Court Confirms $675,000 Fine For Downloading Music

[Camikazi]

[citation][nom]Horhe[/nom]That's the first time in my life I hear these words: remittitur, obviated.Isn't $22,500 a bit excessive? 1 song != 1 car[/citation]
Not at all, 22,500$ is exactly how much the industry loses for ever song you dirty pirates download. How dare you even think to download a mediocre song that is pretty much identical to all other crap on the radio ATM, all that sameness is unique!

OK enough with the sarcasm (that was sarcasm BTW don't yell at me), I still can't figure out how they think they actually lose 22,500$ for each song, where are they getting these figures and who is doing the math? I don't see it as possible and think the first poster is right. Charge them what 30 songs costs based on what an album costs, they shouldn't be allowed to charge so much for one song, when they know there is no possible way that they lost that money.

 

[puggle man]

It's a stupid strategy to begin with, but it would at least make more sense if a precedent was established by placing the amount of downloads into brackets. For Example:
1-49 songs: $1,000 damages + cost of each song
50-199 songs :$3,000 damages + cost of each song
200-999 songs:$5,000 damages +cost of each song
1000+ downloads = you're screwed but you really shouldn't have downloaded that many anyway

Or something like that...

 

[Guest]

I just paid $26 to watch the Lion King with my kid, you don't think I have a right to then come home and download it so she can see it again? Bullshit! That movie made close to half a billion dollars and stands to make even more. In my view, the price of admission equals the price of ownership and repeat viewings.

 

[aftcomet]

He'll just declare bankruptcy, ruin his credit for 7 years, but be on his merry way. Be happy he didn't get jail time. Can't declare bankruptcy at that.

However, that doesn't mean that the charges are beyond absurd. People who rape children get away with less.

 

[king smp]

the funny thing is how many alternatives there are to downloading music
for example I use a program called YoutubetoMP3 converter
any video on YT I can just rip the MP3 offf of the video or just download the video

also I use a Internet Radio program with recording
It will automatically record each song played in 192 MP3
I set it up with my favorite genre radio stations and
then just let it record for hours
I end up with hundreds of songs
then I go through and pick out the ones I want

Seriously who needs to even DL the songs thru torrents?

 

[Zingam]

He is obviously a Jew. The other Jews are punishing him. But don't worry he'll be making millions in a couple of years, so that fine is just a pocket money.

 

[11796pcs]

[citation][nom]aftcomet[/nom]He'll just declare bankruptcy, ruin his credit for 7 years, but be on his merry way. Be happy he didn't get jail time. Can't declare bankruptcy at that.However, that doesn't mean that the charges are beyond absurd. People who rape children get away with less.[/citation]
Exactly. I can't believe the RIAA wouldn't settle for $67,500. The RIAA is the perfect example of what is wrong with this country. The Constitution was made for the protection of the people- not the protection of corporations.

 

[11796pcs]

[citation][nom]king smp[/nom]the funny thing is how many alternatives there are to downloading musicfor example I use a program called YoutubetoMP3 converterany video on YT I can just rip the MP3 offf of the video or just download the videoalso I use a Internet Radio program with recordingIt will automatically record each song played in 192 MP3I set it up with my favorite genre radio stations andthen just let it record for hoursI end up with hundreds of songsthen I go through and pick out the ones I wantSeriously who needs to even DL the songs thru torrents?[/citation]
Another way to do the same thing is to download the video to Realplayer then use AoA Audio Extractor.

