On The Legality of Public Viewing?

bobej1977 asks: "I'm looking into opening a technology-centric cafe/bar, and am wondering about the legality of showing different types of media in the cafe. Specifically, I'm interested in using a PVR to build a library of popular television shows (Futurama, Simpsons, Enterprise, etc) and making it available to patrons of the cafe. Many establishments show live sports events or even popular shows but where exactly is the legal-line that a business shouldn't cross? While I'm at it, what about showing DVDs in the cafe? While I'm sure that doing so is prohibited, would it be tolerated since I wouldn't be charging to watch them? The precedent I'm thinking of is that some electronics or video rental stores that show movies, in the store. If not, what kind of arrangements could be made to get permission, if I'd like to have a LOTR-a-thon?"

Comments

How many times do we have to say IANAL?

[Anonymous Coward]

SLASHDOT IS NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR LEGAL ADVICE.

Get a lawyer. It's cheaper to do it right the first time than get your pants sued off and lose your business.

Re:Read carefully the FBI warning at the beginning

[greenhide]

IANAL, but I don't think this is the case. I say this because my local school system actually got in trouble with Disney because it played a Disney animated video on the bus during a field trip. Apparently, that video had was not a version that was "licensed" for public viewing, and thus was an infringment. I don't think it matters *why* you are making a video available for public viewing -- only *that* you are doing it. If public schools have to get special licenses to show videos, I'll bet you do too.

Bars

[bofkentucky]

have to order their cable/DBS as an "entertainment" establishment that gives them the right to "rebroadcast" to their patrons at the location. Their prining is much higher than your monthly cable bill call up you cable co or a Sat TV provider to find out pricings, its probably based on seats/TV's/Patrons in the building. Pay-Per-View wrestling and boxing matches are outrageous (One bar I know was charged $2000 to show a Tyson fight), but there were we'll over 600 people that night, so they made that back on the cover.

You're screwed

[twoflower]

Legally, you need to license the public performance rights for any program you want to show. This is really, really simple -- talk to a lawyer.

Several things.

[Bootsy Collins]

1. You're asking a legal question. You want legal advice. Ask Slashdot is a lousy place to get your legal advice. I wouldn't trust anything anyone here (including what I write below) says about this as a reliable indicator that you wouldn't get sued.

2. You would be charging for the content, even if you weren't doing so explicitly. That charge is folded into the cost of the drinks/coffee/muffins/whatever that you'd be serving. After all, you're not showing the content out of the kindness of your heart; you're showing it in hopes that it'll draw people into your shop.

You might think that if you're not kicking people out for not buying stuff, you're not charging; but in at least one circumstance, the U.S. courts have disagreed. In the U.S., business establishments that play background music (e.g. those Linkin Park/Lynyrd Skynyrd/Leonard Cohen songs you hear in the background when you go to your favorite club/bar/coffeehouse) are required to pay money for doing so to ASCAP. Most people don't realize this, but it's true. This is not incredibly aggressively enforced, but it is enforced. My favorite undergrad bar was shut down permanently because it wasn't making regular payments to ASCAP for the taped music it played before bands and in-between sets, and couldn't afford the fines and lump-sum payment once the court found against them.

Now, the music biz has all kinds of weird licensing restrictions and legislation, and I have no idea whether or not playing video content in your shop would be similar to playing music in your shop, in terms of your licensing obligations (once again, you need to talk to a real lawyer). But the fact that it is this way for music should make you look into this in more detail.

Ask a lawyer, not a bunch of Linux geeks

[CaptainStormfield]

You wouldn't trust your lawyer to write some software for you; why would you trust a bunch of programmers/geeks to give you good legal advice? Remember, you are betting your financial well-being on the answer.

Motion Picture Licensing Corporation

[Fished]

Ignore all the jerks telling you they are not lawyers - you don't need one. You just need a license that will be a form that must be accompanied with a largish check. In exchange, they will give you a little sticker that goes on your window saying you are licensed. (We do this at my church, it's not hideously expensive for churches anyway.)

You need to talk to MPLC:

http://www.mplc.com/index2.htm

Happy karma.