Dallas Business Consultant Elijah ClarkDallas Business Consultant Elijah Clark

My Opinion on P2P Filesharing

FileĀ sharingĀ was designed to be an innocent practice of ā€œnetworks [offering] new singers, bandsĀ andĀ movie makers the opportunity to showcase their work free of charge to the public. [In addition,] computer games could be tested before going onto the market. Bugs could be fixedĀ andĀ the product perfected.ā€ (The Pirate Bay, 2010)

Today, if I wanted to purchase a blockbuster movie, a new music album or a piece of artwork online, I could easily goĀ andĀ download it from a p2p networkĀ andĀ have it within seconds or minutes based on my Internet speed.

I don’t know how everyone feels about that, but it’s a lot faster than getting dressedĀ andĀ heading to my local movie or music store. Not only that, but I can get it for free or for a small membership fee to that p2p network. Just an Internet connection is all that is needed in most cases.

This practice is used every day by millions of users online who downloadĀ andĀ distribute copyrighted material that is ruining the future of those working in the artisticĀ andĀ entertainment industry such as my companyĀ andĀ myself.

Pirate thievesĀ andĀ gangs who don’t create the work, but distribute the work are making millions of dollars off of the hard workĀ anddedication of its creators. This shouldn’t be legal. It’s thievery 2.0Ā andĀ it’s getting larger each day that nothing is done about it.

A list of illegal activities that are increasing with p2pĀ fileĀ sharingĀ are:

  • CopyingĀ andĀ sharingĀ images, music, movies, television shows or other copyrighted material through the use of P2P technology.
  • Purchasing a CD or DVDĀ andĀ then making copies for others.
  • Posting or plagiarizing copyrighted material on a personal Web space.

(Computer Hope, 2010)

Call it whatever you want, shoplifting, stealing, theft or whatever. These networksĀ andĀ users are allowingĀ andĀ promoting illegal useĀ andno one is doing anything about it.

Preventative Measures & Benefits

Nonetheless,Ā fileĀ sharingĀ isn’t all bad. Not everyone is selfishĀ andĀ some do use it for its properly designed use. However, until it can be better managed, it should remain an illegal activity. Until all copyrighted material can be stopped from being given away freely, it is considered wrongĀ andĀ should be stopped.

Those that download, distributeĀ andĀ help in the illegal transfers of stolen material should be penalizedĀ andĀ prosecuted. If these thugs begin to be charged for their mistakes, most of this could be prevented. Though not everyone will stop this illegal activity, it should at the least be taken seriouslyĀ andĀ preventative measures can stop some of it from violating copyright lawsĀ andĀ the artisticĀ andĀ entertainment industry can begin to restore itself.

Credits

Computer Hope. (2010).Ā IsĀ fileĀ sharingĀ illegal or legal?Ā Retrieved September 4, 2010, fromĀ http://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch001042.htm

The Pirate Bay. (2010).Ā Peer to peerĀ fileĀ sharingĀ software p2p. Retrieved September 4, 2010, fromĀ http://www.thipiratebay.se/

Dr. Elijah Clark
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Cite this article:
Dr. Elijah Clark (October 6, 2022). Copyrights and File Sharing [Web log post]. Retrieved from https://elijahclark.com/copyrights-file-sharing/
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