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University of Wisconsin-Madison Bucks RIAA

Posted by kdawson on from the not-your-agents dept.

stephencrane informs us of an interesting development at UW Madison. The school, along with many others, has been sent "settlement letters" by the RIAA with instructions to forward them to particular students (or other university community members) that the RIAA believes guilty of illegal filesharing. The letters order the assumed filesharers to identify themselves and to pay for the content they are supposed to have "pirated." The university has sent a blanket letter to all students, reiterating the school's acceptable use policies, but has refused to forward individual letters without a valid subpoena. This lawyer's blog reproduces the letter. The campus newspaper has some coverage on the university's stance.

12 of 203 comments (clear)

  1. in other news... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    University of wisconsin's enrolments skyrocket.

  2. That's nothing! by erroneus · · Score: 5, Funny

    I was singing in the shower the other morning and I was greeted by a lawyer with a letter before my nipples had a chance to harden in the cold post-shower air. (In my defense I contend that I was not in violation because I don't actually know all the words and I was just singing the chorus parts that I was reasonable sure of...)

    1. Re:That's nothing! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      the big question now of course is are you male or female....

      You must be new here...

    2. Re:That's nothing! by Farmer+Tim · · Score: 5, Funny

      I was singing in the shower the other morning and I was greeted by a lawyer with a letter...

      You can only be prosecuted for a public peformance, which raises some interesting questions about your bathroom...

      --
      Blank until /. makes another boneheaded UI decision.
    3. Re:That's nothing! by LarsG · · Score: 5, Funny

      ..and of the lawyer.

      --
      If J.K.R wrote Windows: Puteulanus fenestra mortalis!
    4. Re:That's nothing! by beadfulthings · · Score: 5, Funny

      I think you'll find that the RIAA has that covered:

      1) If you live in an apartment building or townhouse, or if your house is sitting on less than a half-acre of land; or if you share your domicile with roomates who are not part of your immediate family;

      OR

      2) If you are showering in a locker room, dormitory, or other public washroom facility;

      THEN your bathroom is deemed to be public and you are subject to prosecution. If your house is situated on more than a half-acre and is shared by members of your immediate family (defined as your spouse, parents, siblings, or children under the age of 21), your bathroom is deemed to be private. HOWEVER, you are advised to make provisions by not singing in the event you are entertaining houseguests.

      I understand they're working on sensing devices for shower heads. You should check with your local Home Depot to arrange to purchase your retrofit kit. New shower heads will be sold with the device already installed.

      --
      "Here's what's happening. You're starting to drive like your Dad..." - Red Green
  3. well by User+956 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    They're not so much "Standing up to the RIAA", they're merely asking for due process in the form of a proper subpoena. The RIAA has enjoyed a remarkable level of convenience up until this point with regards to their university settlements, it will be interesting to see if they actually bother to take the time to get the required paperwork together. All of their other cases that have shown up in the media have seemed pretty slapdash, at best.

    --
    The theory of relativity doesn't work right in Arkansas.
    1. Re:well by McFadden · · Score: 5, Funny

      why did they send the notices to the university, if they knew the exact students?
      From the tone of the question I'm sure you already know the answer, but presumably because they think:

      1. universities will cave-in rather than risk any involvement in a law suit
      2. students will be forced to pay if the university is involved, because the few thousand dollars settlement is nothing compared to the tens of thousands at risk if the student gets kicked off their course.
      3. because they're a bunch of fucking thugs with morals that make Hitler look like a guy you'd want to marry your daughter.

      Oh fuck... I think I've just Godwinned myself.
  4. Re:What a load of shit.. by JensenDied · · Score: 5, Funny

    This is /. If you can't pick up where the breaks are in the thought from someone who forgot to change to plaintext, forgot to preview, or forgot to tag their quotes and paragraphs you haven't been around long enough.

    --

    09:F9:11:02 - 9D:74:E3:5B - D8:41:56:C5 - 63:56:88:C0

  5. Original Email Text by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    I didn't RTFA, but I did get a chance to RTF email!

    Subject: UW-Madison copyright compliance notice
    Date: 03/16/2007

    The recording industry is threatening lawsuits against those who may have engaged in illegal file sharing. They are currently targeting students who live in university residence halls. Recently, UW-Madison and other universities have been notified that they will receive settlement letters that are to be passed on to the individuals whom the senders believe to be guilty of copyright infringement. Consistent with current network management procedures and our understanding of federal law, UW-Madison does not plan to forward these letters directly to campus network users. We will, of course, comply with a valid subpoena.

    However, if the UW-Madison is given cause to believe that a student, faculty or staff network user may have infringed on copyrights, it will take action. University network policies empower the CIO to terminate that person's network access until the matter is resolved. The Dean of Students office (for students) or supervisors (for employees) will be notified and other disciplinary action may be taken, as appropriate.

    Unauthorized peer-to-peer file sharing of copyrighted works is illegal in many circumstances, and a violation of the university's Appropriate Use Policy. Please be advised of your rights and responsibilities under these rules. For more information, see: http://www.doit.wisc.edu/security/policies/appropr iate_use.asp

    Fun stuff--Pretty glad I'm out of the dorms. Maybe I'll get one of these from Charter...

  6. how it should be by mastershake_phd · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This is how it should be. No company (or school) should give out anything just because they got a letter. A court order should be the only time they give anything up. Sadly this does not seem to be the case. It must be cheaper for them to just cave to demands than fight them. Customers just dont care.

    --
    Libertarian Leaning Political Discussion Forum.
  7. Re:Madison is UW, Milwaukee is UW-M by stupid_is · · Score: 5, Funny

    I have no opinion on why Washingtonians are too lazy to pronounce abbreviations fully. Additionally, as a proud alum
    Is it as lazy as a Winconsonian not writing a complete word? Shouldn't that be "alumnus" or "alumna"?
    --
    -- Intelligence is soluble in alcohol