Misplaced Pages

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81-450: The RIAA and music publishers, concerned that consumers' ability to make perfect digital copies of music would destroy the market for audio recordings, had threatened to sue companies and had lobbied Congress to pass legislation imposing mandatory copy protection technology and royalties on devices and media. The AHRA establishes a number of important precedents in US copyright law that defined

162-466: A SmartMedia slot, allowing users to add additional memory. It is powered by a single AA battery , which provides between 8 and 12 hours of playback time. Connection to a personal computer is through the computer's parallel port , with a proprietary connector on the Rio's edge. The Rio retailed for US $ 200 with the ability to hold around 30 minutes of music at a bitrate of 128 kbit /s. An upgraded version

243-637: A temporary restraining order to prevent the sale of the Rio player in the Central District Court of California, claiming the player violated the 1992 Audio Home Recording Act . See RIAA v. Diamond Multimedia . Judge Andrea Collins issued the temporary order on October 16, but required the RIAA to post a $ 500,000 bond that would be used to compensate Diamond for damages incurred in the delay if Diamond eventually prevailed in court. Diamond then announced that it would temporarily delay shipment of

324-694: A 2% royalty on the device's transfer price, with a minimum royalty of $ 1 and a maximum of $ 8 ($ 12 for dual recorders) per device. For digital audio recording media, manufacturers and importers pay a 3% royalty. Under the AHRA, royalties collected by the Copyright Office on digital recording devices and digital recording media are divided into two separate funds, the Musical Works Fund and the Sound Recordings Fund. One third of

405-538: A broader reading of the Section 1008 exemptions, providing blanket protection for "all noncommercial copying by consumers of digital and analog musical recordings" and equating the spaceshifting of audio with the fair use protections afforded home video recordings in Sony v. Universal Studios : In fact, the Rio's operation is entirely consistent with the act's main purpose – the facilitation of personal use. As

486-423: A circular pad with control buttons. The device has controls for skipping tracks forwards or backwards, repeat, random play and four preset equalizer settings. The LCD displays the track number being played and the track play time. It can play MP2 and MP3 format audio files, and has support for a variety of bitrates, including MP3 variable-bitrate (VBR) support. It shipped with 32 MB of internal memory and has

567-594: A decision, that the U.S. District Judge Harold Baer of the Southern District of New York ruled in favor of the music industry on all its main arguments: that Usenet.com was guilty of direct, contributory, and vicarious infringement. In addition, and perhaps most importantly for future cases, Baer said that Usenet.com cannot claim protection under the Sony Betamax decision. That ruling states that companies cannot be held liable for contributory infringement if

648-461: A digital audio recording medium, an analog recording device, or an analog recording medium, or based on the noncommercial use by a consumer of such a device or medium for making digital musical recordings or analog musical recordings. According to the Senate, this provision was intended to "conclusively ... resolve" the debate over audio home taping, and "[create] an atmosphere of certainty to pave

729-572: A lawsuit against RIAA, alleging that the terms of use of the network were violated and that unauthorized client software was used in the investigation to track down the individual file sharers (such as Kazaa Lite). An effort to throw out this suit was denied in January 2004, but that suit was settled in 2006. Sharman Networks agreed to a global settlement of litigation brought against it by the Motion Picture Association of America,

810-424: A legislative solution to the perceived threat posed by perfect multi-generation copies, introducing legislation mandating that device makers incorporate copy protection technology as early as 1987. These efforts were defeated by the consumer electronics industry along with songwriters and music publishers, who rejected any solution that did not compensate copyright owners for lost sales due to home taping. The impasse

891-590: A license. XM is being sued for distributing the music industry 's music without a distribution license, not for distributing devices such as the Helix and Inno. Therefore, the District Court denied XM's motion to dismiss on grounds that the AHRA immunity with regard to distribution of DARDs does not protect XM for a copyright infringement suit based on distribution of music without a license. RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America ( RIAA )

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972-750: A majority of AHRA funds. The AHRA's definition of "digital audio recording device" includes explicit exceptions for devices that are used primarily to record non-musical sounds (such as dictation devices and answering machines) and for "professional equipment". The definition of professional equipment was to have been set by the Department of Commerce, though these regulations have never been issued. "Professional" minidisc recorders without SCMS cost thousands of dollars. The AHRA's definition of "digital audio recording media" explicitly excludes pre-recorded but recordable media, and storage media used primarily to store information other than musical works. This exception

