EFF Takes On RIAA "Making Available" Theory

NewYorkCountryLawyer writes "In Atlantic v. Howell, the Phoenix, Arizona, case in which a defendant who has no legal representation has been battling the RIAA over its theory that merely 'making files available for distribution' is in and of itself a copyright infringement, Mr. Howell has received some help from an outside source. On the last day allowed for the filing of supplemental briefs, the Electronic Frontier Foundation filed an amicus curiae brief agreeing with Mr. Howell, and refuting the RIAA's motion for summary judgment. The brief (PDF), which is recommended reading for anyone who wants to know what US copyright law really says, points out that 'contrary to Plaintiffs' arguments, an infringement of the distribution right requires the unauthorized, actual dissemination of copies of a copyrighted work.' This is the same case in which the RIAA claimed that Mr. Howell's MP3s, copied from his CDs, were themselves unlawful."

Comments

Re:even my lawyer smokes it

[ScrewMaster]

--- The time to legalize marijuana in California is at hand ---

What that has to do with the RIAA and the Howell case? Dude, if you want to spam Slashdot do it in some forum that at least has some relevance to your topic. Otherwise you're just irritating people and you'll get modded to oblivion anyway.

Besides, the way things are going, Californians will be able to legally smoke pot, but they'll be in the dark because they won't have any electricity.