buying promo cd's illegal? give me a break!

[BeautifulBurnout]

The general principle is totally retarded, yes. But the reason they are suing this guy, it seems to me, is that he previously signed a consent judgment admitting that such sales constituted breach of copyright. So he is now walking about with a big circular target on his forehead if he keeps doing it.


It isn't the buying of the promo that would put someone in breach though. It's the selling of it if it is clearly marked "not for resale". But surely that can only affect the person to whom the promo was given. If they dispose of it by giving it away or throwing it in the bin, and it comes into someone else's hands without a money transaction, it is hard to see how record companies can enforce second or third-hand proprietary interests.

If I don't want my car any more and give it to you, or dump it, I can't then complain if you sell it to someone else for profit. Utterly ridiculous

If this were the case, charity shops would never be able to re-sell cds or dvds donated to them.

[crazysugarboy]

Originally Posted by BeautifulBurnout

If this were the case, charity shops would never be able to re-sell cds or dvds donated to them.

I bought a Fluke promo cd single from my local Oxfam shop last year - does this make me a criminal?

[industri_studios]

Re: Clubs

There is a license fee that clubs are supposed to be paying (much like a radio station) that gives them rights to broadcast the music. Obviously some (many?) clubs don't pay, or don't pay properly... but I think most labels turn a blind eye as it's free promotion (of a sort).

Re:" ...if they don't , it could mean that every free cd, or item
in the mail has to be returned, or you have to pay for it,
even if you didn't want it etc."

you can't honestly believe this.

I doubt negative1 BELIEVES that - but if the ruling were to follow through (as implied by Universal), then it would TECHNICALLY mean they could ask people to return, pay etc. It would open a BIG can of worms that I think most music collectors (ironically - the same people propping up what's left of the crumbling physical disc sales market) would rather see left closed.

And the comment about unsolicited is true. When I used to do radio and magazine reviews and stuff - I would request some promos and such, but I'd also be sent a bunch of discs without asking for them... people would find out from other labels, or published mags etc that I was covering a particular kind of music and send me stuff - technically I'd be liable for every crappy promo I never wanted (that has since gone the way of the charity-shop bins - no one wants crappy indie promos) that happened to have been properly labelled.

It's laughable.

And I think the fact that this case has been going on for a while, and no other label has jumped on the same bandwagon should be making Universal a little nervous at this stage...

[Lx_Nen]

Originally Posted by BeautifulBurnout

...he previously signed a consent judgment admitting that such sales constituted breach of copyright. So he is now walking about with a big circular target on his forehead ...

He should have written 'not for suing' on his forehead. The record companies would then have to prove that their dubious scribbling was legal and his wasn't.

If the record company somehow does set a legal precedent that it's illegal to throw away unsolicited gifts if they have magic words written on them, I can imagine certain execs and lawyers might very quickly discover their houses full to the brim with promotional samples of manure that they can't legally dispose of.

[BeautifulBurnout]

Originally Posted by Lx_Nen

He should have written 'not for suing' on his forehead. The record companies would then have to prove that their dubious scribbling was legal and his wasn't.

If the record company somehow does set a legal precedent that it's illegal to throw away unsolicited gifts if they have magic words written on them, I can imagine certain execs and lawyers might very quickly discover their houses full to the brim with promotional samples of manure that they can't legally dispose of.

In order to do this, the record industry would have to show why they deserved to be set apart as a "special case" in law, outside any other wholesale distributor or manufacturer, and that the doctrine of first sale doesn't apply to them. Alternately, they have to convince the court that the promos they send out are merely lent to the people receiving them. But as, it seems, not only are the promos unsolicited, but, further, there is nothing accompanying said promos to indicate that they must be returned to the company after use - no s.a.e.'s, no instructions about how to return them - they are on a sticky wicket with that one, imo.

I think they are on a hiding to nothing, but record companies appear to have bottomless pockets for this kind of case, and prolly thought the guy would cave in the same way he seems to have done on the last occasion. What they evidently did not take into account when embarking on this frolic was that the EFF might take an interest and fund his case.

I will be watching the outcome of this one very closely.