1053-659: A personal computer would not be a digital audio recording device under the act, since the personal computer was not marketed primarily for making copies of music. The same recorder, sold as a peripheral and marketed for the express purpose of making digital audio recordings, would fall under the act's definition of a recording device. Today, DART royalties consist of payments made to the US Copyright Office for "blank CDs and personal audio devices, media centers, satellite radio devices, and car audio systems that have recording capabilities", as stated by AARC, who distributes

1134-495: A then-recently deceased 83-year-old woman an elderly computer novice, and a family reportedly without any computer at all. In February 2007, RIAA began sending letters accusing Internet users of sharing files and directing them to web site P2PLAWSUITS.COM , where they can make "discount" settlements payable by credit card. The letters go on to say that anyone not settling will have lawsuits brought against them. Typical settlements are between $ 3,000 and $ 12,000. This new strategy

1215-460: A third of the list price). In 1975, the additional requirement of 500,000 units sold was added for Gold albums. Reflecting growth in record sales, the Platinum award was added in 1976, for albums able to sell one million units, while singles qualify upon selling two million units. The Multi-Platinum award was introduced in 1984, signifying multiple Platinum levels of albums and singles. In 1989,

1296-492: A transmission without the use of an external computer or computer hard drive. As manufacturers or distributors of DARDs, Samsung and Pioneer are immune from suit so long as they satisfy the requirements under the AHRA, including payment of royalties to the US Copyright Office , on a quarterly basis, for each device distributed. However, according to the District Court, this immunity does not protect XM with regard to

1377-619: A type of release with 51% or more of its content recorded in Spanish . In 2004, the RIAA added a branch of certification for what it calls "digital" recordings, essentially referring to "recordings transferred to the recipient over a network" (such as those sold via the iTunes Store ) yet excluding other obviously digital media such as those on CD , DAT , or MiniDisc . In 2006, "digital ringtones" were added to this branch of certification. Starting in 2013, streaming from audio and video streaming services such as Spotify , Napster , YouTube and

1458-480: A user's hard drive. Cf. Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios, 464 U.S. 417, 455 (1984) (holding that "time-shifting" of copyrighted television shows with VCR's constitutes fair use under the Copyright Act, and thus is not an infringement). Such copying is paradigmatic non-commercial personal use entirely consistent with the purposes of the act. This language, however, may be obiter dicta . The AHRA

1539-673: Is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States . Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/or distribute approximately 85% of all legally sold recorded music in the United States". RIAA is headquartered in Washington, D.C. RIAA was formed in 1952. Its original mission was to administer recording copyright fees and problems, work with trade unions, and do research relating to

1620-423: Is accused of employing techniques such as peer-to-peer "decoying" and " spoofing " to combat file sharing. In late 2008, they announced they would stop their lawsuits, and instead attempt to work with ISPs to persuade them to use a three-strike system for file sharing involving issuing two warnings and then cutting off Internet service after the third strike. RIAA names defendants based on ISP identification of

1701-601: Is also possible that given a new technology, and the act's unprecedented provisions (royalties, legislative mandates for copy protection), they could not predict the impact of the AHRA on adoption of the new technology. Regardless of their intent, AHRA royalties have never been a significant revenue stream for anyone, least of all the recording industry. Revenues for the Copyright Office's Digital Audio Recording Technologies (DART) Fund peaked at $ 5.2 million in 2000, and have been declining, at times precipitously, ever since. Revenues for 2005 were approximately $ 2.4 million. According to

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1782-432: Is also suing several Internet radio stations. Later, XM was forced to impose an industry fee upon subscribers. The fee still exists and has always been paid, in-full, directly to RIAA. On October 12, 2007, RIAA sued Usenet.com seeking a permanent injunction to prevent the company from "aiding, encouraging, enabling, inducing, causing, materially contributing to, or otherwise facilitating" copyright infringement . This suit,

1863-562: Is composed of these record executives: The RIAA represents over 1,600 member labels, which are private corporate entities such as record labels and distributors, and collectively create and distribute about 90% of recorded music sold in the United States. The largest and most influential of the members are the "Big Three": Within the major three music groups, it represents high-profile record labels such as Atlantic , Capitol , RCA , Warner , Columbia , and Motown . The RIAA reports that total retail value of recordings sold by their members

