Piracy
Monday 17th September, 2007 12:19 Comments: 1
If, for example, I wanted to include some music on a podcast or video and make it available on my website, I would be breaking the law unless I found a way to acquire a non-exclusive licence for that music. I decided to turn to the BPI's website for guidance on how to licence British music, such as tracks by The Chemical Brothers, for use in a semi-hypothetical podcast/videoblog. Their website is full of information on piracy, their anti-piracy efforts, peer to peer software and a lot more. But their website's not so hot on how to do it legally. The best I could find was their legal page, which says:
This page is under constuction - call the BPI on 020 7803 1300 and speak to the BPI legal department for details of forthcoming legal agreements and documents.
BPI members should call Carole Lampard and ask to be added to the emailing list for regular updates.
With over 30 years' experience in industry negotiation with broadcasters, collecting societies and numerous other bodies, BPI's legal team is well-placed to offer independent support and advice.
BPI members can seek advice on a host of legal issues, such as:
- MCPS terms (e.g. DVD, AP1/2, online rates)
- Equity & Musicians Union agreements
- BBC & other broadcasting rights
- UK Copyright law
- Licensing arrangements
What a great website. Perhaps if they spent more time and effort on how to do things legally, they wouldn't have to worry so much about people breaking the law. So it seems my option is to call their legal department to discuss what should be a frequently asked question (sadly missing from their FAQ page, which they link to from their homepage with "all you need to know about music online here"), or perhaps to do my hypothetical podcast/videoblog and stick it on YouTube (until it gets pulled?) or perhaps on MySpace (who have agreed some expensive deal that should just about cover my back, I think).
So perhaps if the music industry spent more time helping us do things legally, they'd be able to spend less time trying to fight copyright infringement.
This page is under constuction - call the BPI on 020 7803 1300 and speak to the BPI legal department for details of forthcoming legal agreements and documents.
BPI members should call Carole Lampard and ask to be added to the emailing list for regular updates.
With over 30 years' experience in industry negotiation with broadcasters, collecting societies and numerous other bodies, BPI's legal team is well-placed to offer independent support and advice.
BPI members can seek advice on a host of legal issues, such as:
- MCPS terms (e.g. DVD, AP1/2, online rates)
- Equity & Musicians Union agreements
- BBC & other broadcasting rights
- UK Copyright law
- Licensing arrangements
What a great website. Perhaps if they spent more time and effort on how to do things legally, they wouldn't have to worry so much about people breaking the law. So it seems my option is to call their legal department to discuss what should be a frequently asked question (sadly missing from their FAQ page, which they link to from their homepage with "all you need to know about music online here"), or perhaps to do my hypothetical podcast/videoblog and stick it on YouTube (until it gets pulled?) or perhaps on MySpace (who have agreed some expensive deal that should just about cover my back, I think).
So perhaps if the music industry spent more time helping us do things legally, they'd be able to spend less time trying to fight copyright infringement.
Fab - Monday 17th September, 2007 16:02 An industry not doing stupid things that just serve themselves?? The horror of it! You can't expect much for a bunch that refused to allow digital download until they had no choice, price fixed the market (especially on CDs) and still can't get to grips with the fact that piracy law relates to people copying and selling stuff for money which is not what peer2peer and the internet is about.