November 23, 2007
Can watching streaming video of copyright material get a viewer in trouble?
Several weeks ago, I sent an e-mail to the Open Rights Group, asking how illegal was it to watch copyright content in streaming - like the latest new TV series - from video sharing sites, as it seems less harmful than downloading a copy to your hard drive.
Below you will find my query and their response - cautioning though that they are not lawyers nor do they offer legal advisory services. These are their thoughts, to the best of their knowledge:
Question: Following the TV Links shut down, a US copyright lawyer is quoted as saying watching streaming content (of illegally posted videos) is illegal. Does this entail (American) viewers could possibly be fined or arrested for watching streaming video? And in other countries, would this depend on the copyright laws of the country?
Answer: EU law offers an exemption for temporary copies which don't have economic significance. So the legal theory in the EU is that you are not making a copy of the original (as you would with a download where a new copy is stored on your local drive).
This means you're not liable for copyright infringement in the EU. However, its different in the US, where academics suggest the law is broken.
Although there is supposed to be a special dispensation for streaming, courts have held that temporary copies can be infringing.
Although I sympathize and agree that streaming infringing content is really common, it seems you are right to suggest it depends where in the world you're watching the stream, and also that American viewers in particular should take care.
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