Gnutella Forums - is it legal? Some things arnt... an advanced legal guide

Regarding move copyright infrigment:

THE LAW

The Copyright Act of 1976 gives the U.S. some of the strongest anti-piracy legislation in the world. The Act was amended in 1982, substantially increasing the penalties for the illegal duplication of copyrighted material, making such offenses felonies on the first offense. Copyright owners may also file civil lawsuits against copyright infringers, and the government may file criminal charges. Tough new United States Sentencing Commission guidelines have reinforced these penalties. The Communications Act of 1984, and later amendments provide comparable penalties and remedies for cable TV and satellite pirates.

Today, more than 80 nations have copyright laws. MPAA/MPA and its affiliated organizations work to strengthen these laws, when necessary, and suggest appropriate penalties as part of copyright reform. In some parts of the world where copyright laws are weak or nonexistent, successful charges have been brought against pirates under other statutes, such as receiving stolen goods, trademark violations, smuggling, and failure to pay custom duties.

In addition, intellectual property relations between the US and most foreign countries are governed by an array of multilateral treaties and conventions as well as bilateral agreements, including the Universal Copyright Convention (UCC) and the Berne Convention.

Lastly, various trade agreements also ensure the free flow and protection of intellectual property among nations. The MPA encourages foreign governments to abide by, and fully implement, important agreements such as the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) treaties.

TYPES OF PIRACY

OPTICAL DISC PIRACY

Optical Disc Piracy is major threat to the audiovisual sector. Pirate optical discs, which include Laser Discs (LD), Video Compact Discs (VCD) and Digital Versatile Discs (DVD), are inexpensive to manufacture and easy to distribute. In 2000, over 20 million pirate optical discs were seized, and by comparison, 4.5 million videos were seized worldwide in the same period.

Unlike traditional analog piracy, a digital pirated disc is as pure and pristine as the original. In addition, a production facility can churn out a huge volume of illegal discs in relatively short time. To illustrate this, an average illegal videocassette duplication facility with 100 VCRs can, in a 10 hour period, produce about 400 pirated cassettes, while pirates with the right CD pressing equipment can produce thousands of perfect VCDs or DVDs daily.

The MPA supports the introduction of effective measures to control the spread of optical disc piracy, such as licensing requirements for optical disc manufacturing facilities and the tracking of the import and export of manufacturing equipment. Strengthened cooperation among customs and enforcement authorities worldwide to share information relating to transnational operation of organized criminal enterprises engaged in production, export, or import of illicit optical discs is also critical.

INTERNET PIRACY

Online motion picture piracy is the unauthorized use of copyrighted motion pictures on the Internet. It is illegal to sell, trade, lease, distribute, upload for transmission, transmit or publicly perform motion pictures online without the consent of the motion picturesï¿½ copyright owner.

Online piracy is a relatively new phenomenon, and, unfortunately, a growing trend. The MPA Worldwide Internet Anti-Piracy program investigates all forms of online piracy including: Downloadable Media, Hard Goods Piracy, Streaming Media and online offerings of illegal Circumvention Devices. The MPA is working closely with the online community to prevent the unauthorized use and distribution of film industry product on the Internet.

Downloadable Media

Downloadable Media refers to digital files that allow for motion pictures to be compressed and uploaded for direct download onto a computer. Pirates use Downloadable Media formats to illegally offer and distribute motion pictures to other Internet users. Typically, the pirate host will use illegal VCD copies of motion pictures to create digital copies that are recorded into a computer file. Using online communication avenues, including chat rooms, Internet Relay Chats (IRC), FTP sites, newsgroups, File Swapping Utilities (FSUs) and Web sites, the pirate offers these files to other Internet users who then download the motion picture file onto their own computers.

Hard Goods

Hard goods piracy refers to the illegal sale, distribution and/or trading of copies of motion pictures in any format, including videocassettes and all optical media product. Illegal hard goods are sold on web sites, online auction sites such as eBay and Yahoo!, and via e-mail solicitations.

Streaming Media

Streaming media refers to the transmission or transfer of data that is delivered to the online user or viewer in a steady stream in near real time. Similar to hard goods and downloadable media, It is illegal to stream copyrighted content without the express authorization of the copyright holder.

