WASHINGTON, June 24 (UPI) -- U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, has introduced a bill intended to discourage marketing of software that allows free music and movie downloading.
The Inducing Infringement of Copyrights Act of 2004 would allow creative artists to sue companies that cash in on encouraging copyright infringement, The Hollywood Reporter said.
"Tragically, some corporations now seem to think that they can legally profit by inducing children to steal," said Hatch, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. "This bipartisan bill would confirm that existing law should allow artists to bring civil actions against parties who intend to induce others to infringe copyrights."
It is already a felony to induce criminal or illegal copyright infringement. Hatch's bill would expose companies to civil penalties for inducing infringement.
"These corporations know better than to break the law themselves, so they profit from infringement by inducing users of their software to do the dirty work of actually breaking the law," he said.
