Begin forwarded message:

From: Chris Molinski <chris.molinski@gmail.com> Date: February 28, 2008 1:00:20 PM CST To: softwareandculture@lists.tmttlt.com Subject: [Softwareandculture] Students Protest Copyright Bill in Nashville Reply-To: software and culture <softwareandculture@lists.tmttlt.com>

The Tennessee Legislature is attempting to pass a Bill that would criminalize thousands of students at public universities.

Senate Bill 3974, sponsored by Sen. Tim Burchett, forces any institution of "higher learning" to monitor all public university students and expel any who access copyrighted content online. The Bill does not distinguish between types of content - but broadly makes viewing copyrighted content an offense suitable for expulsion.

Students at the University of Tennessee are outraged. Protests have been building across the state - and have caused the Legislature to delay a hearing on the Bill.

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the lobby for the recording industry, has largely forced this Bill to move forward in the face of opposition from the University, it's professors and students. The Recording industry claims that as a result of "file sharing" CD sales have declined, despite academic evidence to the contrary.

A study released last year by Felix Oberholzer-Gee, associate professor at the Harvard Business School, and Koleman Strumpf, professor at the University of North Carolina, showed that increased amounts of file sharing largely has an effect on sales that was "statistically indistinguishable from zero" - but in some cases may have even increased CD sales. [1]

The University of Tennessee currently has in place a conservative policy for punishing students who share copyrighted content online: they ask the individual to stop, address the matter personally, and disconnect the individuals Internet connection if the act continues.

Bill 3974 would instantly criminalize all offending individuals - and force the University to expel thousands of students.

Tennessee readers on the popular blog "Boing Boing" have already responded by expressing their shame and embarrassment that this Bill would move forward.

Next week at the Legislative hearing in Nashville, Wednesday March 5th, there is scheduled to be a protest beginning at 8:00 AM on the corner of 6th and Union St. Representatives from Knoxville will gather students at 5:00 AM and transport them to the Nashville hearing in order to make their voice heard.

To jump on a bus in Knoxville and join the protest go to COPYSHOP (317 N Gay St. Knoxville, TN 37917), ready to leave by 5:00 AM Wednesday March 5th.

Visit COPYSHOP (http://copy-shop.org/knoxville) for information and updates about the fight against copyright in Tennessee.

-- http://copy-shop.org/knoxville/archives/74 --

[1] "File sharing may boost CD sales" Harvard Gazette: http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/2004/04.15/09-filesharing.html _______________________________________________ softwareandculture mailing list softwareandculture@lists.tmttlt.com http://lists.tmttlt.com/listinfo.cgi/softwareandculture-tmttlt.com

Jeremy Hunsinger Information Ethics Fellow, Center for Information Policy Research, School of Information Studies, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (www.cipr.uwm.edu ) Words are things; and a small drop of ink, falling like dew upon a thought, produces that which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think. --Byron