[Year 12 IPM] music copyright

Mon Nov 20 08:56:39 EST 2006

Singing 'Happy Bithday' or any other song at a restaurant or bar would not b=
reach copyright presuming the restaurant has paid the annual fees charged by=
 APRA.

Cheers

Ros Meadows
Lauriston Girls School
meadowsro at lauriston.vic.edu.au <mailto:meadowsro at lauriston.vic.edu.au> 
meadows.roslyn.m at edumail.vic.gov.au

Home computers are being called upon to perform many new functions, includin=
g the consumption of homework formerly eaten by the dog. 
Doug Larson

________________________________

From: ipm-bounces at edulists.com.au on behalf of Roland Gesthuizen
Sent: Sun 11/19/2006 8:21 PM
To: Year 12 Information Technology Processing and Management Teachers'Mailin=
g List
Subject: Re: [Year 12 IPM] music copyright

Sorry Charmaine if my attempt to lighten the debate with some humour may hav=
e confused the issue. My students got a good giggle (and lesson) out of it.

I agree, 'Happy Birthday' is copyright and sits in the same boat as other co=
mmercial artists (ABBA etc). To perform or display this at a public place (w=
here a substantial number of persons outside of a normal circle of a family=
 and its social acquaintances is gathered) can be a breach of copyright. You=
 have no problems singing Happy Birthday to your family at home. However, if=
 you sing this tune in an restaurant or park then you may be infringing copy=
right unless you have worked out a deal in advance with MIPI (RIAA Australia=
n arm). Similarly on the Internet, we should pause to think before publishin=
g a family or school video file containing any portion or rendition of 'Happ=
y Birthday'. 

Of course this is difficult to legislate. Intellectual property is a flawed=
 concept but hey, what are we to do or say about this.. :-)

Regards Roland

PS: We could still sing a royalty-free birthday song (beyond gospel or hymn)=
. Out there is probably a suitable copyleft version that we can all sing wit=
hout fear or prejudice .. any akers? 

On 16/11/06, Charmaine Taylor <tigeroz at alphalink.com.au> wrote: 

	We need to be careful to not put out misinformation about these contentious=
 issues. According to my reading of the Age report, singing, or even recordi=
ng, Happy Birthday is not an offence but posting the recording onto a websit=
e may be an offence.

	Charmaine Taylor
	Sunbury Downs College

	Roland Gesthuizen wrote:

		An Age newspaper report <http://www.theage.com.au/news/phones--pdas/soon-r=
ecordings-will-be-a-crime/2006/11/14/1163266532880.html> has briefly discuss=
edsome of the changes to Australian copyright legislation. Police would be a=
ble to go to a market, find people selling pirated CDs and issue fines on th=
e spot.  Internet Industry Association has stated that these changes have go=
ne too far and activities that could attract fines include playing a radio i=
n the park or even recording a group of students singing a song then sharing=
 it online. It is an interesting issue that can be discussed in the classroo=
m. 

		You need written permission from Time Warner <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki=
/Time_Warner>  to sing Happy Birthday, the copyright will expire in 2030 <ht=
tp://plakboek.livejournal.com/55478.html>  and if I am correct, there will b=
e no fair-use provisions in the legislation as it is currently drafted. Sing=
ing Happy Birthday at a restaurant, a party or any gathering is considered t=
o be a public performance, even humming the tune will become a criminal offe=
nse.

		When you sing Happy Birthday, close all the curtains and darken the room e=
xcept perhaps for the light from a candle. Wear masks and hats to protect yo=
ur identity, perhaps helium to disguise your voice. Making humorous addition=
s and satirical modifications to the lyrics may provide further legal protec=
tion from prosecution. Of course it is best to not take the risk and enforce=
 the singing public domain folk tunes and birthday melodies such as German v=
olksleiders, hymns or gospel <http://ingeb.org/>  in your classrooms. 

		Perhaps it would be best if we all agree kept our mouths firmly shut? 

		Regards Roland

		PS: My saxophone playing isnt great so perhaps nobody would recognise the=
 tune .. 

		On 05/11/06, Jeffrey Lynn <jslynn at optusnet.com.au > wrote: 

			The copyright issue is legally quite clear: you can make one copy of a
			computer program disk (CD or DVD) for backup purposes but it is illegal t=
o
			copy music CDs or DVDs for any purpose. Technically, the copies of CDs I=

			have in my car so I don't damage or lose my originals are quite illegal.=
 As
			I have discussed with my students (and as Mark says), there is no logic t=
o
			this, just law. However, the chances of my being prosecuted for having su=
ch 
			copies are fairly remote - as the copies are not for resale, redistributi=
on,
			or profit, the law is not too interested in wasting time and money
			prosecuting. The real villains they are after are pirates churning out 
			illegal copies for sale and profit. That does not alter the fact that my
			copies ARE illegal!

			Note too that the copyright laws are in the process of being changed and=
 are
			expected to be enacted in 2007.

			Jeff Lynn,
			Yeshivah/Beth Rivkah Colleges

			-----Original Message-----
			From: ipm-bounces at edulists.com.au [mailto: ipm-bounces at edulists.com.au <m=
ailto:ipm-bounces at edulists.com.au> ] On
			Behalf Of Mark Kelly
			Sent: Sunday, 5 November 2006 17:45
			To: Year 12 Information Technology Processing and Management
			Teachers'Mailing List
			Subject: Re: [Year 12 IPM] music copyright 

			Nick Axaris wrote:
			> I was always under the understanding that you can make a copy of a musi=
c
			CD for backup purposes and not to share or sell it.
			> There should be no issue copying a song for the purpose of a presentati=
on 
			as the student is not profiting or sharing that song with anyone else.
			> When the presentation is over then the network manager can delete it fr=
om
			the network.
			> Whilst on the network just ensure that it is only accesible by the 
			student.

			What is legal and what is logical is - as usual - mutually exclusive.

			--
			Mark Kelly
			McKinnon Secondary College

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		-- 
		Roland Gesthuizen - ICT Coordinator - Westall Secondary College 
		http://www.westallsc.vic.edu.au

		"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can chan=
ge the world; indeed it is the only thing that ever has." --Margaret Mead __=
_____________________________________________ 
		http://www.edulists.com.au - FAQ, resources, subscribe, unsubscribe 
		IPM Mailing List kindly supported by 
		http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au - Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority=
 and 
		http://www.vitta.org.au - VITTA Victorian Information Technology Teachers=
 Association Inc

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	http://www.edulists.com.au - FAQ, resources, subscribe, unsubscribe 
	IPM Mailing List kindly supported by 
	http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au - Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority=
 and 
	http://www.vitta.org.au - VITTA Victorian Information Technology Teachers A=
ssociation Inc

-- 
Roland Gesthuizen - ICT Coordinator - Westall Secondary College
http://www.westallsc.vic.edu.au

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change=
 the world; indeed it is the only thing that ever has." --Margaret Mead ____=
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http://www.edulists.com.au - FAQ, resources, subscribe, unsubscribe 
IPM Mailing List kindly supported by 
http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au - Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority a=
nd 
http://www.vitta.org.au - VITTA Victorian Information Technology Teachers As=
sociation Inc

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