Here is an update to that story I posted about earlier concerning
negativeland.
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Negativland controversy leads RIAA to amend rules
[ Wed., September 2, 3:01 AM EDT ] Negativland Outcry Leads RIAA To Amend
Pressing Plant Rules In a surprising response to a furor raised by
underground collage band Negativland, the group's fans and its supporters,
the Recording Industry Association of America announced on Tuesday that it
had agreed to amend its CD Plant Guidelines to account for the existence of
"fair use" material on CDs. The decision to amend the plant guidelines was
an about-face for the RIAA, which had previously criticized Negativland for
questioning the original guidelines. "The RIAA has received your e-mails on
sampling and our CD Plant Guidelines -- some thoughtful and persuasive,
others offensive and uninformed," read the press release from RIAA
president and CEO Hilary Rosen that was addressed to "Fans of Negativland."
"Unfortunately, Negativland, and many of you, believe that our CD Plant
Good Business Practices -- formalized earlier this year into specific
guidelines for CD plants to recognize pirated product -- has had the
unintended effect of prejudicing the group's ability to get their album
pressed," the release continued. "As an organization that has worked
tirelessly to protect freedom of expression, we are gravely concerned about
this perception. Our objective in issuing the CD Plant Guidelines has been
to stop piracy, not artistic expression. Accordingly, the RIAA has amended
its CD Plant Guidelines in response to your concerns."
As a result, for the first time in nearly a month, Negativland's co-leader
Mark Hosler had nothing negative to say about the RIAA. "I'm amazed. It's a
really incredible thing," Hosler said Tuesday night of the memo, issued
after the music industry trade organization received an unspecified amount
of e-mail and letters from irate Negativland fans.
"This is really the first time they've acknowledged that 'fair use' is a
gray area in the copyright law," said a giddy Hosler in response to the
RIAA amendment. Negativland have long professed their belief that their
collage-like appropriation of copyright-protected material is covered under
a 'fair use' provision of copyright law that protects their
"transformative" works of art.
"The fact that an organization that represents the major labels is coming
out and saying it's not a black-and-white issue, as far as Negativland is
concerned, is unprecedented," added Hosler.
According to the amended RIAA guidelines, "some recordings presented for
manufacture may contain -- as part of an artist's work -- identifiable
'samples' or small pieces of other artists' well-known songs. In some
instances, this sampling may qualify as 'fair use' under copyright law, and
in other instances, it may constitute copyright infringement. There are no
hard and fast rules in this area and judgments on both 'fair use' and
indemnification must be made on a case-by-case basis."
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[Sn]