Lets say I were to be sued by the RIAA for illegally downloading music...
- Thread starter her209
- Start date
Well if you went to trial of course the burden is on you.
However tyhe simple dynamics of it say that it will cost you far more to defend than settle.
However tyhe simple dynamics of it say that it will cost you far more to defend than settle.
The burden of proof is on the plaintiff, so they would have to prove their allegation. The problem is that you're going to have to hire an attorney to defend you in the case, which costs big bucks, so the RIAA and other terrorist organizations like it (MPAA etc) can simply sue you, then cut a 'deal' with you because it's going to cost you more to defend yourself than it is to settle.
quakefiend420
Lifer
- Aug 26, 2004
- 14,685
- 1
- 76
i would think the burden of proof rests on the RIAA, since they're the ones who brought you to court, not the other way around...but i'm no lawyer
Just curious, are the penalities associated with violation of intellectual property rights out of line with community expectations? I.e., if downloading music is "theft", then do people think the punishments should be similar to what you'd get e.g., if caught shoplifting the same music? Or are there good reasons why the punishments should be so much more harsh when the "theft" occurs in the digital realm?
If the RIAA sues you they already have some info on you.
When you have an internet connection you are responsible to ensure it is not used for illegal activity. Just like if you own a car, house, or a cell phone for that metter.
SO when they sue you they have captured what you were UPLOADING not what you were downloading. So you need to prove that that upload was without your knowledge.
When you have an internet connection you are responsible to ensure it is not used for illegal activity. Just like if you own a car, house, or a cell phone for that metter.
SO when they sue you they have captured what you were UPLOADING not what you were downloading. So you need to prove that that upload was without your knowledge.
This sounds like most lawsuits filed in product liability cases. The product doesn't cause the injury, but the company settles because it's less expensive than defending their position.
I hate lawyers.
with many file sharing programs, the default settings make you an uploader if you are a downloader. i.e., anything in your downloads folder is auto- shared.
I'd be interested to know what your definiton of uploader is, tho.
Plus you need to remember that in Civil trials, the standard is a preponderance of the evidence, not Reasonable Doubt.
Basically a "51% of the evidence says you're guilty"
Good Luck, enjoy your music.
SCott
Basically a "51% of the evidence says you're guilty"
Good Luck, enjoy your music.
SCott
- Oct 11, 2000
- 56,336
- 11
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What do they have - the name of the file that was transmitted or the actual bits that were sent over the wire?
EDIT: My point is, even if they have the bits that you sent/received, do they have to prove that the sequence of bits constitute copyrighted content?
What about the grandpa there was recently a thread about that got sued for over a hundred grand or something because his grandson DOWNLOADED two movies?
If he DOWNLOADED with P2P or BT programs, then he UPLOADED at the same time.
If he got it another way, eg: Usenet, then he did only download the films, in which case the sharing part is not there, and he should be punished as someone who did something similar eg: shoplifting, and not as a distributer, IMO obviously.
He was not necessarily an uploader if he used P2P, that's usually easy to disable in the software. BT, however, yes, you'd definitely be uploading while downloading.
Yeah, but it wasn't the grandpa that did the downloading, it was his 12 year old grandson. And while junior might be somewhat more savvy than his grandfather on the computer, it's likely that he didn't change the default settings. Too, some p2p programs will put you on the bottom of the pile if you're not sharing anything, or if you're not sharing your partial downloads. So it's pretty likely, imho, that he was sharing his partial downloads at least, and possibly his completed downloads.
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but as far as downloading music goes, I thought that the supreme court had made some precedence on that. That you can download copyrighted material to sample it, but have to legally remove it from the computer within 24 hours. Something like that.......
Could be why the MPAA and RIAA go after uploaders more than downloaders. Sorta like going after the pusher rather than the addict, ya know?
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but as far as downloading music goes, I thought that the supreme court had made some precedence on that. That you can download copyrighted material to sample it, but have to legally remove it from the computer within 24 hours. Something like that.......
Could be why the MPAA and RIAA go after uploaders more than downloaders. Sorta like going after the pusher rather than the addict, ya know?
Thats what i was thinking, because how exactly can they prove that you actually finished downloading the movie/song. Sure they can see you downloading it, but what if you just say fcuk it and click cancel?
mugs
Lifer
- Apr 29, 2003
- 48,920
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Beyond reasonable doubt is the standard in criminal courts, not civil.
Remember the O.J. trial? They didn't get him in criminal court, but they got him in civil court because they only had to show a preponderance of the evidence pointed toward his guilt.
(well that and the whole jury nullification thing)
Remember the O.J. trial? They didn't get him in criminal court, but they got him in civil court because they only had to show a preponderance of the evidence pointed toward his guilt.
(well that and the whole jury nullification thing)
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