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The Reality of Copyrights and File Sharing

Introduction

High speed connectivity and the rise of user friendly technology have made it easier for the average user to share files over the Internet. Unfortunately, the most commonly shared files are copyrighted materials such as music, movies, television shows, and software. Unless the end user can provide documented proof of lawfully acquiring a work, it is illegal to possess or distribute copyrighted materials.¹

Copyright infringements carry serious consequences, which can be enforced on the campus level² and through the legal court system.

Real World Examples of Copyright Violation Enforcement

From the summer of 2003 to April 2004, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) filed 2,500 lawsuits³ against individuals suspected of swapping copyrighted materials. The March 2004 round of lawsuits⁴ named 89 people at 21 separate universities while the April 2004 lawsuits³ included university students from 14 separate schools. For lawsuits against anonymous users, their identities were revealed⁵ during court proceedings.

On April 22 2004 , the US Justice Department conducted a massive 24 hour raid⁶ that targeted the illegal Internet distribution of copyright-infringing materials. The raid spanned over 120 worldwide locations in 10 foreign countries, which included 80 domestic locations in 27 states. Hundreds of computers were confiscated in this single operation.

Sporadically, the College of Education has received copyright infringement notices for end user violations. Based on the specific information provided, the end user and machine are readily identified. All gathered evidence and identities are then reported to the appropriate persons for further relevant action.

Legal Consequences & Subsequent Campus Actions

Although copyright owners are entitled to have violators receive the full punishment⁷ of up to 3 years in prison and $250,000 of fines (or $150,000 per infringement) , most filed cases rarely go to trial. Because trials can be prolonged and expensive, most cases are settled out of court with fines that usually range from $3000 to $17,000.

At the campus level, CITES Security investigates all legitimate complaints⁸ of copyright violations. During the investigation, CITES can prohibit network access of suspected machines. Once confirmed, the end user's identity is then provided to the relevant campus entities for appropriate disciplinary action. This typically includes the user's immediate supervisor, their unit head, or the Office of the Dean of Students. Further copyright violations may result in termination of network and computer access and further disciplinary action.

Protecting Yourself

Awareness of the law and campus policies is the first step in preventing copyright infringement. Unfortunately, legally actionable copyright violations still can occur without the direct involvement of the user. Unless a user has a specific legal purpose⁹ for using peer-to-peer (P2P) software like Kazaa or distributed file sharing applications like Bit Torrent, users should avoid installing them. Once installed, these programs act as a distribution point by default and can begin serving files to the Internet without any user intervention.¹⁰

There are many affordable on-line services¹¹ available that make it possible for people to legally acquire copyrighted materials. Ultimately, using these legal services, increasing one's awareness of the law, and avoiding file sharing programs are the best ways of preventing copyright infringements.