Do you watch movies or television shows downloaded from the internet? Do you listen to music that your found on a file sharing network? If so, you may be shocked to discover that you are taking part in an illegal activity known as copyright infringement. Most people have no idea that many of the files available on the internet are not released by the owner of the media but by people who are trying to make money through theft. The availability of popular television shows, current movies, popular songs, and even expensive computer software is hard to stay away from. Why spend money on movies or software, when you can get it for free?
In order to combat copyright infringement, many people who create the movies, television shows, and music that we love have decided to create their own websites to house their programs. These websites are often supported through advertisement and you may have to sit through some ads during your favorite television show but in the end you will have access to free or low cost entertainment without stealing from anyone.
If you love to watch movies and videos, you may be interested in independent movies created under the creative commons license. Revver media (www.revver.com) is a great website that currently has over 7,000 different videos for you to watch. Many of the videos are created by professionals who work full time to create new web videos for people to watch. You can find many different genres of video entertainment at Revver media and with new videos being released daily, you may find yourself spending more time at Revver than you do watching television. On Networks (www.onnetworks.com) is another independent video website that allows you to download videos for free. Many of the shows available through On Networks are short infotainment style shows. For mainstream television and movies, visit Hulu.com (www.hulu.com). Hulu has clips and full episodes of many television shows and movies, however, you are not able to download the shows which means you must watch while connected to the internet.
For people who love to listen to music it can be hard to find legal downloads of music. Several websites have been created for people to listen to music online without stealing the files but what do you do when you want to take the music with you? First, try to listen to bands that are pro-file sharing. It may takes a few minutes, but with a little work you can find out if your favorite bands are pro-filing sharing. Or, find a new favorite band through Unsigned (www.unsigned.com) which provides unsigned music artists a place to post their music and find fans. Artist Server (www.artistserver.com) is another great website that provides pro-file sharing bands a place to distribute their music using the creative commons license and find new fans. If you listen and support pro-file sharing bands, you can help prove to the people who create movies and other forms of entertainment that people can make money even if they share their art for free.
Did you know that besides movies, television shows, and music you can find books to read on the internet? Many classic books are now in the public domain and available on the internet for free. Project Gutenberg (www.gutenberg.org) has spent several years converting classic books that are in the public domain to electronic books that you can download and read. Project Gutenberg even has a downloadable book catalog for you to use if you do not know what book you want to read. For more contemporary reading materials, you may want to check out Manybooks.net (www.manybooks.net). Many authors will release their stories of novels under the creative commons copyright license which allows you to download and read their works for free. If you like a book that is released under creative commons you may want to consider purchasing a copy in order to help support the author and their file sharing beliefs.
There are also many software developers who release their software for free. You can even use Google Docs (www.google.com) to replace your expensive office productivity software suite. If your looking for a free operating system for your computer, consider installing Linux. Ubuntu (www.ubuntu.com) is an easy to use and install form of linux that you can use for free. There are also thousands of software programs available for linux, including office programs and photoshop replacements. To explore many of the software choices available with linux check out www.linuxsoftware.org.
Finally, in order to reduce the chance you are committing copyright infringement, you should consider producing your own works and publishing them. In order to create enough legal media and provide everyone with the media and art forms they desire, we all need to join in and start creating our own art. Even if your not a professional, creating your own media and distributing it under the creative commons license allows others to enjoy what you make and challenges them to make and release their own media. Your not limited to videos or television shows, you can take photos, make music and even write books. Providing everyone with media that does not infringe on copyright keeps us all legal and entertained.
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