Question about the RIAA

[neonerd]

I hear that file sharing is illegal, but i went onto the RIAA's website, researching the topic for a school newspaper...i was backing up what i thought "it was legal to download music without sharing" until i stubpled over this:

"Even if you don?t illegally offer recordings to others, you join a file-sharing network and download unauthorized copies of all the copyrighted music you want for free from the computers of other network members."

Here's the link to where i found it: RIAA's Website

so is it illegal to just download without sharing, or is the RIAA twisting the law?

 

[MercenaryForHire]

And your question is?

- M4H

 

[toekramp]

um, ya...it's legal to do drugs, just don't let your friends have any

 

[phonemonkey]

Originally posted by: Kaputnik03
I hear that file sharing is illegal, but i went onto the RIAA's website, researching the topic for a school newspaper...i was backing up what i thought "it was legal to download music without sharing" until i stubpled over this:

"Even if you don?t illegally offer recordings to others, you join a file-sharing network and download unauthorized copies of all the copyrighted music you want for free from the computers of other network members."

Here's the link to where i found it: RIAA's Website

so is it illegal to just download without sharing, or is the RIAA twisting the law?

Not so hard to figure out. It's legal to install the file sharing software (there have been court rulings on this), but it's still illegal to download the songs without paying for them.

Personally, I'd think you could download a song to your personal machine if you currently owned a copy of the CD/Tape (fair use laws do still allow you to make copies for yourself), but since they like to look for a hash of a file on your machine, it might attract unwanted attention.