1944-502: Is important in the recording industry's suit against XM radio for Samsung 's Helix and Pioneer 's Inno XM receivers, which allow users to record blocks of satellite radio and disaggregate individual songs. XM argued that the devices are "digital audio recording devices" ("DARD") under the AHRA, and thus enjoy an exemption from copyright infringement actions for private, non-commercial copying. A New York District Court judge agreed that these devices are DARDs because they can record from

2025-432: Is one of the first portable consumer MP3 digital audio players , and the first commercially successful one. Produced by Diamond Multimedia , it was introduced September 15, 1998 as the first in the "Rio" series of digital audio players, and it shipped later that year. Roughly the dimensions of a deck of cards (3.5 inches by 2.5 inches and 0.625 inches thick), the Rio is black, and features an LCD screen and

2106-405: Is unclear whether the recording industry ever thought that revenue from royalties would compensate for revenues lost to the first generation copying authorized by the AHRA. Given their willingness to block all distribution of all digital audio recording media and devices in the United States, that the combination of SCMS and the price premium imposed by royalties was intended to cripple the market. It

2187-400: Is used. By using the terms "digital audio recording device" and "digital audio recording medium", which have specific meanings in this legislation, Congress required that in order to be exempt from copyright infringement actions, digital copies must be made to a device or medium marketed specifically for recording audio. Though there are no reliable figures on the subject, the meager returns to

2268-575: The DeCSS controversy. On February 4, 2022, Mitch Glazier swiftly took action against NFT scam site HitPiece . The site had allegedly stole music to mint as NFTs, and host them on their site. Since then, HitPiece has only responded with "We Started The Conversation And We're Listening." However, their site has not been updated since. RIAA is heavily criticized for both policy and for their method of suing individuals for copyright infringement. Particularly strong critic-advocates are Internet-based, such as

2349-598: The Electronic Frontier Foundation and Students for Free Culture . RIAA has sued more than 20,000 people in the United States suspected of distributing copyrighted works. Of these, approximately 2,500 were settled pre-trial. Brad Templeton of the Electronic Frontier Foundation has called these types of lawsuits spamigation and implied they are done merely to intimidate people. Rio PMP300 The Rio PMP300

2430-666: The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry , and by RIAA. The creators of the popular Kazaa file-sharing network would pay $ 115 million to RIAA, plus unspecified future amounts to MPAA and the software industry; and, they would install filters on its networks to prevent users from sharing copyrighted works on its network. RIAA also filed suit in 2006 to enjoin digital XM Satellite Radio from enabling its subscribers from playing songs they had recorded from its satellite broadcasts. It

2511-570: The collective rights management of sound recordings, and it is responsible for certifying gold and platinum albums and singles in the United States. Mitch Glazier has been the RIAA's chairman and CEO since 2019. Glazier joined the RIAA 20 years ago and has played a role in the music industry's transition to streaming and "anywhere, anytime" access to music. He was the RIAA's senior executive vice president from 2011 to 2019 and served as executive vice president for public policy and industry relations from 2000 to 2011. The 26-member board of directors

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2592-433: The "Music Match" software for managing the user's MP3 library. A selection of folk/country/blues MP3s were also provided, the metadata for which was in a Music Match specific format rather than as ID3 tags. The Rio PMP300 suffered from a few design flaws. The battery compartment door flap is notorious for breaking. The battery cover is difficult to repair due to the stress caused by the spring-loaded battery compartment and

2673-731: The 1992 Audio Home Recording Act . The Rio PMP300 was significant because it was the second portable consumer MP3 digital audio player released on the market. The three-judge panel ruled in favor of Diamond, paving the way for the development of the portable digital player market. In 2003, RIAA sued college student developers of LAN search engines Phynd and Flatlan, describing them as "a sophisticated network designed to enable widespread music thievery". In September 2003, RIAA filed suit in civil court against several private individuals who had shared large numbers of files with Kazaa . Most of these suits were settled with monetary payments averaging $ 3,000. Kazaa publisher Sharman Networks responded with

2754-508: The AHRA, importers and manufacturers pay royalties on "digital audio recording devices" and "digital audio recording media". Those who wish to import, manufacture and distribute must seek a statutory license from the Copyright Office . Royalties are based on "transfer price", either the sale price or the price recorded for customs purposes in the case of importers. For digital audio recording devices, manufacturers and importers pay

