Letter to the Editor

Dear Editor:

I am writing this in response to the RIAA suing college students for sharing… Dear Editor:

I am writing this in response to the RIAA suing college students for sharing copyrighted music files. I believe that this action – along with the law that permits it – is contrary to the purpose of copyright law, and that it is time to consider changes to the current copyright legislation so that noncommercial file-sharing is considered to be fair use.

A copyright is not a natural or inherent right; it is an artificial right granted by Congress. The purpose of copyrights is not to benefit the copyright holder; this is only a means to an end. The true purpose, according to the U.S. Constitution, is to “promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts” – that is, to provide a public benefit by encouraging the production of creative works. This has been affirmed by the Supreme Court in Fox Film Corp. v. Doyal (1932): “The sole interest of the United States and the primary object in conferring the monopoly lie in the general benefits derived by the public from the labors of authors.”

An estimated 60 million Americans use file-sharing, peer-to-peer systems. If the current copyright laws restrict the use of such systems despite the wishes of the general population, then these laws create a public menace rather than a public benefit. A solution to this problem would be to change the laws to explicitly allow the noncommercial sharing of copyrighted music files. Artists could rely on the sale of concert tickets, royalties from commercial radio stations, and voluntary donations for support. For a voluntary-donation system to work, it would have to be very convenient – perhaps a “donate” button directly on computer audio players or peer-to-peer software – and allow micropayments: donations as small as one cent, paid directly to the artists.

This letter is not intended to encourage illegal copyright infringement. Rather, if you feel that the laws are unfair, it would be far more constructive to let your representatives in Congress know about it. Their contact information can be retrieved from www.senate.gov and www.house.gov.

Will Klieber

Sophomore, School of Engineering