Downloading: Right or wrong?

Well the most up to date answer is wrong, on two fronts. As most people born in the ‘80s have been downloading everything they can get their hands on since they heard the word Napster in 1998.

The Wikipedia network shows important distinctions have been made regarding the legality of downloading versus uploading copyrighted material as well as “musical works” versus other copyrighted material. In general, the unauthorized copying or distribution of copyrighted material, whether for profit or for personal use, is illegal under Canada's Copyright Act.

But we also have to take into consideration that some fair use policy does apply to most copyright content. For example CIXX FM, 106.9 the X, Fanshawe's own CRTC (Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission) regulated Radio station allows its reporters and newscasters to use mp3 music often download for up to 30 seconds or less as production values would allow. The most ironic part of that is students aren't free to sell their project to other stations because they are then copy written under Fanshawe Radio Inc.

On YouTube, the world's most popular video website, copyright infringement is a battle that users and site administer are always fighting. Everything from full length HBO specials to Bart Simpson's prank calls to Moe's have to be carefully uploaded and tagged as not to attract attention to themselves for fear of having their account suspended or deleted.

Eric Shinwa, a second-year electrical engineering student at Fanshawe, downloads content from the Internet daily.

“Games, movies, music, books, programs, images, cracks and fixes for said items,” said Shinwa, who lists that everything you could ever want is online for free. All you need is a fast connection.

But when it comes to paying for it, Shinwa is on the other side of the law. When asked if he should be paying for the downloads, he said that the Internet is just too massive to have any real control over.

“Most likely, there are certainly efforts being made to control downloading and piracy,” he said. “Not as many as there should be perhaps. Keep in mind though when you have something as open and free as the Internet then you are bound to have people somewhere who will provide things for free.”

In 2004 Canada's Supreme Court said that downloading isn't illegal, however, uploading another created work to a server for others to freely download is. This was later over turned with the advent and improvement of peer-to-peer (P2P) networks. These clients allows their users to download from computer to computer with not “system core” anywhere to be found.

So, downloading, right? Or wrong? And for most, they don't want to be right.
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