2835-461: The Copyright Office's DART fund amidst widespread copying and dissemination of digital music suggests that a great deal of copying, noncommercial or otherwise, is accomplished using devices not covered by the AHRA, such as portable MP3 players, computer hard drives, and most CD burners and CD-Rs. Two reports by the House of Representatives characterize the provision as legalizing digital home copying to

2916-412: The RIAA choosing the number of works it deems "reasonable". For cases that do not settle at this amount, the RIAA has gone to trial, seeking statutory damages from the jury, written into The Digital Theft Deterrence and Copyright Damages Improvement Act of 1999 as between $ 750 and $ 30,000 per work or $ 750 and $ 150,000 per work if "willful". The Electronic Frontier Foundation and Public Citizen oppose

2997-584: The Rio. On October 26, Judge Collins denied the RIAA's application. On appeal, the Ninth Circuit held that the Rio's space shifting was fair use and not a copyright infringement. After the lawsuit ended, Diamond sold 200,000 players. Diamond no longer provides support for the Rio, and the last version of Microsoft Windows to work with Diamond's Rio software was Windows 98. Independently produced freeware programs such as "Dreaming of Brazil" or "RIOsitude" can still be used to upload audio files to

3078-775: The SCMS and Royalty payments under the act, 2) could not directly record from the radio or other transmissions. The AHRA required that all digital audio recording devices conform to a form of copy protection called the Serial Copy Management System or its functional equivalent. A SCMS is a section of code which permits limited copying of an original recording, but prohibits copies from being made by subsequent generations. The AHRA also prohibited circumvention of SCMS and importation, distribution or manufacture of such tools. Violations of either provision are punishable by up to $ 25 per recording, or $ 2,500 per device. Under

3159-611: The Senate Report explains, "[t]he purpose of [the act] is to ensure the right of consumers to make analog or digital audio recordings of copyrighted music for their private, noncommercial use." S. Rep. 102-294, at *86 (emphasis added). The act does so through its home taping exemption, see 17 U.S.C. S 1008, which "protects all noncommercial copying by consumers of digital and analog musical recordings, " H.R. Rep. 102-873(I), at *59. The Rio merely makes copies in order to render portable, or "space-shift", those files that already reside on

3240-523: The US Copyright Office Licensing Division, DART funds distributed since 1993 exceed $ 45 million. The AHRA contains one positive provision for the consumer electronics industry and consumers, section 1008, a "Prohibition on certain infringement actions:" No action may be brought under this title alleging infringement of copyright based on the manufacture, importation, or distribution of a digital audio recording device,

3321-415: The United States. These new formats were a significant improvement over the newly introduced read-only (at the time) digital format of the compact disc , allowing consumers to make perfect, multi-generation copies of digital audio recordings . Most prominent among these formats was Digital Audio Tape (DAT), followed in the early 1990s by Philips' Digital Compact Cassette (DCC) and Sony's Minidisc . DAT

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3402-475: The ability of RIAA and other companies to "strip Internet users of anonymity without allowing them to challenge the order in court". Importantly, US Courts have declared that an IP address is not a person nor personal identifier. This weakened RIAA's ability to sue individuals. RIAA's methods of identifying individual users had, in some rare cases, led to the issuing of subpoenas to persons dead or otherwise incapable of file-sharing. Two such examples include:

3483-404: The association began its campaign against peer-to-peer file-sharing have concluded that losses incurred per download range from negligible to moderate. The association has commenced high-profile lawsuits against file-sharing service providers. Likewise, it has sued individuals suspected of file sharing, notably college students, parents of file-sharing children and at least one dead person. It

3564-605: The benefit of the RIAA and invited the students and subscribers to visit an RIAA website for the purpose of entering into a "discount settlement" payable by credit card. By March 2007, the focus had shifted from ISPs to colleges and universities. In October 1998, RIAA filed a lawsuit in the Ninth U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco claiming the Diamond Multimedia Rio PMP300 player violated

3645-469: The change when it came to light. The battle over the disputed provision led to the formation of the Recording Artists' Coalition , which successfully lobbied for repeal of the change. On October 23, 2020, the code repository hosting service GitHub (owned by Microsoft ) released a DMCA request from RIAA. This request listed the open-source software project youtube-dl (and forks of

