Comments on: tiff piracy warning and copyright http://640k.ca/2009/09/tiff-piracy-warning-and-copyright/ Paul V (@640k) on copyright, technology, policy and politics Fri, 23 Jul 2010 21:00:16 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: 640k http://640k.ca/2009/09/tiff-piracy-warning-and-copyright/comment-page-1/#comment-6 640k Wed, 16 Sep 2009 05:21:01 +0000 http://640k.ca/?p=28#comment-6 Blaise, I agree that the festival is welcome to make up their own rules and to boot people who try to bootleg films. I just find it frustrating when media includes legal threats which are not substantiated by the law. DVDs like to do it too. I also remember reading about museums posting similarly misleading "copyright" warnings about taking pictures. A museum need not necessarily allow photography, but to scapegoat copyright as a reason for forbidding it just being disingenuous. Blaise, I agree that the festival is welcome to make up their own rules and to boot people who try to bootleg films. I just find it frustrating when media includes legal threats which are not substantiated by the law. DVDs like to do it too. I also remember reading about museums posting similarly misleading “copyright” warnings about taking pictures. A museum need not necessarily allow photography, but to scapegoat copyright as a reason for forbidding it just being disingenuous.

]]> By: Blaise Alleyne http://640k.ca/2009/09/tiff-piracy-warning-and-copyright/comment-page-1/#comment-5 Blaise Alleyne Wed, 16 Sep 2009 05:08:54 +0000 http://640k.ca/?p=28#comment-5 Without getting into particulars (since I am not a lawyer either), I think you're right to point out a lot of potential ways in which that threat is not actually backed up by the law. But... the organizers do have the right to make their own rules regarding attendance and expelling people from the showing. They could say "no photography or we'll kick you out" (or no talking for that matter...). If it's their showing, their event, they can control who's allowed in and who's not and under what terms they're allowed. But it's <em>extremely</em> misleading to confuse <em>those</em> kind of restrictions with copyright law. Sure, they can expel people for pretty much whatever reasons they want (I'm sure there are a few exceptions), but that's got little to nothing to do with copyright or piracy, and it's a misplaced threat in the same sentence as their exaggerated claims on copyright restrictions. Without getting into particulars (since I am not a lawyer either), I think you’re right to point out a lot of potential ways in which that threat is not actually backed up by the law.

But… the organizers do have the right to make their own rules regarding attendance and expelling people from the showing. They could say “no photography or we’ll kick you out” (or no talking for that matter…). If it’s their showing, their event, they can control who’s allowed in and who’s not and under what terms they’re allowed.

But it’s extremely misleading to confuse those kind of restrictions with copyright law. Sure, they can expel people for pretty much whatever reasons they want (I’m sure there are a few exceptions), but that’s got little to nothing to do with copyright or piracy, and it’s a misplaced threat in the same sentence as their exaggerated claims on copyright restrictions.

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