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dav · Feb 12, 2002, 10:24 AM

if i purchased an audio cassette of an album years ago (which has since degraded in quality/broken) do i still own a license to the music on that album - i.e., if a friend owns that same album on cd, could i legally copy that cd or would i need to repurchase the album on cd? what should one do, pay twice for the same songs, or copy them? anyone know the law on this?

bobette · Feb 12, 2002, 10:39 AM

Originally posted by dav:
<STRONG>if i purchased an audio cassette of an album years ago (which has since degraded in quality/broken) do i still own a license to the music on that album - i.e., if a friend owns that same album on cd, could i legally copy that cd or would i need to repurchase the album on cd? what should one do, pay twice for the same songs, or copy them? anyone know the law on this?</STRONG>

The only license you �own� from the cassette or the cd is for personal use only. In theory, you'd need to buy a cd for yourself and not copy your friend's, since, by law, you're not authorized to reproduce or distribute the contents of the cd.

Cheerios!

rjenkinson · Feb 12, 2002, 10:41 AM

swoosh!

-r.

beb · Feb 12, 2002, 10:48 AM

I'm not a lawyer. However, I did take a course in broadcast law. Since MP3 was a big thing at the time, we covered the legal ramifications of Napster.

It is legal for a friend to share his or her music with you. It is illegal for you to then share that friend's music with someone else or distribute it via some media or file sharing method.

In this case, since you already own or have purchsed the album in question, albeit a "degraded in quality/broken" one. The artist and/or music publishing company has been fully compensated for your previous purchase of their published material. They are not entitled to being compensated any further.

Based upon the scenario you describe, it is legal for you to own a copy of a friend's album. However, if it makes you feel better simply repurchase the album. Anyway, that's my 0.02�

scaught · Feb 12, 2002, 12:28 PM

[disclaimer] of course i know that noone is going to chase you down regardless of what you do with your friends CD [/disclaimer]

i dont think it would be legal for you to copy your friends copy. the law allows for reproduction for personal use. as in, i have a vinyl record album and want to transfer it to cassette so i can listen to it in my car.

how would it be legal for his friend to share his music with him, beb?

cpt kangarooski · Feb 12, 2002, 12:39 PM

First, there is no license involved whatsoever. Your use of the music is governed by copyright law. Your use of the tape itself (the tangible object; distinct from the information on it) is governed by personal property law.

I'd be shocked if you had licensed it. That's pretty much unheard of in the consumer market.

Anyway -- you cannot simply copy your friend's CD. That is copyright infringement. Look, for example, at the case of MP3.com. They were successfully sued for infringement, because they made mp3's of CDs themselves, and then distributed them to users. It wasn't relevant whether or not the users had their own copies, and in fact, there was an elaborate scheme developed to ensure that they did. One person can make personal copies, but they cannot share those copies with other people. And you cannot make copies off of an original you don't own. (broadcast music on the radio are owned by you for purposes of this argument -- the music is sent out freely, paid for by advertisers and the radio station)

HOWEVER, you cannot be prosecuted for noncommercially sharing ANALOG copies of music. This is thanks to the AHRA, which IIRC, is 17 USC 1008. The source material isn't important. N.B. that sharing digital copies, including mp3s is likely prohibited. (this isn't precisely my favorite part of the code to read through; don't rely on my advice at all, anywhere)

God only knows what happens if you make mp3s off of the analog recording made from your friend's CD. Seems like it'd be legal. Again, I cannot say for sure. Similarly, it may or may not be legal to yourself make analog copies of that material and noncommercially distribute them to others.

beb · Feb 12, 2002, 01:26 PM

They (MP3.COM) were successfully sued for infringement, because they made mp3's of CDs themselves, and then distributed them to users.

mp3.com made money from it's users, or from the banner ads that users clicked upon. They also distributed music they did not own to users. That's why the lawsuit was successful.

The Audio Home Recording Act of 1992 (AHRA) exempts consumers from lawsuits for copyright violations when they record music for private, noncommercial use. I'm assuming day is not planning to broadcast or otherwise transmit in any form his music to anyone.

However the AHRA only covers copying of records, tapes and CDs only. It does not cover CD-ROMs, MP3s, or any kind of computer-related hardware.

The No Electronic Theft Law (NET Act) gives more detailed info about digital and electronic copyright information.

For more information see:
The Recording Industry Association of America
Cornell Legal Library
Library of Congress Legal Library
Digital Millenium Copyright Act of 1996 (PDF File)

[ 02-12-2002: Message edited by: beb ]

zigzag · Feb 12, 2002, 05:33 PM

Here's the relevant text: "No action may be brought under this title alleging infringement of copyright . . . based on the noncommercial use by a consumer of . . . digital musical recordings or analog musical recordings."

At first I thought you could only make copies of recordings that you already owned, but I don't see any language in the statute to this effect. So it should be within the law to make a personal copy of your friend's CD. However, this is only my interpretation - if you're worried about it, do your own research.