3726-422: The debate between device makers and the content industry for the ensuing two decades. These include: The act also includes blanket protection from infringement actions for private, non-commercial analog audio copying, and for digital audio copies made with certain kinds of digital audio recording technology. By the late 1980s, several manufacturers were prepared to introduce read/write digital audio formats to

3807-419: The device they create is "capable of significant noninfringing uses". Furthermore, the parties had appealed to a federal court for damage assessments and awards, which could amount to several millions of dollars for the music industry. On October 26, 2010, RIAA members won a case against LimeWire, a P2P file-sharing network, for illegal distribution of copyrighted works. On October 29, in retaliation, riaa.org

3888-417: The digital recording function of which is designed or marketed for the primary purpose of, and that is capable of, making a digital audio copied recording for private use. The definition of "digital audio recording medium" is similar: A "digital audio recording medium" is any material object in a form commonly distributed for use by individuals, that is primarily marketed or most commonly used by consumers for

3969-404: The earlier District Court ruling in favor of Diamond Multimedia, ruled that the "digital music recording" for the purposes of the act was not intended to include songs fixed on computer hard drives. The court also held that the Rio was not a digital audio recording device for the purposes of the AHRA, because 1) the Rio reproduced files from computer hard drives, which were specifically exempted from

4050-406: The final markup of a "technical corrections" section of copyright legislation, classifying many music recordings as " works made for hire ", thereby stripping artists of their copyright interests and transferring those interests to their record labels. Shortly afterwards, Glazier was hired as Senior Vice President of Government Relations and Legislative Counsel for the RIAA, which vigorously defended

4131-452: The first that RIAA has filed against a Usenet provider, has added another branch to RIAA's rapidly expanding fight to curb the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted materials . Unlike many of RIAA's previous lawsuits, this suit was filed against the provider of a service. Providers have no direct means of removing infringing content. RIAA's argument relies heavily on the fact the Usenet.com,

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4212-484: The formula for album-equivalent unit . For certification purposes, each unit may be one of: Along with albums, digital albums, and singles, another classification of music release is called "video longform". This release format includes DVD and VHS releases. Further, certain live albums and compilation albums are counted. The certification criteria are slightly different from other styles. RIAA opposes unauthorized sharing of its members' music. Studies conducted since

4293-608: The fragile plastic used for the door clips. The metal hinge used to hold the compartment to the base of the unit would put strain on the plastic casing, causing cracks around the SmartMedia slot. The silver colored coating on the main central control button in the original 32 MB unit would often peel and flake off with use. The control disc would commonly fall off. On October 8, 1998, the Recording Industry Association of America , filed suit and asked for

4374-426: The implications of the act. The distinction between covered and non-covered devices or media dictates whether royalties must be paid and whether the SCMS copy control technologies must be included. Notwithstanding more permissive interpretations , the distinction also determines whether noncommercial copying by consumers of digital and analog musical recordings is copyright infringement—to not be considered infringement,

4455-420: The language of the act requires that the copies be made using covered devices and media, regardless of whether the copy control technology is present or the royalty has been paid. The statutory definition states: A "digital audio recording device" is any machine or device of a type commonly distributed to individuals for use by individuals, whether or not included with or as part of some other machine or device,

4536-696: The likes also began to be counted towards the certification, using the formula of 100 streams being the equivalent of one download; thus, RIAA certification for singles no longer reflects actual sales. In the same year, the RIAA introduced the Latin Digital Award for digital recordings in Spanish. As of 2016 , the certification criteria for these recordings are: Digital awards: The units are defined as: Latin digital awards: In February 2016, RIAA updated its certification criteria for album-level awards to combine streaming and track sales using

4617-541: The new digital audio recording technology. It also protects the legitimate rights of our songwriters, performers, and recording companies to be fairly rewarded for their tremendous talent, expertise, and capital investment. This will be accomplished by fairly compensating these artists for the copying of their works and by creating a system that will prevent unfettered copying of digital audio tapes." The AHRA's statutory definitions of "digital audio recording device" and "digital audio recording media" are crucial to understanding