Circumvention Devices

A circumvention device is any physical medium or digital file that allows for the circumvention of content protection devices put on films, videos, discs, etc. to secure the copyrighted content. One such Circumvention Device is the unauthorized, so-called software utility DeCSS. Any person that has the DeCSS utility can use it to break the copy protection on DVDs making it possible for motion pictures in DVD format to be decrypted and illegally copied onto a computerï¿½s hard-drive for further distribution over the Internet or otherwise, in perfect, digital format. Other common circumvention devices include "black boxes" and other illegal signal theft devices and macrovision defeators.

The Law

Online piracy is covered by the same laws that govern other forms of piracy. In addition, the US government recently amended federal copyright statutes to specifically address Internet copyright issues and enhance the protection of Intellectual Property online through the No Electronic Theft Act (NET Act) and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).

For more information on online film piracy, please see the MPAA web page section "Protecting Copyright in the Courts".

VIDEOCASSETTE PIRACY

Videocassette piracy is the illegal duplication, distribution, rental or sale of copyrighted videocassettes. In recent years, the MPAA/MPA shifted its investigative focus onto the illicit duplicating facilities or "laboratories" that are set-up to create and distribute pirated videocassettes. These facilities are often times capable of producing hundreds of thousands of illegal videocassette copies each year. These copies are then distributed to a variety of outlets including swap meets, co-operating video dealers and street vendors. The pirate product is often packaged in counterfeit videocassette boxes that resemble legitimate packaging.

Camcording: Pirates use hand-held video cameras to record motion picture films off of theater screens and then copy these films onto blank videocassettes and optical discs for illegal distribution. These illicit copies are not only distributed to pirates in the US, but also shipped overseas and distributed through illegal channels even before the filmï¿½s international theatrical release.

Screeners: Illegal copies are sometimes made from legitimate advance copies used for screening and marketing purposes.

Back-to-back Copying: A "back-to-back" copy is a pirate videocassette made by connecting two VCRs and then copying an original video onto a blank cassette.

Identifying an Illegal Video

The absence of any of a series of indicators can help point to pirated cassettes, including: the lack of special markings on the plastic cassette, low quality labeling, tape length that does not correspond to the filmï¿½s running time, or the absence of special colored gates on the cassette. Most importantly, pirate videocassettes are ALWAYS of inferior quality to an original. Consumers are cheated into purchasing sometimes shoddy,

unwatchable product where the sound is garbled and the graphics are poor. Videocassettes can also be analyzed on special electronic equipment to determine if they are counterfeit as well as to identify the source of the piracy.

THEATRICAL PRINT THEFT

Theft of a 35 or 16 mm film print from a theater, film depot, courier service or other industry-related facility for the purpose of making illegal copies is one of the most serious forms of piracy. This type of theft allows the pirate to make a relatively high quality videotape from the theatrical print, which then serves as the master for the duplication of unauthorized videocassettes. Fortunately, this type of theft is extremely rare due to the difficulty in obtaining the prints illegally and also in transferring the print to another format, such as videocassette.

SIGNAL THEFT

Signal theft refers to the act of illegally tapping into cable TV systems as well as receiving satellite signals without authorization. In addition, pirates have made businesses out of supplying consumers with illegally tampered cable decoders or satellite descramblers. Internationally, the problem becomes more acute when programs not licensed to a particular country are pirated from satellites and then re-transmitted in that country either by cable or broadcast TV.

BROADCAST PIRACY

Like signal theft, broadcast piracy is also defined by piracy that occurs on over-the-air broadcasts. However, instead of stealing signals, the illegal act may be the on-air broadcasting of a bootleg videocassette of a film or the on-air showing of legitimate films or television programs without permission from the copyright holder.

PUBLIC PERFORMANCE

Unauthorized public performances refer to situations where an institution or commercial establishment shows a tape or film to its members or customers without receiving permission from the copyright owner. This includes "public performances" where an admission fee is charged as well as those that are simply offered as an additional service of the establishment.

PARALLEL IMPORTS

Parallel imports describes the importation of goods authorized for manufacture or distribution in the exporting country but imported without express authority of the copyright or trademark owner. (Parallel Importation may or may not be lawful under local laws). Generally parallel imports undercut the domestic market by being available prior to authorized release in that market.

