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EMI Sues Beatles Usurper Off the Net
blackest_k sends along a Wired piece on EMI's successful suit to get Beatles music off the Net. Here is the judge's ruling (PDF). "A federal judge on Thursday ordered a Santa Cruz company to immediately quit selling Beatles and other music on its online site, setting aside a preposterous argument that it had copyrights on songs via a process called 'psycho-acoustic simulation.' A Los Angeles federal judge set aside arguments from Hank Risan, owner of BlueBeat and other companies named as defendants in the lawsuit EMI filed on Tuesday. His novel defense to allegations he was unlawfully selling the entire stereo Beatles catalog without permission was that he — and not EMI or the Beatles' Apple Corp — owns these sound recordings, because he re-recorded new versions of the songs using what he termed 'psycho-acoustic simulation.' Risan faces perhaps millions of dollars in damages under the Copyright Act. And copyright attorneys said his defense was laughable and carries no weight."
Nope. Culture, information, we should never approve of shackles on these things. We should reject claims of ownership of ideas or data.
Yes, that sounds like a fine idea. Please reply with the dates of birth and SSNs of you and your extended family, your vehicle registration information, you complete medical history, complete transcripts of every private conversation you've held, your grocery lists for the last decade, your children's scribblings and schoolwork.
You would provide this willingly, no recompense required, right? After all, it's only information - raw data, when it comes down to it. A good deal of it will undoubtedly also reflect the values and mores of our culture. Some of it is surely creative.
The only way I can see this being an attitude that survives into adulthood is if someone is living fully supported by someone else (ie, no expenses) , a professional student, or is working for a university -- each of these would allow the luxury of thinking that there's no cost to the creation of cultural artifacts.
Lets help the beatles eliminate that unauthorized distribution, and copying of their music by just not listening to it.
Their stuff is 40 years old; lets get something new and different and just leaven them alone.
If someone is passing you on the right, you are an asshole for driving in the wrong lane.