CD Burning & Copyright Law

Essay by nuggetx717College, UndergraduateA+, September 2006

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As technology is on the rise, the living conditions that we adapt to are becoming more and more convenient; we can rent movies from home through the internet and mail, schools are offering online classes, and controversially music and movies are being distributed for free through the internet. Nowadays anyone who has access to the internet has access to downloading movies and music (illegally) for "free". The RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) has fought back with investigations and lawsuits on those who download and share music/movie files without the consent or permission of those who produce it.

As of now, the act of downloading media online that you did not purchase considered illegal. Should it be? If so, should the presence of media online be eliminated to prevent any type of illegal activity at all? The internet is so readily available to almost anyone who is interested in it, as well as websites and online offers to "download music/movies for free".

The RIAA describes this crime as online piracy, which is "the unauthorized uploading of a copyrighted sound recording and making it available to the public, or downloading a sound recording from an Internet site, even if the recording isn't resold. Online piracy may now also include certain uses of "streaming" technologies from the Internet." (RIAA) Although the temptation is hard to resist, when one chooses to download media illegally, he/she is stealing from the people who put in the hard work to produce it. This is a hard concept for the younger generation to grasp, considering how easy it is and that there are so many resources out there to obtain pirated media. Artists and directors who put in their hard work and effort aren't getting the wealth and proper recognition they deserve. An artist's...