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Regarding Music piracy:
"Piracy" generally refers to the illegal duplication and distribution of sound recordings. There are four specific categories of music piracy:

Pirate recordings are the unauthorized duplication of only the sound of legitimate recordings, as opposed to all the packaging, i.e. the original art, label, title, sequencing, combination of titles etc. This includes mixed tapes and compilation CDs featuring one or more artists.

Counterfeit recordings are unauthorized recordings of the prerecorded sound as well as the unauthorized duplication of original artwork, label, trademark and packaging.

Bootleg recordings (or underground recordings) are the unauthorized recordings of live concerts, or musical broadcasts on radio or television.

Online piracy is the unauthorized uploading of a copyrighted sound recording and making it available to the public, or downloading a sound recording from an Internet site, even if the recording isn't resold. Online piracy may now also include certain uses of "streaming" technologies from the Internet.

Many do not understand the significant negative impact of piracy on the music industry. Though it would appear that record companies are still making their money and that artists are still getting rich, these impressions are mere fallacies. Each sale by a pirate represents a lost legitimate sale, thereby depriving not only the record company of profits, but also the artist, producer, songwriter, publisher, retailer, ï¿½ and the list goes on. The consumer is the ultimate victim, as pirated product is generally poorly manufactured and does not include the superior sound quality, art work, and insert information included in legitimate product.

Each year, the industry loses about $4.2 billion to piracy worldwide -- "we estimate we lose millions of dollars a day to all forms of piracy."

Music pirates are the first to lose because the recording industry and law enforcement officials are cracking down around the world. Do the crime and you will pay the fine or do the time.

Consumers also lose because the shortcut savings enjoyed by pirates drive up the costs of legitimate product for everyone. Plus, good luck returning a pirated tape or CD when the quality is inferior or the product is defective, as it often is.

Honest retailers (who back up the products they sell) lose because they canï¿½t compete with the prices offered by illegal vendors. Less business means fewer jobs, jobs often filled by young adults.

Record companies lose. Eighty-five percent of recordings released donï¿½t even generate enough revenue to cover their costs. Record companies depend heavily on the profitable fifteen percent of recordings to subsidize the less profitable types of music, to cover the costs of developing new artists, and to keep their businesses operational. The thieves often donï¿½t focus on the eighty-five percent; they go straight to the top and steal the gold.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the creative artists lose. Musicians, singers, songwriters and producers donï¿½t get the royalties and fees theyï¿½ve earned. Virtually all artists (95%) depend on these fees to make a living. The artists also depend on their reputations, which are damaged by the inferior quality of pirated copies sold to the public.

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Refering to what is illegal (by me):

You are not aloud to upload/download prohibited content

Prohibited Content includes any Content that breaks any local, state, county, national or international law. Prohibited Content also includes: (a) Content that infringes upon any rights (including, but not limited to, copyrights and trademarks); (b) Abusive, threatening, defamatory, racist, or obscene Content; (c) Viruses or any other harmful computer software; (d) False information or libel; (e) Spam, chain letters, or pyramid schemes; (f) Gambling or Illicit drugs; (g) Terrorism; (h) Hacking or cheating Content for internet/online games; (i) Warez, Roms, CD-Keys, Cracks, Passwords, or Serial Numbers; (j) Content that is invasive of privacy or impersonation of any person/entity; and (k) Hacking materials or information.

(a)Would refer to, but not limited to:
Copyrighted Movies both DVD rips and bootlegs

Copyrighted Music both CD,TV, and Cassetes and bootlegs

(b)Would refer to but not limited to:
Documents refering but not limited to overthrowing goverment

Any video, document, etc... of obscene content

Terisost plans

(c)Would refer to but not limited to::
Viruses that damage OS' (operating system)

Or any malware

(d)Would refer to but not limited to:

False documents

Trricking people into scams

(e)Would refer to but not limited to:

Spamming the network

Chain letter, scam letter, etc...

(f)Would refer to but not limited to:

How to obtain illegal drugs

Illegal gambling

(g)Would refer to but not limited to:

Terriost, anything related

(h)Would refer to but not limited to:

Hacks for online games

Cheats and mods (witch breaks most EULA agrements)

(i)Would refer to but not limited to:

Cracks, serials for computer software

(j)Would refer to but not limited to:

Credit card numbers

Personal information (age,email, etc...)

(k)Would refer to but not limited to:

Hacking programs

Documents to hack machines