Second, the RIAA says that if you buy one of these unofficial "bootlegs", you might not be inclined to buy an officially released CD or tape from the artist. This can't be further from the truth. A real fan wants to have, no, needs to have everything he or she can get their hands on by their favorite group.

Third, the recording Industry doesn't have to worry about the non-fan either. A non-fan wouldn't buy a bootleg. What non-fan would spend money for a CD from a group they don't like that much? What person would buy a CD that doesn't sound that good technically? Almost all "Bootleg" CD's have substandard technical qualities, due to the nature of where the "bootleggers" get these recordings. Like a live performance from the audience, a demo that is not fully polished, or an outtake that is not considered good enough to use by the artist. Only a true fan would overlook these technical problems.

The RIAA is going after the wrong people. Don't chase
away the true fan, go after the criminals that are really
taking money away from the artist, by selling counterfeit
copies of an official release. Leave the fans alone with their
"bootlegs" and  .

Their Story

Perhaps the most important mission of the RIAA is to protect the creative content of our member companies and their artists through an aggressive anti-piracy program. The association’s position on piracy is clear: The recording industry will not, and cannot, tolerate the unauthorized reproduction and distribution of recorded music. Over the years, the RIAA has developed an array of strategies to fight the problem. Today, the RIAA’s anti-piracy efforts run the gamut from education to litigation to product raids and seizures.

While cassette piracy has dropped more than 70% over the last five years, online music piracy is growing. It’s estimated that more than 100 million computers worldwide are connected to the Internet and most of them can download and store pirated copies of recorded music. To meet these challenges, the RIAA is channeling most of its anti-piracy resources to Internet piracy, while still guarding against evolving forms of CD piracy.

Unfortunately, the Internet culture of unlicensed use means that theft of intellectual property is rampant, and the music business and its artists are the biggest victims. Unauthorized Internet music archive sites using compression technology such as   provide illegal sound recordings online to anyone with a personal computer. They can be downloaded and played indefinitely, without authorization of or compensation to the artists. Currently, we have only anecdotal information about the damage caused by online piracy based on evidence uncovered in the discovery phase of our past litigation against illegal music archive sites using   technology.

What is certain is many individuals see nothing wrong with downloading an occasional song or even an entire CD for their personal use, despite the fact it is illegal under the recently enacted NET Act. That’s why the RIAA and its member companies are working so hard to protect copyrighted music on the Internet. The challenge is to find a method that can prevent copyright infringement online without interfering with legitimate uses of recorded music or missing the opportunities offered by digital technology and the Internet.

RIAA’s Case Against Diamond Multimedia In October 1998, the RIAA, joined by the Alliance of Artists and Recording Companies (AARC), filed a complaint against San Jose-based Diamond Multimedia. RIAA charged that Diamond’s portable   recording device, the Rio, violates the Audio Home Recording Act denied. The judge concluded that although the Rio is likely to be covered by the Act, the absence of serial copyrighting technology -- the feature designed to prevent unauthorized duplications -- was merely a technical violation and the Rio would likely be certified by the Secretary of Commerce as complying with the AHRA. The RIAA and AARC have since filed an expedited appeal; Diamond has filed a countersuit against the RIAA.

DJs are not exempt from copyright laws. When radio and nightclub disc jockeys compile a CD or cassette of tracks from a number of unrelated albums to use in their work, each song must be authorized -- even if the CD is made by a legitimate CD manufacturer. The law is simple: Duplicating copyrighted sound recordings for professional disc jockey purposes without the authorization of the sound recording copyright owner is a violation of federal and/or state copyright law. This includes copying all or some of a sound recording to analog or digital tape, CD-R, mini-disc or a computer disk/hard drive. Violators could be civilly liable for statutory damages of up to $100,000 per infringed sound recording, in addition to costs and the copyright owner’s attorney fees. Criminal liabilities include up to five years imprisonment and/or a fine of up to $250,000. The RIAA’s continuing enforcement efforts focus on the manufacture and distribution of illegal compilations throughout the DJ community, including businesses that allege to be authorized but are not. The RIAA also addresses flagrant copyright infringement by DJs who create and manufacture multi-disk compilations of top hits without obtaining appropriate licenses from the copyright holders.

In June 1998, the RIAA unveiled a practical program to curtail CD piracy. The voluntary plan suggests that CD plant employees make an effort to know their customer and the products they’re being asked to produce, and implement a plant-wide policy of good business practices. Overall, conventional CD piracy remains fairly well under control. However, a new problem -- CD-Recordables (CD-Rs) -- is growing. The RIAA confiscated 23,858 illegal CD-Rs during the first half of 1998, as compared to 87 in the same period last year. The equipment required to manufacture CD-Rs is relatively portable and quite inexpensive -- $400 for the hardware, $1 for a blank disc. As a result, pirates can set up shop virtually anywhere with a minimum investment, making it very difficult to track them down.

What is online piracy? It’s playing or downloading from the Internet songs and lyrics without getting authorization to, and without compensating the artists. Unauthorized Internet music archive sites using MIDI technology or   files provide illegal sound recordings online to anyone for downloading into a personal computer. They are often then reproduced and played indefinitely without compensation to the artists.