Sample Text

The following sample text is provided to assist you in creating your own materials.

Vignette 1:

SLOGAN: Not your usual suspects? If caught illegally sharing music on the Internet,
you could face fines from $750-$150,000 per song or worse yet go to prison.

MESSAGE: At least one person has been sentenced to jail time for criminal music copyright infringement in Washington , DC . In addition, over 700 people have been slapped with lawsuits filed by the music industry in the past few years. Every song a person possesses illegally can be considered a single copyright violation, so the more songs you have, the higher the fine may be.

No matter how you feel about file-sharing, you need to be aware that the music industry and other copyright holders are randomly monitoring networks across the country. UC is powerless to protect you if you are targeted.

To learn more: http://www.ucop.edu/irc/policy/copyright.html

Vignette 2:

SLOGAN: If you think $13.99 for a CD is expensive - try $15,000 for one song.

MESSAGE: In one case, the music industry sued 17 year-old Princeton student Daniel Peng for hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages for distributing copyrighted music. After months of legal wrangling, Daniel and his parents settled with the music industry out of court for $15,000.

If the recording industry catches you illegally file-sharing copyrighted music and movies, you can face damages that range from $750-$150,000 per song. Right now, the industry is randomly monitoring networks throughout the nation - they have filed over 700 lawsuits so far. The lawsuits indiscriminately target those who share musical content - from 12 year-olds to college students to grandmothers. UC cannot protect you and has no liability in these cases. Instead, you - or your parents - will end up paying the price.

To learn more: http://www.ucop.edu/irc/policy/copyright.html

Vignette 3:

SLOGAN: Think your last credit card statement was bad? Try explaining a $17,500 charge for one new CD to your parents.

MESSAGE: In the spring of 2005, students at 33 colleges and universities were slapped with music industry lawsuits for illegally sharing copyrighted songs. In previous music industry lawsuits for illegal file-sharing, four college students and their parents - at Princeton, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Michigan Tech – were each forced to pay $17,500 in fines.

Regardless of whether or not you have the cash, your parents may be liable to pay the entire fine - and claiming youth or ignorance won't work. In New York, the mother of a 12-year-old girl who was charged with illegally uploading music files, was forced to pay $2,000 in fines.

No matter how you feel about file-sharing, you need to be aware that the recording industry and other copyright holders are cracking down and randomly monitoring networks across the country. UC is powerless to protect you if you are targeted.

To learn more: http://www.ucop.edu/irc/policy/copyright.html