Play.com has started offering Digital Rights Management (DRM) Free mp3 in Britian. There's a new rush of getting music without DRM that iTunes already started by offering thousands of songs DRM-Free. This means that consumers can put that song on more than 5 CDs, like iTunes had originally allowed. And they can also put it on their iPod, and other iPods, and such. It's not limited to 5 times. Amazon.com is on the mp3 bandwagon too, about to release their DRM-free music in Britain, as well.
This relates back to class because Digital Rights Management is part of the DMCA, which is what we've been studying recently.
This article has a very valid arguement. Courts say that once someone throws something away, all the ownership rights is thrown into the garbage with it. So, if someone threw away a CD, would there still be a copyright on it? BMG sells CDs and DVDs to people in their club, and rather get the products that aren't deliverable shipped back to them, they just toss them. So, if someone goes to the trash, and takes them, and sells them, is that copyright infringement? Technically speaking, no- It was garbage and ownership was thrown away with it. But will the courts rule this way? Especially with ASCAP and BMI.
This article relates back to class because it's dealing with what is and what's not copyright infringement, and drawing that fine line between legal and illegal.
Students at Carleton University used a logo of the site Facebook on a presidential campagin poster recently. This has several students complaining and worried about the Facebook trademark, and them using it without permission. The person running for the presidency has said she attempted contacting Facebook, but got no reply. The logo is small on the bottom of the poster, telling students to go to her group on Facebook for the campagin.
This relates back to class because it's copyright infringment- using copyrighted material without permissions.