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Judge: eBay Not Liable For Bootleg Recordings

Posted by Hemos on from the interesting-twist-on-the-cda dept.

Millennium writes: "San Francisco Superior Court Judge Stuart Pollack has ruled that eBay is not liable for bootleg music sold on its site. The interesting thing about this ruling: Judge Pollack based his opinion on the CDA, of all things."

7 of 81 comments (clear)

  1. Illegal *sale*, not recording by tapin · · Score: 5
    In a ruling late Tuesday, Superior Court Judge Stuart Pollak in San Francisco County dismissed a lawsuit brought by a Grateful Dead fan who sought to stop sales of illegal concert recordings of the band...

    Seeing as the band the article is talking about is the Dead, I have a feeling the author screwed that up slightly -- it should probably read: ...who sought to stop illegal sales of concert recordings of the band.

    No taper I've ever met has worried about "illegally" recording a band that allows taping at their shows. However, many of the tapers I know get downright pissed when someone sells live recordings -- their reasoning being, the band should be profiting off the music (sound familiar?) and not the fan; trading is fine, but if the band sees people selling live recordings (not "bootlegs" -- these aren't unauthorized) they might decide that no one's allowed to legally tape at their shows anymore, and then the people who do it for the music are SOL.

    Personally, I'd never buy a live recording -- chances are, any show I'd be interested in getting (which probably wouldn't include any Dead shows, frankly) would be available for free by trading with someone who had better equipment at the show in question, anyway.

  2. Ruling says it's IDENTICAL to Napster by Morgaine · · Score: 5

    You only see a difference because in each case you're reading the ruling from the point of view of the party bringing the suit. That doesn't reflect how things work at all.

    Judges almost never rule anti-establishment (it's career-limiting), and in this regard the ruling was identical to that in the Napster affair in which big business won out over the small guy. The item in dispute is irrelevant --- lawyers can produce an argument supporting either view with equal ease. All that matters is which side big business is on.

    Here eBay is big business, so the deadhead was told to take a flying jump. Are you surprised?

    In both cases, the law acted identically.

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  3. How is this different from Napster? by Speare · · Score: 5

    I can use one networked listing service to sell shady items, but I can't use another networked listing service to sell shady items?

    In what district is the Napster case being decided? In what district will this eBay case be appealed (cuz we know it will)?

    Two rulings on very similar cases that contradict each other: that's one of the tickets for Supreme Court review.

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  4. Clarification by Andy_R · · Score: 4
    It's not 100% clear from the article, but the ruling seems far less extensive than the slashdot story might imply.

    Ebay still can't sell bootlegs if the copyright holder objects, all that this case does is relieve Ebay of the task of checking every single auction they host to make sure the products are legitimate. Did anyone (other than the plaintiff) really think they were obliged to do this?

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  5. I don't get it... by teeheehee · · Score: 4


    If eBay isn't held liable for the music warez being piped through it's site, how can Napster et. al. be held under different responsibilities?

    It seems to me that since the music still gets from point A to point B, and the site/service is acting as a medium between the users at sites A and B, that the site/service must be considered doing the same thing no matter how they go about doing it. Therefor eBay is getting away with what Napster isn't, a double-standard that even the Man should be able to see...

    Am I flawed in this logic???

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  6. Promoters and Bands encourage bootlegging by ackthpt · · Score: 4
    Serious. In this age, with inexpensive technology and tools, it's completely beyond me why I can't order a video or DVD, with professionally recorded audio and video of a concert I've just attended.

    I swear this is a huge potential market, by ignoring it, encourages bootleggings. I'm not really excited at the prospect of buying a video tape of a Rush concert shot on someone's Sony hand-held video camera, if I could choose something that was shot and recorded by the concert staff. I'd think these would also be popular with people who didn't attend that particular concert, but would like to see it on their home set. Any argument that this would decrease concert attendance is preposterous and knee-jerk. I could see fans of the Dead, had this been recorded and available on VHS or DVD, buying one from each concert stop.

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    A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
  7. bootlegs of M$ win? by TheGratefulNet · · Score: 4
    I 'recorded' a copy of windows. I even used real high quality a/d converters. most of the bits are there.

    anyone want a copy? somehow, using a tube preamp section seems to have fixed many of their BSOD's. weird, eh?

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