Date:         Wed, 5 Oct 2005 08:44:53 -0500
Reply-To:     Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List
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Sender:       Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List
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From:         Karl Miller <[log in to unmask]>
Subject:      Re: Storage of audio CDs (preservation by distribution)
Comments: To: Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List <[log in to unmask]>
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On Tue, 4 Oct 2005 [log in to unmask] wrote:

> it, it would be the users, not Google, who would be violating
> copyright...at least this is how it works with 51-year-old
> recordings, which are off copyright in Canada but not in the US!
>
> OTOH, I'm not a copyright lawyer...
>
> Steven C. Barr
> ***************\
>
> It is not clear to me that I am the one violating copyright if I buy a
> release of a 51 year old recording from a Canadian vendor or if I download a 51 year
> old book from an Australian website.
>
> Of course the vendor or site owner may prohibit such distribution to protect
> themselves but it is up to them to enforce such a prohibition or at least to
> make it clear that they don't support distribution in those countries that
> restrict it.
>
> Of course I can't redistribute this material in the country in which it is
> illegal to do so without permission.
>
> OTOH, I'm not a copyright lawyer...

While we have previously discussed this on the list...

My interest stems from having many pre 1954 broadcast recordings I would
like to make available...and yes, I am seriously looking for a non-US
website for my 501c3 to sell downloads...if anyone has any ideas, let me
know. I would love to find a contact in China...of all of the copyright
laws I have read, theirs is the least encumbered, yet covers the basics.

Discussing with Georgia Harper (Georgia is generally considered a "leading
authority" on copyright. She is the author of many articles on the subject
and is in the office of general counsel of the University of Texas System)
my interest as stated above, and who could be sued, her response came down
to something like, "aren't the potentials of the technology amazing." My take
on our discussion was...won't this give the lawmakers and lawyers something
to think about and that there isn't any case history to provide a
perspective. Well, no doubt the potential increase in volume of such
transactions will give the courts something to do.

And, knowing that the subscribers to this list are amongst the best in
reformatting and restoration...I would wonder if anyone would like to
share stories on recordings they have preserved that they consider to be
treasures...things that, for reasons of the US copyrights, and the
potential costs involved (legal and license fees, etc) cannot be made
available to the general public. Recordings that may reside in private
hands and/or have not been listed in any of the major bibliographic
utilities.

Karl