Copyright. It’s been a big issue for many decades, and is especially prevalent in our day of digital media. The internet has made it easier for anybody to find, download, and share copyrighted material. The DMCA was enacted to ensure punishment for infringement on copyrighted works, especially ones hosted on the web. DVDs, CDs, and all other digital media were affected by this. While it has good intentions, it often inconveniences consumers. I know a lot of people that have pirated movies simply because of the un-skippable FBI logos and anti-piracy messages that show up every time you try to watch a movie.
Napster was a little bit before my time, but Metallica was very mad about it. This was the first big foray into the world of downloading mp3 files for free. I remember the days of LimeWire, and everybody was using it to download music. I always felt dirty from using it, but everybody seemed to be doing it. Even after LimeWire we had a multitude of websites to choose from. Streaming services like Spotify are great tools for building up a library without actually paying for music directly, or better yet, pirating music. Though notable artists have taken their work off the platform or avoided it, it also serves as a great way for independent artists to share their work. The fact of the matter is, thanks to a great South Park episode, people don’t want to pay for music anymore. I can even go to my local library, check out about ten CDs, and rip them all to my computer completely free of charge. How is this any different from torrenting 10 CDs off of Pirate Bay? Where is the line drawn?
The problem with digital media is the ease of transferability between devices. I could easily take a DVD and rip it to my computer, then host it somewhere to stream/download. However, I believe it is unethical to do so. Here lies the problem. There are millions of people on this Earth that either believe it is ethical, either because they are anti-establishment or they just do not care.
I’ll admit: yes, I have pirated copyrighted material in the past. But show me a person who has not, and I will show you a liar. Things are easier to pirate now than ever before. While sites like pirate bay have their domains seized regularly, sites that actually host content are still online. Five years ago it was tough to find any websites that could stream movies for free. Now, websites like that are common knowledge within my peers.
Within the legal realm of digital media, innocent content creators are being punished. YouTube’s complaint system has disabled monetization for many users due to copyright strikes against their accounts, when everything they upload cites fair use. This has affected thousands of users, and nothing has been done to solve this problem. If innocent people are being charged with allegations, maybe it is time that we revisit the DMCA and revise it. It was passed in 1998, back in the time where common internet entertainment did not exist. Technology has evolved so far in the last 18 years. We need a bill of rights for this: one that companies can follow without enraging its user base.
CSE 40175 - Tyler Cummings 