well I have no choice. Im broke so ill continue my criminal ways. I dont have 50$ for ppvs or 150$+ for nhl/nfl/nba networks so I can watch all the games or even enough to really pay for cable. I list these things because I can get them all for 0$ on atdhe. Ill pay for stuff......eventually but thats not happening soon. piratebay and atdhe keep me happy.

You could argue that sites like atdhe/justin.tv/ninjavideo provide the service that a DVR provides and 100% mark-down. Much of what those sites do is hardly illegal, merely the content providers would wish it otherwise (just as they disputed the VCR on grounds of people taping shows they didn't have time to watch).

veetle is still free, although most sporting events are being cracked down by copyright daily now. Enoy it while it lasts.

Also - best place for your favorite shows

tvdex.org

Napster tried the "We don't distribute the files, our users do." argument in 2001. The Federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals did not see it the same way and Napster was shutdown. In the aftermath the RIAA went after individual users with abandon. One woman was ordered to pay fines of $225K for using Kazaa and sharing her music library which resulted in thousands of illegal downloads from her computer.

There are plenty of judgements that have been handed down in this area, and they are all in favor of the copyright holders. What those sites do is absolutely illegal and just because they have not been shutdown yet does not mean it won't happen. Like I said the US Government is desperate for revenue, and it's only a matter of time before they start pursuing this.

Corporations have some insulation from stiff fines through bankruptcy, individuals do not. This is why the RIAA goes after the user and not the service provider. If you are using file sharing services to download copyrighted material for free then at least make sure that whatever you download does not end up getting re-shared on the grid. That way it will be less likely for you to be targeted since the number of transfers to/from your computer will be small.

If you leave the content up on the grid you could find yourself in the same situation as that woman who got whacked with a $225K fine because her music library got hit for several thousand downloads.

thats why you use piratebay.

@ Shredder, there is just as much precedent for not hosting illegal content being okay. If you look here, you'll see that in every case (I'm talking about the ICE domain take-overs in general, not the alleged illegality of specific sites) the seizures were done without due process. As far as sites that show copyrighted content, it is possible to prosecute but that is for the courts to decide, not for a government bureau that isn't allowing for defense or compliance. Even sites with legitimately procured copyrighted content have been seized.

TL:DR, the mexicans are hopping hte border while ICE agents beat off to porn and watch TV on sites.


and Hollywood/major TV corporations are wasting tax dollars again to attempt to balance a system that is growing wildly out of control

Site seizures are not what I am referring to, but shuttering domains is well within the rights of the enforcing agency when they have reason to believe illegal activity is occurring. It is the same as having your car impounded for driving drunk or parking illegally. They do not need a court order or a warrant to do that. The domain holders have the right to their day in court if they so choose to try and get their property back, and if they want to go to court the government will no doubt have the burden of proof for illegal activity. Doing that would open the domain holders up to enormous fines, however, so it is highly unlikely that any of them will do so unless they really have done nothing wrong.

Napster was not fined, they were just told that in order to keep operating the service they had to guarantee that copyrighted content could not be transferred illegally. That of course was impossible, so they shut it down.

As far as being able to share copyrighted content without paying the copyright holder there is no legal precedent indicating that is allowable. Every single case that has been brought to court to date has gone in favor of the copyright holder. The important thing to note here is that the service providers who operate file sharing networks have never been fined, but if they cannot provide suitable guarantees they have been ordered to cease and desist operations in every case. The courts have found repeatedly that operating a file sharing network in and of itself does not constitute a copyright violation. If a user chooses to download or openly share copyrighted content that is a different story, and there have been many judgements handed down in those types of cases.

In any case, the likelihood of getting sued is small as long as you don't re-share what you download. So far copyright holders have primarily targeted users who allow their content to be downloaded since that is where the cash cow is. This does not mean they will never target individuals.

Thank you for the history lesson.

I think what bugs me the most is what we mentioned before. Some times you can "only" see the material on those sites because the material isnt availible anywhere else.
Like Hockey... Some hockey games are not viewable where Im at because its not popular enough to warrent brodcast in Florida.
So Im stuck... I either watch a "live" stream, or drive/fly north and visit sa local bar to see it. Because frankly, I think handing over $50 a month to a cable company for potentialy 12 hours of footage (with ads I might include here) is complete BS.
Food for thought......
England, you have to pay a TV Licence. That money goes towards the BBC (a broadcast station there). They air meteial with NO ADVERTISMENTS because you are "paying" for it. Now the other channles like 3 4 and 5 (i dont know how many there are now) are funded by ADVERTISMENTS so are free, but you have to endure the Ads in the middle of your shows.
I find it totaly infuriating that I not only have to pay out of my own pcoet to watch shows, but Im also subject to Advertisments 3 or 4 times in a half hour.... I mean, how much revenue are these broadcast comapnies making off this?.
Take the SuperBowl for example, how much is 1 minute of TV air time for advertisments being sold for now?

As far as the US government goes... they are about as organised as a 5 year olds sock drawer!.
ICE might go after individuals here and there, but only the easy ones who draw attention to themselves. I mean, as long as your not hosting a file server sharing out Gigs of movies and music per hour then I think your probably pretty safe. Besides, when they come nocking on the door just ask why they are harrasing a US citizen and not the house down the road with all the illegal aliens living in it with the shiney new F150 parked in the front yard who are filing Taxes on some dead womans social security number!?.
You could also ask why they are talking to you instead of stopping the counless illegal entries going on at that moment.

ICE.... what a joke!.

Unavailability either on purpose or due to regionally determined scheduling, I think, is the one logical argument for downloading or watching a stream of something that is online and isn't something you have 'permission' for watching. Frankly, I am of the opinion of once you put something into the public forum, it belongs in the public domain. You can still do what you want with it, but once it's released into the wild, you have little control over what people do with it other than what recourse the law has and even then, only if you're a dick or you have a seriously legitimate reason for wanting restitution. Even so, I tend to follow the laws because I like going about my business.

I'm not a fan of money or of doing things for financial gain, or for expecting financial gain for doing such things. Because I disagree with the current economic paradigm doesn't free me from it however, and because of this I need to oblige those who have the power to put me in a certain position. That is, until such that I am able to work with enough people who are of a like mind and only wish to do things because they love doing them, or provide things to others for that self-same reason out of love for the work of their fellow humans.