 

[serendipiti]

Just fool, insane and shameful. As I read, it's due to downloading 30 songs, not for sharing that songs to thousands people, not for earning money with them. Perhaps the estate should take a look at that amount (and not to consider the CD price as a base tax calculation...). The music industry got what it deserved (CD bumped LP prices up, but just to get better marketing, better star system and not better / more music. Music ignored internet as a whole new opportunity because it had its pockets full). In my life, there are half a dozen discs worth its price (and I bought them anyway), I could get half a dozen more discs made of individual songs, and that's it: I would not PAY any single penny for anything else (if FREE, yes, I listen other songs)

 

[bucknutty]

I understand this is more about making the illegal copy than the theft. The crime they are punishing for here is copyright infringement not the theft, however the damages to the original owner are just asinine. The damages should be equal to the retail value.
To make this issue even messier how come none of these common people ever gets arrested for committing the crime of copyright infringement? How come there are laws here that are not enforced by government. Why are these laws only enforced by law suites?
I have a friend (we will call him Dave) that walked into the local record store and because he did not like the guy behind the counter punched him in the face and walked out with 3 CDs. He was charged with shop lifting and assault and battery. He got 6 months of probation some community service (that goes to the state). He kept the CDS and to this day never had to settle with the store. Why is it that an illegal down load has a more stern punishment than the crime Dave committed?

 

[king smp]

There is so many ways to get media content
I have a comcast digital adapter connected to my $20 Ebay ATI Theater Pro 550 tv tuner
can record anything on cable with near dvd quality
I have a PSP 3000 loaded with Youtube videos downloaded
And you will never get busted for rippind dvds from Redbox or other rental places

The funny thing is I can record a movie on TV no problem
Or I can record a song from FM radio no problem

But if I download the same movie or song from a bittorrent
I get a $22K fine per media

Are you kidding me?!

 

[brucen13]

Everyone is using the word absurd for this case and it's justified. With the RIAA, it's been a long history of absurdity. Here are some examples:

1> Industry converts from vinyl to digital and albums go from $12 to $16 overnight to "cover the cost of the new digital media". ABSURD! Digital media made it many times easier to produce and distribute music. It was the consumer that had to lay out hundreds of dollars for new equipment to play the media.

2> Consumer equipment comes way down in price and everyone owns a player. More consumers means less cost per unit. Do CD prices change? Yes, they go UP! ABSURD! No wonder people began to downloading music.

3> RIAA goes en-mass after college students and people with no means to defend themselves based on economic status. RIAA ties IP numbers to computers and never explicitly proves an individual charged with downloading actually downloaded the music. Settlements are extorted from computer owners rather than perpetrators and the fines are astronomical. ABSURD!

There are countless more situations where the RIAA acts absurdly. Over the past 20 years, I have grown sicker of the RIAA and I vote with my pocketbook, refusing to buy RIAA music. I listen to the radio, I play music via free services on my smartphone, and I use my music money to support the artist at live performances rather than a pittance they earn through a record label purchase.

 

[cknobman]

Wow I have over 5000 songs (maybe 800 purchased) so 4200 * 22500 = 94,500,000. Hope I dont get caught! :0

 

[popswiss]

Ironically, now he really will have to steal his music.

 

[madjimms]

[citation][nom]puggle man[/nom]It's a stupid strategy to begin with, but it would at least make more sense if a precedent was established by placing the amount of downloads into brackets. For Example:1-49 songs: $1,000 damages + cost of each song50-199 songs :$3,000 damages + cost of each song200-999 songs:$5,000 damages +cost of each song1000+ downloads = you're screwed but you really shouldn't have downloaded that many anywayOr something like that...[/citation]
Oops, I have almost 30gb of music. I would probably have to pay tens of millions of dollars which I don't have.

 

[thehockeyinjun]

Hahahahah, Serves him right! Stealing is still stealing no matter which way you justify it. Why cant people learn? What is wrong with Itunes and buying your music? $0.99 cents a song really isnt that bad, is it? Its because of the free loading, that the internet is so cluttered with crap now adays anyways. The laws have been way to lax anyways so it's about time someone stepped up and charged someone. But as soon as they do, everybody jumps on him for doing his job, cuz the dark has been brought to light! It almost sounds like we live in Gotham and need a Batman! OCTOBER, baby, we will have a Batman and bring justice to Archam City wahoooooooooo!

 

[dillyflump]

Oh ffs, this is really getting out of hand. $675,000 for downloading 30 music tracks. I bet they were shit aswell. Mind you going to the cinema, watching a single movie a bag of popcorn and a drink will leave your wallet dry to the sum of £30 these days. Now I wonder why people download things? considering £30 is allmost the total of some peoples daily income. Who's stealing from who exactly?

