File-Sharing and Copyright Infringement: | UCLA BruinTech
A Communication to the Campus Community

May 20, 2003

File-Sharing and Copyright Infringement:
A Communication to the Campus Community

UC Commitment to Copyright Law

We are alerting the campus community – students, faculty and staff – to the personal risks involved with illegal file-sharing. It is important that you understand these risks not only because of the possibility of disciplinary action, but also to protect against criminal prosecution and the initiation of civil litigation by copyright holders. We would like you to be very aware that initiation of legal action by copyright holders is becoming more of a reality every day.

Though trading of copyrighted music, movies, games and software over the Internet has become commonplace using file-sharing programs such as KaZaa or Morpheus, it is often not legal to do so. Most September 22, 2005 in violation of the US copyright law may be punishable with civil and criminal penalties including prison time and money damages. When copyright holders resort to legal actions, there is little the University will be able to do to protect copyright infringers.

Some believe that “recreational file-sharing” is unlikely to be noticed. This is not the case. The reality is that copyright holders are significantly intensifying enforcement using automated scanning software to identify infringements, no matter how small. The Recording Industry Association of America on April 4, 2003 filed suit against four students at three universities for copyright infringement. Settlements ranged from $12,000 to $17,000.

As the Internet Service Provider to the campus community, every month UCLA receives dozens of infringement claims about file-sharing. In compliance with the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act and UCLA Policy 964, Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation, UCLA expeditiously takes action when notified of infringing sites located on the campus network. All of these incidents are referred to the appropriate campus officials and appropriate disciplinary actions are levied against those who are downloading or offering copyrighted materials without appropriate permission.

Of course, there are legitimate applications of file-sharing software and networks, and research on such peer-to-peer applications is expanding rapidly in the academic community. We will ensure that such inquiry remains unimpeded and balance all needs fundamental to our institution.

If you have any questions about these issues, please contact IT Security and Policy Coordinator Kent Wada at kent@ucla.edu or 6-3874.