Ringtone Morality

[Mythos]

Hi all! I’d like to say first that I’m scrupulous, so this may be a silly question.

My parents recently used a website to download free ringtones, which, after doing a little research, I strongly suspect are violating copyright. So my question is, would calling my parents’ phones be cooperating in sin, since I would be causing the copyrighted song to play? I’m really not sure about this.

If anyone could help, that would be great!

 

[Ashe_Faelsdon]

As far as I am aware NOWHERE in the bible is anything referred to as intellectual property… therefore there is no basis for copyright in the bible… downloading a ringtone today might be considered theft as we now have the concept of intellectual property… however, one could make the argument that the idea of possession of a concept is greed and therefore a sin… hence taking the intellectual possession for oneself would not be…

 

[Newbie2]

Nope.

But it might be a good idea to ask them about what they think about if the ringtones are copyrighted or not…in a respectful manner.

 

[Mythos]

Nope.

But it might be a good idea to ask them about what they think about if the ringtones are copyrighted or not…in a respectful manner.

I’ve mentioned this sort of thing before, and unfortunately, they don’t care much about doing this sort of thing.

 

[GeorgeSword]

As Catholics, we should follow the law. Consider if you’re doing any harm by downloading these. Are you causing the owners to loose money over it?
If I recall correctly I believe that it is acceptable to take 5 or less seconds from a film and make use of it, I’m not sure if it also applies to audio, but I imagine the ring tone is probably within that limit.

 

[PAboy57]

Mythos,

you are only making a legal phone call. Their choice of ringtones has nothing to do with you placing a legitimate phone call. Take care.

 

[geneseesquire]

Your question supposes that “the sins of the Father will be borne by the son.” Jesus clearly contradicted this mis-understanding of his father’s mercy when asked if the man’s infirmities were due to his sins or to the sins of his father. Jesus’ reply was that his infirmities were not due to sin, but rather were placed on the man so that God could show us his boundless mercies.

You should feel no guilt about placing a phone call to your parents.

And, if you are concerned that the ringtones are “stolen” speak with your parents about the concern.

I also suggest going to the website and researching their terms and conditions. The site may be making restitution to the creators of the music by way of advertising revenue associated with the web page.

Respectfully,
Mark Dyer

 

[PJM]

=Mythos;5834907]Hi all! I’d like to say first that I’m scrupulous, so this may be a silly question.

My parents recently used a website to download free ringtones, which, after doing a little research, I strongly suspect are violating copyright. So my question is, would calling my parents’ phones be cooperating in sin, since I would be causing the copyrighted song to play? I’m really not sure about this.

If anyone could help, that would be great!

NO! If taken from “public domain” then its PUBLIC DOMAIN:thumbsup:

No sin intended, and in this case no sin committed.

Love and prayers,

Pat

 

[Whitacre_Girl]

It’s my understanding that a lot of these “free ringtone” sites don’t violate copyright in that they pay the distributors for the ringtone though money they get from advertising. Generally to get those ringtones you have to enter your cell number or other personal information which is then sold to advertisers. From the profits, they pay the copyright owner.

So I am not sure that your parents may have even sinned with the free ringtones (there really is no such thing in this world…lol) although they may start finding themselves with a TON of spam, junk mail, and unsolicited calls.

My advice? It’s not really a sin to get these free ringtones, since they really aren’t free and the cost is extreme annoyance and usually the necessity to change one’s email address!

 

[ML561]

Regarding the drawing of a pregnant woman, which recently appeared on this site, I appreciate the pro-life message, but was it really necessary to show her with a bare belly and her navel showing? Peace

 

[DanteAlighieri]

As far as I am aware NOWHERE in the bible is anything referred to as intellectual property… therefore there is no basis for copyright in the bible… downloading a ringtone today might be considered theft as we now have the concept of intellectual property… however, one could make the argument that the idea of possession of a concept is greed and therefore a sin… hence taking the intellectual possession for oneself would not be…

Nowhere in the Bible does it say anything about speed limits, either. However, since the Bible is not the totality of our moral theology as Catholics, we have the teachings of the Church which say very clearly (in the Catechism) that Catholics are to obey the laws of their land as long as the laws don’t require us to do something unjust.

Furthermore, the Church teaches no such thing about property ownership equaling greed. In fact, that argument sounds remarkably socialist in nature, and the Church has roundly condemned socialism in all of its forms.

Peace,
Dante