 

[kinggraves]

It baffles me how none of you even have a clue as to legality and what you're doing.

[citation][nom]NapoleonDK[/nom]There is still so much of this I don't understand. I have a decent sized music library, 30GB or so, and I'm always pulling stuff off isohunt to get new albums. Have been for...years. I tag a song with Shazam and download it with Music Downloader Lite, both free in Android Market. What's the difference here? Why am I able to do this with a silly smartphone for free, and I'm not fined? I also listen to Pandora, and I have some precise stations that only play 20-30 songs, it's like a playlist almost. That's free too. So is the good ole' FM radio.Maybe I'm missing the part that's so criminal?/3pointedhat[/citation]

Downloading songs off torrents is illegal unless the artist has given consent to it, and sometimes even when they have given consent to it since the record label owns the recordings. You haven't been fined yet because they randomly hunt people down for it. Wait your turn

[citation][nom]king smp[/nom]the funny thing is how many alternatives there are to downloading musicfor example I use a program called YoutubetoMP3 converterany video on YT I can just rip the MP3 offf of the video or just download the videoalso I use a Internet Radio program with recordingIt will automatically record each song played in 192 MP3I set it up with my favorite genre radio stations andthen just let it record for hoursI end up with hundreds of songsthen I go through and pick out the ones I wantSeriously who needs to even DL the songs thru torrents?[/citation]

There's a reason Youtube doesn't have a download button, you're making unauthorized recordings, which is no different legally than doing it from a CD. Many songs on Youtube are themselves breaking copyright laws, which is why videos are taken down when the content owner whines to Youtube about it.

I'm against the RIAA and what they're doing, but if you think the cost of music should be nothing then feel free to start going to work and refusing pay. If you think musicians should do their job and get paid nothing then I'm sure it's fine for you to be paid nothing as well. If you think that music is terrible these days, then don't risk a lengthy court battle downloading anything. If it's bad then you don't want it, right?

[citation][nom]tomc100[/nom]I think the fine is for uploading the music and then sharing with hundreds if not thousands of people. I'm not saying the fine is not excessive but that's probably the reasoning behind it.[/citation]

This guy explained it BTW, so I don't know why he's getting marked down. Taking a single CD is Theft, they aren't being charged with Theft. They are being charged with Piracy. These people are being equated with the guys in China making and selling hundreds of bootlegs for a profit, so legally they are costing the artist more than one sale. Even if it's a tiny piece, the courts consider every person who you're sharing with on a torrent to be a lost sale. The laws of piracy are outdated and need to be changed, but until that happens, the RIAA is allowed to make up ridiculous amounts of money for every song, because they're making the case that you aren't just taking a single copy, but costing them numerous sales. It isn't walking into the store and taking a CD, it's taking that CD, copying it, then passing it around on the street to anyone with an interest in it. I don't like it, the RIAA is abusing the legal system, but that's where they're getting their numbers from.

 

[Guest]

If you can't pay the fines, don't steal. I'm sure everyone reading this likes to be paid to do a job - so don't take money away from musicians doing theirs. I've been hearing a lot of talk about the government cracking down on pirates and I'm glad something is actually being done about it. If you want to see media, games, and movies drop in price, stop stealing from those people trying to earn a living. How would you like it if I stole everything that made you money? You're just making things worse for everyone else by stealing.

 

[amk-aka-Phantom]

the funny thing is how many alternatives there are to downloading music
for example I use a program called YoutubetoMP3 converter
any video on YT I can just rip the MP3 offf of the video or just download the video

That's why YouTube songs are often blocked in Europe (e.g. Germany). Sucks, huh?

P.S. @#$! the so-caled "music industry".

If you want to see media, games, and movies drop in price, stop stealing from those people trying to earn a living.

Grow up. Welcome to real life: here, everybody wants moar cash and nobody will drop the prices just because they're making enough.