Post by Her3tiK on Jul 11, 2011 20:08:26 GMT -5
Record and movie labels, still at a loss as to how to put an end to internet piracy, have come out with a new law that will make video and music streaming illegal. Anyone caught streaming more than 10 copyrighted movies/videos/songs/etc. in a 6mo period will face up to 5 years in prison and fines totaling whatever it is the owner has supposedly lost. The bill, which can be read here, is so broadly defined that karaoke performances and Youtube guitar covers could be considered felonies (though many of those are bad enough that they should be illegal anyway).
What I want to know, and the bill doesn't specify, is what happens to the little guys? What's to stop the RIAA from suing someone who listens to, say, Cloudkicker, even though the artist, Ben Sharp, has made it clear that he's not doing it for the money? Arguably, if he copyrights his work, that would be grounds for the lovable RIAA to sue the hell out of his fans since, if there's one thing the RIAA is, it's reasonable.
What I want to know, and the bill doesn't specify, is what happens to the little guys? What's to stop the RIAA from suing someone who listens to, say, Cloudkicker, even though the artist, Ben Sharp, has made it clear that he's not doing it for the money? Arguably, if he copyrights his work, that would be grounds for the lovable RIAA to sue the hell out of his fans since, if there's one thing the RIAA is, it's reasonable.
