If you do not have legal permission, and you go ahead and copy or distribute copyrighted music anyway, you can be prosecuted in criminal court and/or sued for damages in civil court.
Criminal penalties can run up to 5 years in prison and/or $250,000 in fines, even if you didn’t do it for monetary or financial or commercial gain.
Having the hardware to make unauthorized music recordings doesn’t give you the right to steal.
January 25, 2005
The Recording Academy® And The Recording Artists' Coalition File Amicus Curiae Brief With U.S. Supreme Court In Grokster Litigation
WASHINGTON (Jan. 25, 2005) – The National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc. ("The Recording Academy") and the Recording Artists' Coalition (RAC), along with a number of artist and songwriter associations, and 54 high-profile recording artists, filed an Amicus Curiae Brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in the Grokster litigation yesterday urging the Supreme Court to overturn the Ninth Circuit’s opinion that Grokster, Kazaa, Morpheus, and other unauthorized P2P systems are not liable for contributory copyright infringement.
The unauthorized P2P services allow users – mostly young people -- to engage in massive copyright infringement. "There is no more important case for the future of our business. These systems promote copyright violations on an unprecedented scale. They make millions of dollars, but pay the artists nothing," said Don Henley, president and Co-founder of RAC.
"The Academy is proud to make its argument to the Supreme Court on behalf of our members and all music makers, and is hopeful that the high court will rule in favor of music creators over those who profit by music's theft," said Neil Portnow, President, The Recording Academy. "We thank the numerous artists who joined us in this brief, as well as the Recording Artists Coalition and the many other music organizations."
The 54 recording artists who signed on to the Amicus brief are: Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Joe Walsh & Timothy B. Schmit (The Eagles), Jimmy Buffett, Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds, "Mya" Harrison, Gavin Rossdale, Sheryl Crow, Kix Brooks & Ronnie Dunn (Brooks & Dunn), Bonnie Raitt; Natalie Maines, Martie Maguire & Emily Robison (The Dixie Chicks), Stevie Nicks, Phil Vassar, Patty Loveless, Reba McEntire; Mickey Hart & Bill Kreutzman (of The Grateful Dead), Avril Lavigne, Dido, Denyce Graves, Tom Jones; Jesse Colin Young, Sarah McLachlan, Martina McBride, Sam Moore (of Sam & Dave), Joe Terry & David White (of Danny and the Juniors), Billy Preston, Boz Scaggs, Diana Krall, Elvis Costello, Brian Wilson, Kenny Rogers, Tom Waits; Tyler Stewart, Jim Creeggan, Steven Page, Ed Robertson & Kevin Hearn (Barenaked Ladies), Deryck Whibley, Dave Baksh, Cone McCaslin & Steve Jocz (Sum 41), Brandon Hargest, Brittany Hargest, Chris Fedun & Lesley Moore (Jump 5), Bethany Dillon, Nichole Nordeman, and Michael W. Smith.
In addition to The Recording Academy and RAC, the other signatory organizations are: The Country Music Association, Inc., The Gospel Music Association, The Hip-Hop Summit Action Network, the Jazz Alliance International, Inc., The Rhythm & Blues Foundation, and SESAC, Inc.
"Allowing the creators of these unauthorized P2P systems to get off without liability is like criminalizing drug use, but not the creation and distribution of the drugs," said Jay Rosenthal, RAC Legal Counsel.
"This case affects every artist in the United States. Without a Supreme Court ruling in favor of the artists and copyright owners, Grokster and the creators of the other P2P systems will have no incentive to enter into licenses and to create authorized systems that incorporate a means to pay artists," said Rebecca Greenberg, RAC National Director.
The complete text of the Amicus Brief is available online at www.grammy.com and www.recordingartistscoalition.com.
About NARAS
Established in 1957, the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc., also known as The Recording Academy, is an organization of musicians, producers, engineers and recording professionals that is dedicated to improving the cultural condition and quality of life for music and its makers. Internationally known for the GRAMMY Awards, The Recording Academy is responsible for groundbreaking professional development, cultural enrichment, advocacy, education and human services programs — including the creation of the national public education campaign What's The Download® (www.WhatsTheDownload.com). For more information about the Academy, please visit www.grammy.com.
About RAC
RAC is a non-profit, non-partisan coalition formed to represent the interests of recording artists with regard to legislative issues in which corporate and artists’ issues conflict, and to address other public policy debates that come before the music industry. For more information about RAC, please visit www.recordingartistscoalition.com.
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Contacts
Ron Roecker
Vice President
Communications
(310) 392-3777
Ron@grammy.com
Rebecca Greenberg
National Director
(800) 841-9113
Rebecca@recordingartistscoalition.com
Jay Rosenthal
RAC Legal Counsel
(301) 570-1761
JRose13@aol.com