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Originally Posted by rlauzon
Nope. Because, you the downloader, did not make the copy.
I will put a disclaimer here that I am not a lawyer. This is what I understand by reading what groups like the EFF write.
So far, there have been no cases where the downloaders were prosecuted and there has been no assertions in any copyright violation cases (that I am aware of) that the downloaders did something wrong.
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The fact that downloaders haven't been prosecuted is more an issue of their being harder to identify than the uploader. Although the uploader has the lion's share of blame, by the letter of the law the downloader is at fault, too.
However, thanks to the precedents set by tape recording over the years (the court's practice of looking the other way over what was legally a violation of copyright by individuals copying and sharing taped music), the courts have essentially ignored the people at the end of the distribution chain, and gone after the ones at the head of the chain instead. It's mostly just an expediency thing.