IN FULL VIEW of members of the Irish police force, several multimedia students from Tipperary Institute are illegally recording their CDs onto iPods. They have taken this action as part of podcasting interviews from the floor of the BT Young Scientists' Exhibition. The third level presenters occasionally mash up commercial tracks, using legal samples in their finished podcasts. The work flow is easier when using music shifted to an iPod.
Representatives from An Garda Siochana told the third level students that they would not be pursued for transferring their CD tracks to their iPods. This position is similar to the environment in Australia where millions of Australians who tape TV shows and copy CDs will soon get the right to do it with a clear conscience. By 2007, it will be legal in Australia to record television shows for personal use, and to transfer songs from CDs to MP3 players. Ireland should be able to strike a balance between the digital rights of copyright owners and the interests of users. As it stands, when producing each Irish podcast we break at least one Irish law.
Nick Butterly -- "Video crooks come in from the cold"
