Archive:Potential Letter

Letter:

Dear _______________,

As you well know, for years the Recording Industry of Association of America (RIAA) has pursued legal action against alleged file-sharers. Many of the targets of these copyright infringement lawsuits have been university students using schools' networks. The legal tactics of the RIAA have come under fire from numerous experts and courts who question the validity of their approaches and claims. As a concerned student in good standing at this university, I am writing to better understad our school's policy regarding RIAA anti-piracy litigation.

In recent months this issue has received increased attention. This spring it became clear that the number of RIAA pre-litigation letters sent to universities was increasing rapidly; the University of Indiana alone reported receiving 80 notices per day (http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/04/riaa-sends-spik.html). This July, the College Opportunity and Affordability Act was passed by Congress, forcing institutions of higher learning to move towards filtering their Internet to appease the major content industries. These developments are reactions to the common misconception that college campuses are hotbeds of copyright infringment, even though the Motion Picture Association of America admitted that this was false earlier this year (http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080122/18164639.shtml).

According to recent reports, many university officials are upset because the RIAA is placing an "undue burden" on schools whose mission is not to support content creators, but to educate (http://chronicle.com/free/v54/i49/49a00104.htm). This is very worrisome to myself and other students and parents. What is __________'s position? To what extent does your office place the extension of RIAA and MPAA influence over the interests of the student body? Specifically, as a student, I am curious regarding the following questions:

1. To the best of my knowledge, an ISP such as _< >_ need not retain IP logs. What is our school's policy on retention? A number of universities have shortened the retention of network access records so that the school can honestly inform the RIAA that they are unable to assist with the requests. Has your office considered such a move to limit the burden placed by the pre-litigation letters? 2. A number of schools, including the University of Kansas and Wisconsin have stopped forwarding RIAA pre-litigation letters to students. As they are not supbeonas, ISPs do not have a legal duty to pass them on. Further, concerns about complications regarding the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act exist. Does _< >_ currently have a policy of forwarding non-binding RIAA letters? If so, why? 3. Finally, increasing numbers of schools are challenging RIAA subpeonas on legal grounds. The University of Oregon has done so to much praise. To stop the onslaugt of RIAA action, has your office considered doing so?

As this important issue to both administration and students continues to develop, I appreciate your assistance in understanding school policy. I feel it is essential to have an open dialogue about the role of outside lobbying organizations influencing the important mission and goal of _< >_. I look forward to your response and can be reached for further conversation through email or phone.

Regards

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