| From the President |
Apr 26 |
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| Intellectual Property Theft: No Bargain |
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The search for bargains is one of the great motivators in our society. Coupons, “special offers” and holiday discounts drive sales. Sometimes the desire to save money pushes consumers over the ethical line.
That’s the case with unauthorized downloads of copyrighted material from the internet or unauthorized republication of such materials as movies, tv shows and CDs. We all know about such matters from the Napster and other cases. The law frowns upon the taking of intellectual property without permission, and the performance artwork is among the protected properties.
What many union members may overlook is the harm done to their fellow union members by unlawful copying.
Performers, actors, stagehands and technicians, audio and video personnel, writers, backup singers, studio musicians and a legion of backstage and studio workers are supposed to share in the proceeds from these works. It’s not all about the marquee players, the stars.
Many middle class workers are affected and not just in their immediate wages. These fellow union members depend upon the continuing sales of their various products to provide residual earnings to support their pensions and benefit programs, and to provide additional earnings.
Some call it piracy with a wink and a nod to Johnny Depp’s pirate character, Captain Jack Sparrow. Others call it what it is: theft.
All union members should know that misappropriating the just rewards coming from the efforts of other workers is wrong.
Some people excuse their actions by saying, “These people are stars and won’t miss the little bit of revenue my actions have cost them.” But they’re wrong. Musicians, for example, may earn up to 90% of their income from purchased downloads. Losses to the music industry may total as much as $12.5 billion annually and the loss of 71,000 jobs. The motion picture industry suffers estimated losses of $5.5 billion each year and the disappearance of 141,000 jobs.
Union members should educate their families and friends about the destructive nature of illicit downloading. People who would never condone shoplifting may feel that it’s okay to steal downloads from our brothers and sisters in the music, fi lm and television industries. But the anonymity of the Internet and the rationalizations about the wealth of the headlined performers does not make illegal downloading right. Purchasing bootlegged DVDs and CDs is theft. Black market commerce in intellectual property is a major industry in China and some other nations. It is a subtractive industry that picks the pockets of the producers and adds nothing to their earnings or long-term benefi ts. Union members should avoid patronizing these illicit wares.
So make others aware of this issue. Help keep our American performers on stage and support the many others who make our entertainment industry a major component of the United States economy. |
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Union Sportsmen |
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