Downloading Copyrighted Material in Ireland?
Question by Simon O: Downloading Copyrighted Material in Ireland?
Everyone knows about LimeWire and the Pirate Bay and all the other ways of getting copyrighted material off the internet.
My quesiton is is it actually illegal to download this material? Say someone uploads an album by a music artist who has a contract with EMI or Virgin Records, then the record company owns that copyright. But once the person has uploaded it and broken the copyright what is its legal position then? Obviously the person who uploaded the material has broken the law but is it actually legal to download this album now? If not does anyone know what Irish copyright laws would it be breaking? Or if it is legal in any country?
Best answer:
Answer by ron_mexico
You seem to be under the mistaken impression that once the copyright is “broken” that it becomes void. That is not true.
In the U.S., uploading AND downloading copyrighted content constitutes infringement. I’m not sure about Ireland, but I would be surprised if the same wasn’t true.
http://www.riaa.com/physicalpiracy.php?content_selector=piracy_online_the_law
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