4698-513: The only defendant that had been named, promoted their service with slogans and phrases that strongly suggested that the service could be used to obtain free music. On April 28, 2008, RIAA member labels sued Project Playlist, a web music search site, claiming that most of the sound recordings in the site's index of links are infringing. Project Playlist's website denies that any of the music is hosted on Project Playlist's own servers. On June 30, 2009, RIAA prevailed in its fight against Usenet.com, in

4779-483: The owners of the right to reproduce sound recordings (an individual or company, mostly the record label, who owns the master sound recording) receive 60%. These parties receive royalties through the Alliance of Artists and Recording Companies (AARC) according to the extent to which their recordings were sold, based on sales in the United States, both digitally and retail. The inclusion of the reproduction rights holders

4860-401: The project) as copyright violations . The request cited the United States law Title 17 U.S.C. §1201 . Critics of this action say that the software library can be used by archivists to download videos of social injustice. According to Parker Higgins, former Director of Copyright Activism at the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), this takedown request was a "throwback threat" analogous to

4941-399: The purpose of making digital audio copied recordings by use of a digital audio recording device. In each case, the principal distinction between what is and is not covered by the AHRA is determined by whether or not the device is marketed or designed (or in the case of media, commonly used by consumers) to make audio recordings, not the device's capabilities. A CD-R recorder included as part of

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5022-449: The record industry and government regulations. Early RIAA standards included the RIAA equalization curve, the format of the stereophonic record groove and the dimensions of 33 1/3, 45, and 78 rpm records. RIAA says its current mission includes: Between 2001 and 2020, RIAA spent between $ 2.4 million and $ 6.5 million annually on lobbying in the United States. RIAA also participates in

5103-448: The recording industry and consumer electronics makers, agreed to support legislation creating a royalty scheme for digital media. In exchange, Cahn and the publishers agreed to drop the suit. With all the major stakeholders satisfied, the bill easily passed both houses of Congress. President George H. W. Bush signed the AHRA into law in 1992 proclaiming " S. 1623 [AHRA] will ensure that American consumers have access to equipment embodying

5184-566: The recording industry suit. The recording industry's complaint was based on XM's use of their music, not on the distribution of the devices. XM is currently licensed, under Section 114 of the US Copyright Act, to provide the recording industry's music via a digital satellite broadcast service. The recording industry's complaint, however, alleges that services such as the XM + MP3 distribute permanent digital copies of sound recordings without

5265-503: The recording industry's cooperation to induce consumers – many of whom were in the process of replacing their cassettes and records with compact discs – to embrace a new music format. Second, device makers feared a lawsuit for contributory copyright infringement . Despite their strong playing hand, the recording industry failed to convince consumer electronics companies to voluntarily adopt copy restriction technology. The recording industry concurrently sought

5346-431: The royalties goes to the Musical Works Fund, which splits its cut 50/50 between writers (distributed by ASCAP , BMI , and SESAC ) and music publishers (distributed by Harry Fox Agency ). These parties receive royalties according to the extent to which their recordings were distributed or broadcast. The remaining two thirds of the royalties are placed in the Sound Recordings Fund. Four percent of these funds are taken off

5427-498: The sales level associated with a particular award depends on when the award was made. Since 2000, the RIAA also operates a similar program for Latin music sales, called Los Premios de Oro y De Platino . Currently, a "Disco De Oro" (Gold) is awarded for 30,000 units, and a "Disco De Platino" is awarded for 60,000 units. Further, the "Album Multi-Platino" honor is awarded at 120,000, and "Diamante" requires 10 times as many units as "Platino" (600,000). The RIAA defines "Latin music" as

5508-459: The sales thresholds for singles were reduced to 500,000 for Gold and 1,000,000 for Platinum, reflecting a decrease in sales of singles. In 1992, RIAA began counting each disc in a multi-disc set as one unit toward certification. Reflecting additional growth in music sales, the Diamond award was instituted in 1999 for albums or singles selling ten million units. Because of these changes in criteria,

5589-490: The same degree as analog. One states "in the case of home taping, the exemption protects all noncommercial copying by consumers of digital and analog recordings," and the other states "In short, the reported legislation [Section 1008] would clearly establish that consumers cannot be sued for making analog or digital audio copies for private noncommercial use." Similarly, language in the RIAA v. Diamond Multimedia decision suggests

