Do copyright laws on the UK make criminals out of iPod owners?
A survey by Consumer Focus of Intellectual Property Laws in 16 countries has found UK copyright laws are the most out of date and claims they “needlessly criminalize millions of people” as a result. The survey also found more than half of British consumers thought burning a CD they had bought to their PC or iPod was legal, though it is in fact a copyright infringement. Here, IP and media law expert Steve Kuncewicz of Ralli, sets the record straight. Steve Kuncewicz says:- “Copyright is hugely important for the music industry as it is the main protection for an artist’s work and the way record companies make money. Copyright protects music as soon as it is recorded, and the copyright in a song or album belongs to either the band or their label. It gives them the right to control if their music being copied and made available to the public and allows them to charge fees for doing so. However, UK copyright law has not kept up with the pace of technology. The music industry is terrified of
A survey by Consumer Focus of Intellectual Property Laws in 16 countries has found UK copyright laws are the most out of date and claims they “needlessly criminalize millions of people” as a result. The survey also found more than half of British consumers thought burning a CD they had bought to their PC or iPod was legal, though it is in fact a copyright infringement. Here, IP and media law expert Steve Kuncewicz of Ralli, sets the record straight. Steve Kuncewicz says:- “Copyright is hugely important for the music industry as it is the main protection for an artist’s work and the way record companies make money. Copyright protects music as soon as it is recorded, and the copyright in a song or album belongs to either the band or their label. It gives them the right to control if their music being copied and made available to the public and allows them to charge fees for doing so. However, UK copyright law has not kept up with the pace of technology. The music industry is terrified of
