download a update media for a song I already own?

Company want you to pay for every form of media you have a song in, 78, 45, 33, 8 track, Cassette, DAT, CD, mp3 or whatever and I think that is double, triple, quadruple dipping. I've already paid for the song once, the song! Only a very small amount went to cover the cost of the media. So on in the digital age if I already own a license to a song, then I shouldn't have to pay for it again just to have it on a different media. I'll pay for the media, but I won't pay twice or three times for something I've already paid for.

[flackbait]

....and wants to give them the right to seize your computer! Of course this has made the MPAA all grins and giggles.

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20071206-congress-copyright-reform-seize-computers-boost-penalties-spend-money.html

If I ever get wind their coming to take my computer I'll smash it before I give it too them. Or scramble the hard drive.

[Jim H]

Here is my question if I bought a 8-track of any artist and by buying that 8-track I have paid for the rights to that album for personal use, why can't I download a update media for a song I already own?

Company want you to pay for every form of media you have a song in, 78, 45, 33, 8 track, Cassette, DAT, CD, mp3 or whatever and I think that is double, triple, quadruple dipping. I've already paid for the song once, the song! Only a very small amount went to cover the cost of the media. So on in the digital age if I already own a license to a song, then I shouldn't have to pay for it again just to have it on a different media. I'll pay for the media, but I won't pay twice or three times for something I've already paid for.

You'd be within your rights to convert it to MP3 yourself.  Well, within your moral rights.  It might technically be an infringement (I've heard varying things) but one thing is certain - no one who merely converted old albums to MP3s has EVER been sued for it.