Why are filesharing sites such as Limewire and UTorrent illegal?

Question

I don't use them myself for this reason, but I was just wondering what the reason behind it is. Surely it's just like lending a CD to your friend to listen to? I get that if everyone just downloaded full albums like this it would affect sales figures, but if you're just downloading one song what harm can it do? It may even get you into the artist and you'll go out and buy their previous albums.

Just wondered what people's thoughts on this were.

Answer 1

Limewire and Torrent aren't illegal, but some of the software that are listed in those sites are illegal to distribute.

It's a bit technical, but the file-sharing hoopla started when a site would allow users to upload programs to their servers as opposed to the site allowing people to connect directly to each others systems. Limewire and Torrent does the latter.

But be careful. In spite of a little technical differences, there are some states who don't tolerate file sharing systems at all. Be sure to check with your local law enforcement and see if their laws are enough that they can send in Storm Troopers to your house and shoot up the place (and I'm not talking Star Wars).

Answer 2

Limewire a UTorrent are perfectly legal! They are just ways to share files in the same way FTP, HTTP and email are! Its what you are sharing that is illegal!

One song does not hurt at all, especially if you had no intention of buying it anyway.

But you have to look at it from their point of view too;

For the want of a nail, the shoe was lost,
For the want of a shoe, the horse was lost,
For the want of a horse, the message was lost,
For the want of a message, the war was lost.

So the problem we have is that the artists and record companies need a paycheck, but we need to be able to just download and listen to music speculatively because that's how you discover new music.

I think that subscription-based services like Napster are the way forward. For a tenner a month, you get an all-you-can-eat service. There are still some bumps in the road though such as draconian DRM and compatibility with alternative OS's though.

Answer 3

You've just go to look at some of the home pages of most of the major Torrent sites to see why. Isohunt for instance has at least 3 major lawsuits pending and over the years has disappeared and reappeared numerous times in dufferent parts of the world. I certainly lost trust in them quite a while ago after downloading a virus in files of a movie download which took a lot hard work to get rid off. Dowloading from the sites can be addictive but as they say there alway something better round the corner.

Answer 4

I hate to say it, but the best red flag that you're illegally downloading music is that your music is free and downloaded from a P2P file sharing network. If it is copyrighted (excluding music designated as free using a Creative Commons license or EFF's Open Audio License), especially from a major label, someone will be upset about missing royalties. While there are places where you can find free promotional downloads and free rights music from popular (and not so popular) artists, this is the exception, and most files shared on P2P networks are not this kind of file.

Answer 5

OK that's all in perception

lime wire and bt are legal cuz there file-sharing sites
its illegal to download music but on lime-wire and bit-torrent your just sharing files that's why they have it set up so that u can transfer music and documents

the real reason that music downloading is illegal is because they cant collect sales taxes so they are not getting money like on itunes and Napster u pay taxes(its already in the price)
so that's legal but its its a loop hole thing that they cant Ban file sharing because they would have to stop major transactions that take place over the web like stockes and even paying bills like filing your taxes on line

just like Marijuana it is less addictive then cigarettes and less harmful but it comes from over the border so the only tax they can charge is sales and importation tax but with cigarettes they charge tobacco tax,sales,importation tax,and this thing that not many ppl know about which is called smokers tax which is included in the price but ppl should stop smoking any way but that was the first example i could come up with

Answer 6

File sharing programs are not illegal! Some of the material that we can download are Copywrite material.
Some people when they download these files they redistribute to friends, those friends not knowing any better redistribute the copy to their friends, somebody else gets hold of the work's use it in a public place, that in breach of the copywrite laws.
If we use what we download in our own private homes that is acceptable no one will know will they unless the owner comes to your house.
Before you are allowed to download example limewire you are asked to click on a promise that the material that you download will not be used to infringe any copywrite material's.
Hope that answers your question.

Answer 7

WHen you download a song from the Internet, it are taking something that a person put hours of work and hundreds of dollars of cost into producing, and not paying them anything for it. It is no different then if you walked into a Walmart and took the song without paying. You should expect the penalty for doing it to be the same.

Answer 8

They're not illegal. The sites are legal, the software is legal.

The only part that breaks the law is when you download/upload copyrighted material.

Let's be honest though, has there really been much originality in the music world since the 80's?

Answer 9

Because there are people who will download only one song and other who would download the whole album. You can't draw a line as it would be much more difficult to enforce.

Answer 10

Hi,
My favourite p2p program is Emule. If you don't use it yet here is a free link http://bit.ly/1Aym7zJ
It's a really nice software.
Bye Bye