The internet makes it very easy to transmit vast amounts of information to any computer connected to it. This has enabled great strides in human advancement and creativity, but it also has enabled those who would steal intellectual property without compensating creators to get access like never before. It is a problem with no easy solution.
Reading the rhetoric of internet pirates can be instructive to understand the rationalizations they go through for stealing copyrighted content through the Internet. This article from TorrentFreak, a popular site for news about the BitTorrent protocol and what people do with it, demonstrates some of it. The author of the article claims that IP protections are a form of industrial protectionism and that these protections interfere with individual property rights in favor of a government-mandated monopoly over content.
Yet if you think about it, internet pirates are actually violating the individual property rights of content creators by stealing content. Every content creator has the right to control their own property, which include the ideas and creations they make. IP law is designed to put the force of government and law on the side of content creators to prevent pirates from making economic gain off of someone else’s work.
Artists do not work just for the sole purpose of creating. They have to make a living as well. IP protections like copyright allow creatives to prove their ownership of a piece of art and set limitations on its use and distribution so they can charge for it. These protections are needed more than ever in a world where an artist’s entire discography can be downloaded in a matter of minutes.
If you are an artist and you are worried about whether your works are protected by law, speak with Greenberg & Lieberman, LLC today for a free consultation. Protect yourself from internet pirates by registering your copyrights and learning how you can defend your claims. Call today.
