The following are comments from readers about what they would do is RIAA threatened to sue them.
About half said they’d pay, the other half said they’d fight.
However, most of those who said they’d fight would base their defense on grounds that wouldn’t hold up five seconds in court. There’s a lot of misconceptions out there.
So what I’ve done is post the comments, and any comments in bold-face are explanations as to why this doesn’t hold water.
Should you end up in this situation, and decide to fight, you most certainly should at least consult with a lawyer, and let him or her tell you what definitely doesn’t fly.
First:
My Kid Said “You Do It, Why Can’t I?”
If the RIAA sent me a letter claiming (or knowing) that I had copyrighted material on my computer and they are going to fine me $2000, I would immediately pick up the phone and ask, “Do you all take Paypal?” I have too much at stake both financially and personally to be put in the limelight by taking action against the RIAA.
You make some great points in your article about how people are willing to talk, but that is it. There is no defense for doing this. There is no excuse.
Why would I not fight? For all the reasons you spoke about (lawyers, losing, paying more, etc.) and some you did not mention.
What would that do to your integrity at your work place? I would suspect that your name would be plastered on newspapers and CNN. Could you even get onto the internet without someone out there watching your every move? Could you get a job in the internet industry having that on your record? The sheer thought of that frightens me.
You know there were a lot excuses I used to make to myself about why I used P2P programs. It was not stealing, it was liberating. I knew better.
Then my 15-year-old stepdaughter downloaded Limewire and got a few songs. I was FURIOUS. I told her how wrong it was, and how you could be caught, and how there could be viruses. She asked me directly, in that sarcastic teenage tone, “You do it, why can’t I”. I felt like the dad in that commercial back in the early 90s that finds his kid’s marijuana and the kid yells that he learned how to do it from his dad.
There are worse things than the RIAA, and granted, the big P2P’ers may not have kids, but what if you did. How would you explain that? Alternatively, how would you explain to your parents, or your grandmother, that you willingly stole and now had to face the consequences? Morality can certainly sting.
Sorry for the rant, sorry for the speech. Just thought it needed to be said.
I’m Not A Martyr
If I won this lottery and was offered a settlement for 2k. I would jump on it faster then you can say kazaa. 2k is nothing in comparison to what legal costs would be if you fought the case. It would also be nothing compared to how much you would end up having to pay at the end. Imagine having to pay the royalty costs for thousands of songs… that’s way more then 2k, I am sure.
I would not want to become a martyr for the p2p cause, if you can even call it that. Remember, a martyr dies or suffers a lot and I do not want my financial stability to die or get beat into the ground.
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