FBI Sets Out To Sink Pirates
Although many think it’s just fun, CD-burning and file-sharing are common pastimes that can include the threat of handcuffs.
FBI “anti-piracy” warning labels continue to appear on the backs of new CD releases as part of the music industry’s large-scale crackdown on those who illegally copy and/or share music files. The labels warn people that copying CDs and downloading music files from file-sharing Web sites are illegal, and attorneys are seeking legal action against those who seemingly ignore the warnings.
The Recording Industry Association of America’s Web site, www.riaa.com, states RIAA officials plan to continue to expand their efforts to target illegal file sharing.
“There will always be a degree of piracy, both on the street and online,” said RIAA president Cary Sherman in a statement seen on the Web site. “But without a strong measure of deterrence, piracy will overwhelm and choke the creation and distribution of music.”
The RIAA Web site also states that, according to a recent survey conducted by Peter D. Hart Research Associates, 64 percent of people surveyed know it is illegal to “make music from the computer available for others to download for free over the Internet,” with 13 percent thinking such an act is legal.
A spokesman with the RIAA said that 4,700 people in 38 states have been sued by the recording industry for illegally copying and sharing music files.
“From the perspective of the recording industry, if you walk into a store and steal a CD from the shelf, it’s the same thing when you go online and download the music illegally,” he said.
Steve Frazier, chief division counsel and media representative with the FBI’s Little Rock office, said the piracy of CDs and DVDs in Arkansas is on the rise.
“We’ve seen an increase over the last three years, and we have some cases pending here in Arkansas,” he said during a telephone interview Tuesday. “I can’t really discuss them, but I can say that we’re seeing more of this activity of selling pirated CDs and DVDs.”
Frazier said those caught illegally downloading and/or burning CDs can be punished with up to five years in prison for the first offense; a subsequent offense can place a person in jail up to 10 years, he said.
“The (recording) industry does the bulk of the investigation and brings that information to us,” Frazier said. “The industry really is cracking down and has renewed its efforts.”
RIAA officials are targeting those who copy music “for profit,” which means the person who is copying the music hasn’t paid for it, or he or she is downloading it from an illegal Web site, he said.
“If you make a copy of a CD for your mom and dad, that, technically, is for profit, because they didn’t have to go out and buy the CD,” Frazier said.
“You know, most people think a superstar like Shania Twain makes millions of dollars, but who is hurt by all of this are the sound technicians and the music studio personnel — the lower-paying jobs in the recording industry,” he said. “There are hundreds of people involved in making a CD available legally, and every single one of them is hurt when software is pirated.”
Designed to help protect the rights of the songwriters, performers and record label employees, the new “anti-piracy” seals do pose at least one gray area of concern for Switchfoot drummer Chad Butler. Switchfoot’s latest CD, “The Beautiful Letdown,” is one of many CDs to boast the new anti-piracy warnings near the bottom of the back cover.
“There might be a difference for someone who burns just one copy of their CD just for their car, instead of someone who (makes multiple copies of a CD) for friends,” Butler said during a telephone interview Tuesday.
While A-list artists like Neil Young and Metallica are notorious for frowning upon the act of copying CDs, Butler isn’t quite as fast to make a conclusion.
“For a smaller band, they might experience the benefit of having someone download their music,” he said. “When you’re first getting your name out there, somebody can listen to your music online. For so many small bands, getting music online is their only way to get you to know their music and have their music heard.”
Butler, whose band will perform at 8 p.m. Sept. 27 during the Arkansas-Oklahoma State Fair at Kay Rodgers Park, also said he could understand the concerns of record label executives and the FBI.
“I’m not sure about it all, really,” he said. “It’s kind of a catch-22. But I guess when it comes down to it, stealing is stealing.”
Heath Wright, lead singer and guitarist for country band Ricochet, doesn’t hesitate to voice his opposition to those who copy CDs and download music from illegal Web sites.
“I’m against any type of piracy, because there are people who have devoted their whole lives to the music industry, be it songwriters, performers, whoever,” he said during a telephone interview Friday. “That’s their livelihood, and when somebody takes that without paying for it, that’s stealing. It’s stealing, one way or another.”
Wright, whose band will play today at 9:30 p.m. at the City Limits Club, said he’s “glad” the record industry is taking legal action against those who pirate music.
“I’ve never done a download in my life,” he said. “You know, I’ll search for that obscure record, and I buy music because I like all of the art and notes that comes with the CD. I guess that’s just me. I want to know who played steel guitar on cut No. 4.”
Wright admitted he knows some musicians download music to learn a certain guitar, bass, drum or keyboard part, so they can perform it themselves at a later date.
“But if you’re doing it to sell the music, that’s bad,” he added. “Now we’ve found a legal way to (enforce anti-piracy), so just follow the letter of the law and only download from legal music Web sites.”
Ricochet’s bassist, Greg Cook, said illegal downloading and sharing of music hit the songwriters the hardest.
“Songs are intellectual property, as they call it, and it’s just not right to use that without paying to use it,” he said. “We know we’re in the Internet age, but the music belongs to the person who wrote it, and the bottom line is we would prefer people pay for the music.”
Those who don’t wish to pay $10 to $15 for a full-length CD can purchase and download individual songs from various legal Web sites, mostly for $1 per song, Cook said.
“We support itunes, where you can get everything you want, and it costs $1,” he said. “That’s not a lot of money.”
The www.musicunited.org Web site states that more than 2.6 billion music files are illegally downloaded each month, which affects “virtually everyone, from recording engineers to record store clerks, who dream about making a living providing music to the public.” Any unauthorized reproduction and distribution of copyrighted music is “just as illegal as shoplifting a CD,” the site states.
The www.musicunited.org site also lists numerous Web sites that offer legal downloading for fans. These legal sites include Amazon.com, AOL Music, Artist Direct, Best Buy, Catsmusic, Compact Disc World, FYE, Latin Noise, LiquidAudio, Mainstreet, MP3.com, Napster and Musicmatch, among others.
(Source: http://www.swtimes.com/archive/2004/September/09/features/pirates.html)
