RIAA Won
Published by: Codrut Nistor, in News
September1st2008
Are you downloading something as we speak? Are you sure all the files on your computer are "clean" from the legal point of view? Believe me - the more media content you have on your computer (excluding family photos and your dirty college video footage, of course), the less chances for everything to be all right exist. Anyway, don't worry too much, just be sure not to share the content of your hard drive, because there are some people just waiting to get their hands on you and squeeze some money...
...and, unfortunately for Jeffrey Howell, sharing "Waiting For A Girl Like You," "Money For Nothing," and "Sweet Child O' Mine" on P2P networks ended up being extremely expensive. I am really sorry for the guy, but I guess he missed reading about downloading music ilegally, or about staying on the safe side with Limewire. Well, too bad for him, I must say.
Now, RIAA can celebrate another so-called "victory against illegal sharing," since Jeffrey got a $40,850 fine, and this happened mainly because he destroyed the evidence of his computer activity, after being ordered to preserve it. He did things right, formatting his hard drive and using a file-wiping software, but that's exactly what is completely useless, once you have been caught.
Apart from being ordered to pay the amount I just mentioned, and $350 court costs, Jeffrey was ordered to stop infringing copyrights, "including without limitation by using the Internet or any online media distribution system to reproduce (i.e., download) any of Plaintiffs' Recordings, or to distribute (i.e., upload) any of Plaintiffs' Recordings."
Wait, there's even more to this! As a precaution, our guy also has to "destroy all copies of those downloaded recordings transferred onto any physical medium or device in Defendant's possession, custody, or control."
I think destroying entirely his computer, cancelling the Internet subscription and go buy a ranch, grow some cattle, would be easier. Probably that's what RIAA has in mind for all of us...even though when we're only listening to our friends' CDs while drinking a beer, and not sharing a single bit of illegal information.
...and, unfortunately for Jeffrey Howell, sharing "Waiting For A Girl Like You," "Money For Nothing," and "Sweet Child O' Mine" on P2P networks ended up being extremely expensive. I am really sorry for the guy, but I guess he missed reading about downloading music ilegally, or about staying on the safe side with Limewire. Well, too bad for him, I must say.
Now, RIAA can celebrate another so-called "victory against illegal sharing," since Jeffrey got a $40,850 fine, and this happened mainly because he destroyed the evidence of his computer activity, after being ordered to preserve it. He did things right, formatting his hard drive and using a file-wiping software, but that's exactly what is completely useless, once you have been caught.
Apart from being ordered to pay the amount I just mentioned, and $350 court costs, Jeffrey was ordered to stop infringing copyrights, "including without limitation by using the Internet or any online media distribution system to reproduce (i.e., download) any of Plaintiffs' Recordings, or to distribute (i.e., upload) any of Plaintiffs' Recordings."
Wait, there's even more to this! As a precaution, our guy also has to "destroy all copies of those downloaded recordings transferred onto any physical medium or device in Defendant's possession, custody, or control."
I think destroying entirely his computer, cancelling the Internet subscription and go buy a ranch, grow some cattle, would be easier. Probably that's what RIAA has in mind for all of us...even though when we're only listening to our friends' CDs while drinking a beer, and not sharing a single bit of illegal information.
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