archiving on inet

[Kirk Sheppard]

This is not an accurate comparison. A posting on usenet is not the same 
item as a program on HBO or the radio. In what way does my internet provider 
(netcom) have a "legal" distribution of usenet news, while a cd-rom 
provider does not? HBO has paid for the use of the programs it broadcasts 
that are produced by others, hence they have a contract between 
themselves and the owners of the copyright. No providers of usenet news 
have any agreements between themselves and the posters regarding 
copyrights. Netcom and all the other internet providers receive postings 
"free" and a cd-rom manufacturer has the same "right" to use postings as 
any other internet provider.

Kirk Sheppard

kshep at netcom.com

P. O. Box 30911             "It is  Better to Die on Your Feet Than to 
Bethesda, MD 20824-0911      Live On Your Knees."
U.S.A.
			    			     - Emiliano Zapata


On Tue, 1 Feb 1994, Jason Zions wrote:

> > So answer the question again, what is the 
> >difference in paying an internet provider for access to usenet, and 
> >paying a cd-rom provider for access to usenet?
> 
> It's the difference between listening to the radio yourself and buying a
> home-made tape of the radio program from someone else. The first is legal;
> the second is, generally, not.
> 
> Better yet, it's the difference between watching a program on HBO when you
> are getting that service legally (i.e. paying for it) and buying a tape of
> the same program from a friend who has HBO. Whether or not you also have
> legal access to HBO, the sale of the tape infringes on the copyright of the
> program.
> 
> Jason
>