Downloading Copyrighted Material You Own

Bob Loblaw

Bob Loblaw

Bluelight Crew
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Mar 1, 2008
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If I have a book, CD, movie, etc. can I use a torrent, p2p site, or some other method to download said material and put it on my computer, iPod, or what have you?
 
That's hard to say. I know that it is legal here to make your own DRM copies of movies you own as backups here but then again the law is different in each country. I remember before a lot of sources of pirated stuff (like KDX servers) used to call themselves backup this and backup that and warned people not to download unless they owned the original copy but I haven't seen that excuse for a while.

I have no definite answer for you but I would think that common sense would tell me that it's legal or if it isn't it should be. I think any lawsuit against you would be thrown out of court for being a ridiculous waste of time.
 
Bob Loblaw said:
If I have a book, CD, movie, etc. can I use a torrent, p2p site, or some other method to download said material and put it on my computer, iPod, or what have you?
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I don't know for certain, but I believe your rights only go as as far as the original copy you have purchased. It does not extend to additional third-party copies of that same media. Uploading to non-licensed users, on the other hand, would pretty clearly violate most copyrights.
 
Banquo, what do you mean by "third-party"? The only thing that's third-party is the digital or physical storage device.

Can you find any legal precedence that suggests you cannot store your purchased media in whatever format, on whatever media you like?

I'm curious because trying to restrict users from making personal backups would be a pretty big shitstorm. I'd like to be 100% certain.

OP: I'm tempted to say it's a legal grey area. From what I understand, the RIAA is bypassing the legal system and instead, pressuring ISP's to traffic shape and bandwidth throttle, which is an issue at the forefront of the net neutrality debate. This is such a complex legal issue when you take into consideration all the players and their various rights. Even seeding torrents isn't cut and dry because it's such a roundabout way of distribution.
 
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Kyk said:
Banquo, what do you mean by "third-party"? The only thing that's third-party is the digital or physical storage device.
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To clarify, the distinction is between a copy that you purchased and then copied onto your ipod or hard drive vs. a copy that someone else obtained and copied (and posted to a torrent).
 
Although the copy protection on DVDs would lead me to believe that they definitely don't WANT you to make copies, even for personal backup but then again, production companies don't make the laws!
 
Oh, I see. I wonder if there's even a way to tell what the original source was once it's copied. Maybe a digital signature of some sort that they can trace back to the original media?
 
Illegal. The courts have articulated that any backups in your possession must be made by you and that obtaining a backup from a third party is illegal.
 
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