Is music-file sharing a sin?

[HeWillProvide]

Is it wrong to download songs free off the internet? why?

 

[Caesar517]

If it isn’t suppoesed to be free, then it is stealing. Even though you are not physically taking something, you are taking information (the binary code that makes up the song file on your hard drive) without permission. Just like information, ideas can be stolen too (plagiarism).

 

[Steven_John]

if i click the license agreement of software or a web site and it says 'i have red the agreement and understand" and i don’t is that a sin?
some are too complex for me and i just want to say yes in “good faith”

peace and blessings

Ps music piracy is rife i have seen religious and even a priest after mass give music and tell people to make a copy. tut tut

 

[drafdog]

You need to talk to a lawyer concerning intellectual property rights. Contact the state bar association for attorneys specializing in this area of expertise. Theft is still theft and the law of the land tells you what is and what is not theft. This is not a subject open to personal conscience.
I have asked the forum moderators to have a link prepared to cover this and similar questions but so far they have not been able to provide one. Perhaps if others contacted them for such a link, they would see that it was of more general interest and would be able to get something put together. It’s worth a try.

Matthew

 

[Caesar517]

if i click the license agreement of software or a web site and it says 'i have red the agreement and understand" and i don’t is that a sin?
some are too complex for me and i just want to say yes in “good faith”

It isn’t a sin, but you are legally bound to anything that was in that license agreement.

Ps music piracy is rife i have seen religious and even a priest after mass give music and tell people to make a copy. tut tut

It is ok to distribute music if you own it. When you buy a CD you aren’t buying the music, just a *copy *of it. Copyright laws allow the owner to maintain legal ownership while still being able to sell copies of the music. I would give the priest the benefit of the doubt and assume that he wasn’t handing out the latest Korn CD.

 

[HeWillProvide]

How is file-sharing different from say, taping a movie off of TV?
Or taping a song off the radio (when I was a kid I’d record songs off the radio onto my own tape). Are these sinful, too, because you never officially “bought” the movie/song?? If these are not considered stealing, why is file-sharing considered stealing? Or, how is it different?

 

[Caesar517]

This is where it gets into the horribly clouded legal aspects.

I follow this general rule: If the person who technically owns the song/movie doesn’t want you to be doing what you are doing (and if they have the legal copyrights to enforce it), then you shouldn’t be doing it.

As far as movies and songs on the radio go, I don’t think the owners of the material are worried about anyone taping them. Movies are cut and severely diveded my comercials. They also have the network’s logo on the screen at all times. People will still buy the movie to aviod this. Songs on the radio are also edited and shortened, not to mention the equalizer tampering.

 

[Chalmatian2905]

When downloading music illegally (it isn’t being paid for at all, either by you or others who support it) ask yourself, “Am I harming this person by doing this?” If you find that your answer is yes, perhaps because they lose money that they have earned or you are not paying for it if you’re burning a CD, it may be sinful. If, however, the people who make the music end up being paid for the services they provide, it may not be.

 

[SimonArizona]

I know it cannot be a mortal sin! lol. Cause no offense, be perfect as God is perfect. If the law is punishing those who steal, it is illegal, obey the law of God first and then the land.

 

[Antrim]

Apart from being a sin which it is there are very heavy penalties as well.

A short time ago it made the Local News where people got caught and they were prosacuted to the full extent of the law. They were fined so heavily that they lost their house in order to pay the fines. I dont know if they went to Jail or not.

One was a Grandfather.

Because of the Piracey the laws were changed and made more severe.

The Publishers and Artists are tired of it and they are not messing around.

Antrim

 

[JamesG]

I guess it all depends on what the laws of your country are.

In my country I can make copies of a CD that I own for personal use without breaking any law. If I was an American this would be illegal.

Which leaves an interesting debate. Does God consider the laws of a nation when he judges you?. If he does then why should a Canadian be judged any different then an American if their laws are different.

The fact is, most people in the world watch movies that are pirated. For example, most people in Mexico can’t afford to go to the movies because they are too expensive so they buy the movie when it’s available on the blackmarket for about $2.00.

Sometimes I am so disapointed with the state of American films and music that I download them out of spite. It makes me feel like a modern day Robin Hood by not supporting the sinfull nature of Hollywood.

Personally, I thik that if you buy a movie or a CD then you should be able to make as many copies as you want and download it as many times as you want.

 

[GracedUpon]

Sometimes I am so disapointed with the state of American films and music that I download them out of spite. It makes me feel like a modern day Robin Hood by not supporting the sinfull nature of Hollywood.

Personally, I thik that if you buy a movie or a CD then you should be able to make as many copies as you want and download it as many times as you want.

Robin Hood isn’t exactly a saintly character. Stealing from the rich and giving to the poor is still stealing. And it is a sin to illegally download any music or movies, even if it isn’t mortal. Making copies for your own personal use is fine–as long as you don’t give them to other people.

