p2pnet.net News Special:- Let me preface this with some background.
My name is Bill Evans. I founded the original Boycott-RIAA.com website in 2000. I later sold it and continued to run it for a couple of more years before I left. In that time, I did over 100 radio interviews, appeared on Tech TVs Music wars, attended conferences such as The Future of Music Coalitions Policy Summit, SXSW (South by Southwest).
In addition, I've met with Rick Boucher, his Legislative Aide for Internet Affairs at the time, and came to know people in and out of the business who were as concerned as I was with the state of music affairs, artist rights and consumer rights.
To me one of the highlights was when John Perry Barlow approached me after the Tech TV "Music Wars" special and shook my hand and told me � Keep up the good work�.
I�ve met Hilary Rosen face to face. I�ve met Cary Sherman face to face. I�ve had knock down drag out verbal fights with the RIAA�s �Internet Evangelist� at the time Karen Allen, to the point that it was considered a moment to remember by many in the industry. It was cordial, and humorous. My firsts words to her (after looking at her from head to toe and back) were "You don't look like the devil." She was all of maybe 5'1" tall and maybe weighed 100 lbs. (I'm nearly 6'2" and about 230.
They know who I am. Keep that in mind.
A while back p2pnet ran an article about �CampusDownloading.com� an RIAA propaganda web site. Needless to say the video contained on the website was of full of half truths, innuendo, and misleading statements of fact. The quality of the video on their website was laughable, (they really should have hired a video pirate to rip it).
As I result, I went to the Campus Downloading website and placed an order for the free DVD. The page on which you order the DVD implies its for use on campus. Well, I live in a college town (Virginia Tech) I didn�t represent that the DVD was for use on campus, but for personal use.
"I want to show it to my neighbors," I said.
This week the DVD arrived Priority Mail, along with twoi four-color posters, and a letter on RIAA letterhead. The address label had the return address of the RIAA. In addition to the cost of the DVD, posters, and letter, the postage was $4.05, plus a bubble pack envelope.
The RIAA spent at least $10 getting the Campus Downloading DVD to me, not to mention staff time. It was shipped from Washington, DC, and the letter, from Paige Ralston, is extremely interesting.
It gives me permission to use Campus Downloading DVD in,"the way you see fit, including making however many copies necessary."
It goes on to request that I stream the DVD video from my own site rather than from theirs. That'll save them a few bucks, and it'll also get me doing their work for them for free and paying their broadband costs too ;p
They claim, "If thousands of students log onto the site at once," they could, "experience difficulty in viewing the video". And wouldn't that be a crying shame?
Ironic isn't it? The very thing the RIAA doesn't want you to do with music, is the very thing they're asking you to do ...
... Copy it and share it.
I've included photos of the package to let you see what's in it. And wouldn't it be interesting if everyone ordered a copy of the DVD?
We'd could cost them a fortune.
I urge every student to order a copy.
Be honest, tell them it's for you.
If they run out, they need to get more made.
And the videos do have their uses.
They make very pretty coasters, great targets, and Shoot, you might even want to sell them on ebay as collector items.
And they really do have potential uses in classrooms - as examples of deceptive advertising and propaganda.
Bill Evans - p2pnet
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