Internet, downloading, and karaoke

[Karaoke Meister]

I'm sure such a case would be a dismal failure on the part of those fighting the payment of synchronization rights. Why?

Because over the last 50 years they've stretched the copyright of a work from a short time, to the length of an author's life, to the length of their life plus 75 years. Because over the last couple years they've enacted new laws to 'tax' new technology based on the presumption that it will be used for illegal purposes (Home Recording Act of 1992 taxes DAT players and ALL DAT media). They've created a law that provides for a 'statutory' rate for covering an authors song (the Harry Fox Agency's nearly sole purpose is collecting and managing these fees).

Because they've added laws over the years to protect the copyright owners rights and only those works released before the law goes into effect are exempt from those fees. They can't create a law today taxing DAT players and then make it retroactive on all DAT players sold/manufactured before today's date. Sort of like saying 'I saw you doing something I didn't like so I had them make a law to make it illegal so now I'm arresting you because you did something yesterday that's against the law today'. Not real practical...

Keep in mind this is exactly what they did with a lot of the cleanups 'required' by the EPA (the dumping of certain toxins was legal when it happened but it's now illegal - the original dumping company has to clean it up!).

I'll see if I can dig up the actual law that deals with synchronization rights and I'll post a link here. It might be a couple days but if anyone runs into it before then post here to save me some time in looking it up.

On a side note, some of those songs might have been public domain works under the copyright law at the time. Chances are some of the record labels saw it as a great marketing tool as well and actually requested they become 'sing-a-longs'. And the main issue is not only the making of the tracks but the reproduction of those tracks on a rampant basis in digital form over the Internet and other 'file sharing' means.