Are Torrents and Free Downloads Illegal?

[NoblePhilistineFox]

First off,
Id like to say that I do not support or take part in Torrenting or any illegal activities, Im merely asking a question based on a description I learned in school.
so dont report me.

So I thought of a question for someone in a user group, and I decided to copy/past it here because I want to know your oppinions.
"Fair Use" is basically that if you Legally buy somthing, then you technically have intelectuall ownership of that copy, and as long as you dont gain a profit over that specific item then you can do basically anything you want with it,
which DOES include individual distribution.
but does it still apply to the internet is my question.
Its Immoral yes, but by that description is it Illegal?

and keep in mind, I learned all of this from an apethetic grade 10 teacher, so if my facts are wrong dont troll me
and please forgive my spelling.

 

[Infinatex]

Ummmm.... yeah. Piracy distribution is still illegal. It's no different to you selling (or giving out) copies of movies you've pirated.

 

[Nossy]

I still think it shouldn't be illegal.

 

[muckinscavitch]

Depends on the laws of what ever country you live in. As for whether or not it is moral, I will not get into that argument.

 

[The Maddest March Hare]

Torrenting and Freely Downloading as activities are not inherently illegal. It only matters what is changing hands. If it is Open Source or Freeware, then it is legal. Shareware is a hard one to say since it's meant to be trial only, so if you were getting a trial with no end from a torrent but a legit download was, say, 30 days, then it is illegal as it has been changed in purpose and probably edited/cracked by a programmer. And if it is something like a free copy of a game that would normally cost money, then it is illegal no matter what.

Fair Use applies to things such as using a song on Youtube as a background for a video as long as it is properly accredited to the creators, although that rule has started going to shit since the recent copyright enforcements.

 

[soapyshooter]

Torrents arent illegal, when the hell will people get that. But downloading from then is illegal. So if you do it, don't get caught. That being said getting caught torrenting is quite hard.

Edit: Sorry about OP's definition of Fair Use is really wrong. Fair use is the ability to use limited copyrighted material (meaning a small amount, not an entire song or movie) for purposes of commentary, research, teaching, news reporting etc. That doesn't mean you can download a song, not pay for it and enjoy it.

 

[qazmatoz]

nope not at all

Share, Its fair.

Yeah, sharing as in letting someone borrow/have a purchased copy of a game is legal, but replication and re-distribution have always been illegal in any form of media.

 

[enzilewulf]

Its illegal. Simple. Does that stop people? Hell no. I know cops who do it.

 

[Drakmeire]

yes...
ummm... i think the tread is over now... sorry

 

[SturmDolch]

Depends on the country. Downloading music in Canada is legal, but distributing it isn't. So if you only leech and don't seed, you technically be safe from the law.

 

[Jaywebbs]

Fair-use is determined by 4 basic points.
1. the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;
2. the nature of the copyrighted work;
3. the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole;
4. the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.


Number 4 is where they get you. Basically I can post a you-tube video of some bands song and not get in trouble as long as I attribute the song to the band. But if I put it out as a torrent or via rapid share, it's bad cause it affects the market. It's basically as copying a CD for a friend, it's illegal, but not much is being done about it.


Oh and about Immorality? What the music corporations do to protect there profits is immoral.

 

[razer17]

Torrents and free downloads ARE NOT ILLEGAL

When someone says "I am downloading a torrent" Or "I am downloading an album for free" It doesn't instantly make them a pirate, nor are they doing anything illegal. WoW updater, for instance, uses a system like torrents to share downloads. Their are also TV shows, music, films and games that people give away for free on torrents. Now with that out the way:

Yes, it's technically illegal, no it won't ever go away, yes the entertainment industries need to keep up with the times. No I don't care that it's illegal, nor do I care that it's immoral.

 

[Snarky Username]

Technically, it's not illegal as long as you own a legal copy of the game. Most people don't however, so...

 

[Aztek463]

It all depends on what you're downloading. Technically speaking, the method/technology used are perfectly legal. It becomes illegal when you start downloading copyrighted material and such.

 

[4484448444844484]

IIRC fair use only applies to educational and constructive uses I.E. showing in a classroom or making a parody or mashup.

 

[Necator15]

Interestingly enough, downloading is not illegal (At least in America), however uploading is. The charge is "Making available of copyrighted material." However, because of the way things like torrenting work, uploading is an integral part in it, so the entire process is usually labelled as illegal, but that isn't entirely accurate.

Torrent files themselves aren't illegal as they are just hash data that could be generated by an infinite amount of files that aren't inherently copyrighted.

 

[midget_roxx]

Torrents and free downloads ARE NOT ILLEGAL

When someone says "I am downloading a torrent" Or "I am downloading an album for free" It doesn't instantly make them a pirate, nor are they doing anything illegal. WoW updater, for instance, uses a system like torrents to share downloads. Their are also TV shows, music, films and games that people give away for free on torrents. Now with that out the way:

Yes, it's technically illegal, no it won't ever go away, yes the entertainment industries need to keep up with the times. No I don't care that it's illegal, nor do I care that it's immoral.

So when you download a movie from bittorrent its completely legal then, eh? Or say some games from torrents that is legal too?