The Idiocy of Copyright Law

The RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) has gone after a small independent record seller in Ottawa. This is another example of the rapaciousness of the industry and its disregard for consumers.

Here are key bits from the article by Megan Gillis published by the Ottawa Sun:

The owner of a local record store said he had no choice but to plead guilty Tuesday to a charge of offering for sale 100 CDs that were illegal under Canadian copyright law.

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Lawyer Mark Lazarovitz said it was outrageous that his client is being prosecuted when CRIA members, including such names as Sony, EMI and Universal, are the target of a class action lawsuit worth up to $6 billion for allegedly infringing artists’ copyright.

“Yet my client is before the court,” Lazarovitz said.

Nolan said the 100 CDs represent a tiny fraction of the hundreds of thousands of recordings in his collection and that the discs at issue are mostly imports.

An example is a recording of 1950s singer Gale Storm. Big labels don’t press them but seniors still want to buy them so he orders them from import distributers, Nolan said.

“I have to have the things the bigger chains don’t have,” Nolan said. “It’s kept my business alive.

What is ridiculous is that the biggest violator of copyright law is in fact the recording industry as this bit from a posting by Michael Geist points out:

The infringer has effectively already admitted owing at least $50 million and the full claim could exceed $6 billion. If the dollars don't shock, the target of the lawsuit undoubtedly will: The defendants in the case are Warner Music Canada, Sony BMG Music Canada, EMI Music Canada, and Universal Music Canada, the four primary members of the Canadian Recording Industry Association.

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The claims arise from a longstanding practice of the recording industry in Canada, described in the lawsuit as "exploit now, pay later if at all." It involves the use of works that are often included in compilation CDs (ie. the top dance tracks of 2009) or live recordings. The record labels create, press, distribute and sell the CDs, but do not obtain the necessary copyright licences.

So this industry which breaks law wholesale, i.e. on tens of thousands of recordings is going after a small retailer who has 100 items which the recording industry itself doesn't manufacture, has no interest in manufacturing (the market is too small), but is using this to beat up its retailers. Talk about a stupid industry that needs to die. The RIAA should be destroyed. I personally won't buy any more recordings until this industry is replaced by something that understand copyright and the rights of individuals!