Is it legal to capture music videos and store them on dvds?

[MeDiCo_BrUjO]

I searched the forums but I couldn't find anything related to this. What I want to know is that if it's legal to capture music videos from TV signal/cable/satellite or to download music videos from the Internet to create a collection and have them on your HD or burn them in dvd's.

[adam]

The answer to this question depends on the country you live in. I'm not familiar with Ecuadorian (sp?) law. Here is a link to, what I believe is, all of your applicable Copyright Law.

http://portal.unesco.org/culture/en/ev.php-URL_ID=15547&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html

I don't speak Spanish so I can't help with the interpretation.

[jackal70058]

Well it's proably legal to caputure video from a TV signal because I do that all the time with the VCR. If you can tape something I guess you can record it to the computer or a DVD recorder. I don't know about the internet though, that can be iffy. Of course if no one knows you're doing it...

[lumis]

i say as long as you're making any financial gain by doing that, then it shouldnt be a problem for anyone.

[Bodyslide]

i say as long as you're making any financial gain by doing that, then it shouldnt be a problem for anyone.

Did you mean not making???

[lumis]

whoops

[adam]

In most countries it is legal to record television broadcasts but only for the purpose of watching them once at a later date. Since he is adding these to his permanent collection, he cannot do this unless there is an express law saying it is legal in his country. Most countries do not allow this.

As for downloading, again most countries don't allow this. I can tell you that if you were in the United States both of the actions you mention are definitely a copyright violation.

Whether or not you make a profit off your actions is of no effect on the legality. An unauthorized copy is an unauthorized copy. The fact that you operating on such a small scale just means that you aren't going to show up on anybody's radar, but that doesn't make it legal.

[jackal70058]

In most countries it is legal to record television broadcasts but only for the purpose of watching them once at a later date.

But I have tapes of television made in the 1980s. Is this a crime?

[adam]

Its not a crime, but it is copyright infringement if you've already watched them. You'd be suprised how many of the things we do regularly in our homes are technically infringements.

[Noahtuck]

I searched the forums but I couldn't find anything related to this. What I want to know is that if it's legal to capture music videos from TV signal/cable/satellite or to download music videos from the Internet to create a collection and have them on your HD or burn them in dvd's.

Yeah!!!
And the Police are gonna be breaking down your door because you recorded some music video's to dvd for your personal entertainment

People have done this for years and years!!!!!!!!!! tech. , by the letter of the law it may be a no no.. but so is spitting on the sidewalk

Just amazes me when questions like this are asked!!!!!!
Like someone is gonna track you down and bust you for this!!!!!!!!!!

Its not a crime, but it is copyright infringement if you've already watched them. You'd be suprised how many of the things we do regularly in our homes are technically infringements.

Here Here!!!!!!!!!
For years and years and years!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's sad really...

[MeDiCo_BrUjO]

Noahtuck wrote:

Just amazes me when questions like this are asked!!!!!!

You are missing my point here. I wasn't asking because I'm afraid for the police breaking up my door in search of my music videos, because I live in Ecuador, as I stated before in other of my threads, this is no-man's-land. True that we "have" copyright laws here, but in real life practice, they don't apply them ever.
I was asking because IF and ONLY IF it was legal, I would have liked to start an exchange of music videos, but since it is clear to me that it is not, That idea vanished as quickly as it appeared.
DISCLAIMER: I'M NOT ADVOCATING PIRACY , that's why I asked first if it could be done. Now that I understand that it's not legal, I won't do it or ask about it again.

I was just playing safe, if you are not certain about it, ask first!. I would have liked it though, but I'll survive it.

[JSB]

In most countries it is legal to record television broadcasts but only for the purpose of watching them once at a later date. Since he is adding these to his permanent collection, he cannot do this unless there is an express law saying it is legal in his country. Most countries do not allow this.

hmmmm... then why are set top DVD recorders available in the US ? TIVO's?
Or does "fair use" cover ppl in the U.S. ?

Confused,
JSB

[jackal70058]

hmmmm... then why are set top DVD recorders available in the US ? TIVO's?
Or does "fair use" cover ppl in the U.S. ?

I guess for the same reason VCRs have been using for years.

