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Originally Posted by bill_mchale
Ummm... sure. This is all a little disingenuous regarding peer to peer networks in any case. No one is uploading the copyright works, they are making the file available on their computer and notifying the world by uploading an informational file to the peer to peer network.
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And the RIAA has claimed that the making-available part should be prosecuted just like copyright infringement, because it's too difficult to determine whether or not copies were actually made.
IMHO, this is like claiming that if you leave a book next to a photocopy machine, you are guilty of copyright infringement, because somebody *might* copy it.
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They then run a server on their system that responds to requests to make copies. It is the server that makes copies.
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The server is not a person. The person who controls the server, who authorizes it to make the copies, is liable for whatever illegalities the server does.
We don't claim "he didn't commit murder;
the knife killed that man." Saying "the server commits the act" is ridiculous.
And there would be a claim that, "whoever owns the server is liable," would make some sense--but that's what the safe harbor laws are designed to prevent, because without them, all internet business would grind to a screeching halt. (If business servers had to confirm that every email sent contained no illegal content, there'd be no business email.)