Internet is full of videos and music. For example, watch fun videos on YouTube and listen to music via Spotify. You can save these media files on the PC with handy utilities. But is that really possible?
Unclear rules
Many people download music and videos. They do this to play these media files, for example, on their own stereo system or television. There is a lot of uncertainty about what is and is not allowed. It’s high time to take a closer look at the download rules.
Copyright
We can be brief about the legislation surrounding downloading: music and videos that fall under copyright may not be downloaded without the permission of the rightholder(s). Almost all popular films, series and music are copyrighted. But you may also not officially save an amateur video on YouTube for your own use. The copyright rests with YouTube and the original creator. You must therefore ask permission first. Copyright expires seventy years after the death of the original creator.
Illegal Sources
Many people prefer not to pay for films, series and music. They therefore illegally download these media files from a website or download network. Bittorrent and newsgroups (or usenet) are the best known download networks. Have you ever heard of the controversial programs Popcorn Time or Spotnet? It contains numerous illegal media files. Although illegal downloading is prohibited, many people do it secretly as well.
Fines?
Hundreds of thousands of Dutch people download illegally every day. An important reason for this is that no fines have yet been handed out in our country. There is more or less a tolerance policy. Stichting Brein is a copyright organization that tries to combat illegal downloading. For the time being, this foundation only tackles the distributors of illegal media files. Think of websites that illegally publish videos and music. Nevertheless, there is a chance that film studios will file claims against individual downloaders in the future. This is already happening in Germany, for example. So be careful.
Legal Resources
Fortunately, there are also plenty of websites where you can watch and listen to music and videos legally. You pay an amount, part of which goes to the rightholder(s) and part to the relevant web service. For films and series you can, for example, visit Netflix or Video country. You pay a fixed monthly rate, which gives you unlimited access to an interesting media library. You can buy loose films Pathé Home at. A popular source for music is Spotify. Through The Content Map view an overview of all legal music and video services.
Download or stream?
With the above web services you can watch movies or listen to music directly. Instead of downloading, people therefore also talk about streaming. You don’t have to wait for the media file to download completely, you can start watching or listening right away. Even in the case of streaming, however, you (temporarily) download media files to the PC. So, downloading and streaming are technically the same thing. The only difference is that a copy is always left on the PC when you download it.
Social networks
On social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, videos are regularly posted, for example music clips by artists. Can you just download it for your own use? The answer to this is: no. The rights are in the hands of the artist and the website in question on which the video is published. Although you can view the video for free on YouTube, Facebook or Twitter, you may not keep an unsolicited copy on your PC. With the help of special utilities, there are still many people who save these videos for their own use. Although the chance of problems is currently very small, this is officially not allowed.