[adam]

In most countries it is legal to record television broadcasts but only for the purpose of watching them once at a later date. Since he is adding these to his permanent collection, he cannot do this unless there is an express law saying it is legal in his country. Most countries do not allow this.

hmmmm... then why are set top DVD recorders available in the US ? TIVO's?
Or does "fair use" cover ppl in the U.S. ?

Confused,
JSB

Yes Fair Use is applicable in the US, that's where our right to time-shift (record broadcasts) comes from but this right is still limited to a one time viewing. VCRs, DVD recorders, and Tivo's are legally only supposed to be used to record for a one time later viewing. The motion picture industry has sued each of these industries arguing that they are committing contributory infringement, and when that failed they have aggressively lobbied for new legislation for years to try to get Tivo taken off the market. They basically threw in the towel with VCRs and DVD recorders but Tivo is still in the hotseat because of its ability to skip all commercials and to do other, non-Fair Use things, like record and store programs as favorites and such, which implies that you are going to watch them multiple times. But in the famous Betamax case where they ruled that time-shifting was a Fair Use, the US Supreme Court explicitly said that it only applies to a one time later viewing. If you watch it multiple times or store it in your library than it is copyright infringement.

Again, this is just one of those many instances in which people commit blatant copyright infringement everyday and don't even realize it.

[jackal70058]

copyright infringement everyday

Exactly what else is there?

I think I'll kept those old tapes as some type of novelty item.

Maybe they'll make the TIVO so that it automatically purge the recording after you view it. That's fix the problem.
That's why I'm hanging on the VCR a little longer.

[adam]

Are you asking what other types of copyright infringements go on unnoticed? Alot of businesses play music for their customers without paying royalties. Some stores and lots of restaraunts will have movies playing on tv without paying royalties. Bars get in trouble all the time for showing PPV events without getting the display license.

And here's a big one that you'd never think about. When they sing you happy birthday at a restaraunt they are supposed to pay royalties for that. That's why so many places have their own version of the birthday song, so they can sing it for free.

And as for personal use type infringements, I'm sure alot of people use copyrighted music for slideshows and home movies and such. Also alot of people make imperissible copies. I know this is never a popular thing to say on this forum, but in the United States you only have the right to backup two types of media; computer software and audio cds. And further, your right to copy an audio cd is only allowed if you use specific audio recorders like the separate hardware decks, and if you record on a music cdr. So all those people copying music cds on their computers are actually committing an infringement, and the same goes for people who copy DVDs.

Recording broadcasts and watching them multiple times or keeping them forever is still the most widely committed infringement, and its basically accepted as normal now.

[MeDiCo_BrUjO]

WHOA! , that's for sure a lot of infractions that goes "unnoticed".....

BTW, to whom do we have to pay royalties for the Happy Birthday song.... Barney?

I can't believe that if I sing happy birthday to somebody I would have to pay royalties..... that's hilarious!.

[adam]

You don't have to pay royalties if you sing the happy birthday song. You only have to pay the royalties if you do a "public performance" of it which requires that it be done for commercial purposes and in a place open to the public. Entities that pay royalties would be restaraunts that sing it for customers, movies that have it sung during a birthday scene, toys that play it, etc...

The rights to the happy birthday song are owned by Time Warner. They make several million in royalties off of it every year.

[JSB]

The rights to the happy birthday song are owned by Time Warner. They make several million in royalties off of it every year.

OMG... you make my head hurt....j/k
Good to know everyone is breaking the law....

Thanks for all the insightful info adam!

JSB

[VideoTechMan]

I admit, sometimes you get tired of these companies getting rich of these simple things, and us the little man are pretty much powerless unless we knew how to write our own music or make our own movies and TV shows, which most people don't.

There's no doubt that people openly commit infringement all of the time recording TV shows and such, and keeping them for their personal collections. Well then, what about the TV shows that no longer airs on TV, or that are impossible to find in stores anymore? Are we not allowed to keep these old shows on our DVD collection so as to always have them to watch when TV doesn't show them anymore? That highly sucks, and no doubt there are many people that completely ignore that law and make their own personal backups for their personal collections.

There have been alot of TV shows over the years that have been the favorites of many, but now are no longer aired or cannot find them on video anywhere. I guess the movie industry expects us 'little people' to go without our favorite shows forever without a means to see them again.

VTM

[SatStorm]

Scrooge Mac Duck was way ahead of he's time!