5670-507: The songwriter Sammy Cahn and four music publishers, unhappy with the absence of a royalties provision in the Athens agreement, filed a class action copyright infringement suit against Sony. The plaintiffs sought declaratory and injunctive relief that would have prevented the manufacture, importation or distribution of DAT recorders or media in the United States. The suit brought Sony to heel. In July 1991, Sony, as part of larger agreement between

5751-474: The subscriber associated with an IP address , and as such do not know any additional information about a person before they sue. After an Internet subscriber's identity is discovered, but before an individual lawsuit is filed, the subscriber is typically offered an opportunity to settle. The standard settlement is a payment to RIAA and an agreement not to engage in file sharing of music. Such suits are also usually on par with statutory damages of $ 750 per work, with

5832-550: The top for non-featured musicians and vocalists (distributed by the AFM/SAG-AFTRA Intellectual Property Rights Distribution Fund, jointly operated by American Federation of Musicians and SAG-AFTRA ). The remaining 96% is split 60/40 between two sets of "interested copyright parties". Interested copyright parties, a heretofore unknown category in copyright law, is defined by the act as featured artists receive 40%, and

5913-535: The way for the development and availability of new digital recording technologies and new musical recordings." In the latter regard, the law was a failure as it may have prevented the growth of a consumer market for any AHRA-covered devices. In regard to home taping, the provision broadly permits noncommercial, private recording to analog devices and media. However, it fails to resolve the home taping debate "conclusively," as it only permits noncommercial, private recording to digital devices and media when certain technology

5994-468: Was $ 10.4 billion at the end of 2007, a decline from $ 14.6 billion in 1999. Estimated retail revenues from recorded music in the United States grew 11.4% in 2016 to $ 7.7 billion. The RIAA operates an award program for albums that sell a large number of copies. The award was launched in 1958; originally, the requirement for a Gold single was one million units sold and a Gold album represented $ 1 million in sales (at wholesale value, around

6075-499: Was available as early as 1987 in Japan and Europe, but device manufacturers delayed introducing the format to the United States in the face of opposition from the recording industry. The recording industry, fearing that the ability to make perfect, multi-generation copies would spur widespread copyright infringement and lost sales, had two main points of leverage over device makers. First, consumer electronics manufacturers felt they needed

6156-528: Was broken at a meeting in Athens in 1989, when representatives from the recording industry and the consumer electronics industry reached a compromise intended to enable the sale of DAT recorders in the United States. Device manufacturers agreed to include SCMS in all consumer DAT recorders in order to prevent serial copying. The recording industry would independently pursue legislation requiring royalties on digital audio recording devices and media. A year later

6237-473: Was crucial in RIAA v. Diamond Multimedia Systems, Inc. , the only case in which the AHRA's provisions have been examined by the federal courts. The RIAA filed suit to enjoin the manufacture and distribution of the Rio PMP300 , one of the first portable MP3 players, because it did not include the SCMS copy protection required by the act, and Diamond did not intend to pay royalties. The 9th Circuit , affirming

6318-469: Was formed because the RIAA's legal fees were cutting into the income from settlements. In 2008, RIAA sued 19-year-old Ciara Sauro for allegedly sharing 10 songs online. RIAA also launched an "early settlement program" directed to ISPs and to colleges and universities, urging them to pass along letters to subscribers and students offering early settlements, prior to the disclosure of their identities. The settlement letters urged ISPs to preserve evidence for

6399-403: Was later released, which is colored translucent green and equipped with a larger 64 MB internal memory, at a cost of $ 250. The Rio also spawned one of the first Digital Music service providers (ASP or SaaS Cloud Service), RioPort . RioPort was the first digital music service to license secure, single-track commercial downloads from major record labels. The Rio PMP300 was supplied with a copy of

6480-603: Was taken offline via denial-of-service attacks executed by members of Operation Payback and Anonymous . RIAA filed briefs in Allen v. Cooper , which was decided in 2020. The Supreme Court of the United States abrogated the Copyright Remedy Clarification Act as unconstitutional, while RIAA had argued the opposite view. In 1999, Mitch Glazier, a Congressional staff attorney, inserted, without public notice or comment, substantive language into

6561-439: Was unprecedented in United States copyright law. Almost thirty-nine percent of the royalties collected under the AHRA go not to songwriters and musicians, but to the record labels who own the right to copy and distribute their recordings. The justification for this cross subsidy is that the copying enabled by the digital technology is a loss of profits for the recording industry, and that they should be compensated for this loss. It

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