Embedded Files
What is DMCA?
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) is legislation enacted by the United States Congress in October 1998 that made major changes to the US Copyright Act. These changes were necessary in part to bring US copyright law into compliance with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty and the WIPO Performances Phonograms Treaty. The DMCA also strengthened the legal protection of intellectual property rights in the wake of emerging new information communication technologies, i.e., the internet.
What does this mean for you?
Unauthorized distribution of copyrighted material including the sharing of copyrighted music, movies, and software through peer-to-peer applications like BitTorrent, PopcornTime, and others using Emporia State University's information technology resources is against the law and university policy. Unlawful file sharing may subject you to legal penalties, which can include any or all of the following:
having to pay money to the copyright holder as a result of a lawsuit
having to pay the copyright holder's costs and attorney fees to bring the lawsuit
criminal consequences
seizure and destruction of infringing files
Additionally, the university may impose sanctions, including loss of network access and disciplinary action. To learn more about how ESU handles copyright infringement, read the ESU DMCA policy on the right.
What is peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing?
Every day, millions of computer users share files online. Whether it is music, games, or software, file sharing can give people access to a wealth of information. To share files through a P2P network, you download special software that connects your computer to other computers running the same software. Millions of users could be connected to each other through this software at one time. The software often is free.
Sounds promising, right? Maybe, but make sure that you consider the trade-offs. File sharing can have a number of risks. For example, when you are connected to file-sharing programs, you may unknowingly allow others to copy private files — even giving access to entire folders — you never intended to share.
Legal Alternatives
There are legal alternatives you can use to play your favorite music and movies. ESU does not endorse any of the following services and this list may not be complete.
Please review the following for a list of legal alternatives:
Showing movies on campus
Because movies and TV shows are copyrighted materials, you have to take special precautions if you want to show them publicly. The following are some general tips - review the guidelines above for more information.
rent the movie from an authorized distributor
use a movie that is in the public domain
stream a movie from Netflix that is specifically designated as "educational screening"
use the ESU library's Kanopy service
show a legitimate copy of the movie as face-to-face teaching activity
Resources
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