Re: New Video Educates Students on Illegal File Sharing

[Brad Judy <Brad.Judy () COLORADO EDU>]

While there was obviously some good effort and work put into this video,
it seems like the type of thing that would be perceived by students as
pretty transparent, RIAA developed video with fear as the motivator.
It's got talk about being prosecuted, how settling out of court is
cheaper than court costs and how buying legit music is even cheaper.
Since the site and video seem entirely focused on music, it also seems
clear that it's RIAA backed.  A good copyright information campaign
should include mention of movies, TV shows, text, images and software in
addition to music.  

The website covers some better content in the FAQ section, but it's
music-centric and the website has no ownership (don't we warn people
about websites that list no contact info or even an org/company name?).
It's registered via GoDaddy to PR/communications company.  

Some oddly absent items from the website are the DCMA, RIAA and MPAA.
It does mention the No Electronic Theft Act though.  It seems to
intentionally avoid mentioning specific P2P apps or illegal sites
(perhaps to avoid giving ideas to the three students left on the planet
that don't already know what they are).  

I found this FAQ tidbit interesting:

"Is downloading and uploading music really stealing?
If it's done without the permission of the copyright holder, it's
legally no different than walking into a music store, stuffing a CD into
your pocket, and walking out without paying for it."

I'm not a lawyer, but I'm quite certain that theft from a store and
online illegal music distribution are entirely different legally.  To
begin with, the victims are different (unless the RIAA and MPAA have
started prosecuting shoplifters on behalf of store owners) and the
applicable laws are different (copyright infringement vs theft).  

Overall, I much prefer the types of sites and information campaigns
we've seen various schools put together.  Keep up the good work on those
information campaigns, websites and in-house videos!


Rodney: Sorry to rain on that parade, you know I certainly appreciate
your efforts - I suppose I owe you some content or participation now.
:-)


Brad Judy


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Rodney Petersen [mailto:rpetersen () EDUCAUSE EDU] 
> Sent: Tuesday, August 22, 2006 10:57 AM
> To: SECURITY () LISTSERV EDUCAUSE EDU
> Subject: [SECURITY] New Video Educates Students on Illegal 
> File Sharing
>
> While it is not necessarily a "security" topic, I recognize 
> that many of you are responsible for user education on 
> appropriate use topics.
> Therefore, I thought you might be interested in the new 
> resource described below.
>
> -Rodney
>
> --------------------------------------------------
> Rodney J. Petersen
> Policy Analyst & Security Task Force Coordinator
>
> EDUCAUSE
> 1150 18th Street, N.W., Suite 1010
> Washington, D.C.  20036
> (202) 331-5368 / (202) 872-4200
> (202) 872-4318 (FAX)
> EDUCAUSE/Internet2 Security Task Force
> www.educause.edu/security
> -------------------------------------------------- 
>
>
> NEW VIDEO EDUCATES STUDENTS ON ILLEGAL FILE SHARING
>
> Please let me call your attention to a short, effective video 
> for educating students about the consequences of illegally 
> downloading copyrighted materials developed by the Recording 
> Industry Association of America (RIAA). The video can be 
> downloaded or a free DVD can be ordered from 
> http://www.campusdownloading.com/
>
> This video can be a useful supplement to current efforts on 
> your campus to alert students to their copyright obligations 
> and legal risks as well as to manage the impact of file 
> sharing on network infrastructure.
>
> EDUCAUSE and the American Council on Education (ACE) have 
> been working for several years with college and university 
> leaders, other higher education associations, the RIAA, and 
> the Motion Picture Association of America to address the 
> consequences of illegal file sharing. Recently, members of 
> Congress have asked the higher education community to 
> actively support measures to address this problem.
>
> ACE is bringing this video, titled "Campus Downloading," to 
> the attention of college and university presidents. You and 
> the senior leadership on your campus might consider using the 
> video during student orientation sessions, linking to it when 
> students log on to campus accounts, or broadcasting it on 
> student life television channels.
>
> I appreciate the efforts to address illegal file sharing you 
> have already made on your campus and urge you to add this new 
> resource to your strategy.
>
> Mark Luker
> Vice President
> EDUCAUSE
>
> **************************************************
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