As an American, I agree with you that the state of American media is continuously becoming worse and worse. However, it is still stealing to illegally download them, and therefore is still wrong. The Church teaches that an end does not justify the means, so if you don’t want to support the sinful nature of Hollywood then we need to abstain from viewing the movies. Copyright laws are just laws, and therefore it is a sin not to comply with them.

God Bless!!

 

[Starwynd]

Not this stuff again. Look people, before you go asking about file sharing try doing a sear for the subject. This is at least the third thread I’ve seen on the subject.

 

[jane26]

Okay, I do have a question still, after reading through every post I could get my hands on on this subject.

When I got my first MP3 player as a younger teen, my dad pulled out a CD he had with a bunch of MP3s on it and went through it so I could start building a music library. A few years later, here I am wondering if it’s okay for me to be listening to those songs. (They are saved on: his CD, my MP3 player, my brother’s MP3 player, and the hard drive of our computer.) I don’t know where he got them from.

I’m getting rid of all the music that I copied off CDs that I have borrowed, copied, and returned, since I’m pretty well convinced that listening or possessing those is wrong because I never paid for them or anything. My real question, then, is - do these files belong in that category? My dad is a really serious Catholic and I don’t know if he would ever do anything wrong like that.

Also, he let me copy music off of a couple of CDs he never listens to anymore. Should I just ask him to give me the CDs so that technically the copies and the CDs will be mine?

And what if I have one or two songs that I can’t get anywhere else (iTunes, the only place I can think of to get them, doesn’t allow downloading to a Sandisk, what I have) and that I copied from my sister’s CD so that she could listen to them, but then kept after she returned my MP3 player? My morality teacher said it was okay to use things for free when there’s no way that you can use them and still pay the person who owns them. I would totally pay for them if I could!

I’m nervous of whether I’m commiting sin by listening to this stuff…please help.

 

[Catholic90]

And what if I have one or two songs that I can’t get anywhere else (iTunes, the only place I can think of to get them, doesn’t allow downloading to a Sandisk, what I have) and that I copied from my sister’s CD so that she could listen to them, but then kept after she returned my MP3 player?

There is a way to download from iTunes, move the file to another media player system on your computer, and then transfer it to a SanDisk.

Two of my kids have iPods and one has a SanDisk, and they do this all the time.

 

[Highwayhound]

How is file-sharing different from say, taping a movie off of TV?
Or taping a song off the radio (when I was a kid I’d record songs off the radio onto my own tape). Are these sinful, too, because you never officially “bought” the movie/song?? If these are not considered stealing, why is file-sharing considered stealing? Or, how is it different?

When video tape piracy was rampant a small fee was added into the manufacturing cost of video tapes. This fee was to compensate the movie industry for losses due to illegal taping. I read that something similar was being considered for MP3s and the like, but I do not know if that went into effect.

So, they will find a way to get compensated, to earn a living and afterall without the motivation to create why would they continue to produce music for the general public?

God bless

 

[Antrim]

Copyright laws forbid anyone from making Copies of a CD and selling them. It clearly says any copying or reproduction of this product is strictly prohibited WITHOUT THE EXPRESS PERMISION OF THE PUBLISHER.

Anerim

 

[JoshR]

Priest told me todat if it is copyrighted material then it is the same as stealing

 

[LilyM]

How is file-sharing different from say, taping a movie off of TV?
Or taping a song off the radio (when I was a kid I’d record songs off the radio onto my own tape). Are these sinful, too, because you never officially “bought” the movie/song?? If these are not considered stealing, why is file-sharing considered stealing? Or, how is it different?

For one thing TV and radio are free, public media - for the viewer or listener at least.

In reality, by my understanding, the TV or radio station pays for rights to broadcast the movie or music, paying a certain amount in royalties each time they broadcast. So the filmmakers, actors, musicians etc are rewarded for the success and popularity (evidenced by the many broadcastings) of their work as they rightfully should be. It’s just that the reward comes from the owners of the tv or radio stations rather than directly from the listener or viewer.

If not, they may alternatively legally seek (and be granted) permission to use it so that the artists or owners of the intellectual property effectively waive their right to be paid for their film or music and give it for free use as a gift.

On the internet, however, no such broadcast rights are usually paid for, and no such permission to use the music or film usually given. Not by anyone - not the owner of the website, not the owner of the ISP. Nobody.

So the artists are being denied their right to make a living by the movies or music they have produced, and to be rewarded for the success and popularity of that music or movie.

 

[Steven_John]

Priest told me todat if it is copyrighted material then it is the same as stealing

I have heard a preist at my parish encourage parishoners to copy his music.

Recently i had a full on debate with our Imam from our mosque who belives people have a right to copy and distribute movies and music, he calls it sharing