Nov 18, 2011 12:43
If the SOPA and PROTECT IP bills are passed, every wedding videographer in the country could go to jail and our industry may cease to exist.
This isn't even about sync license issues. We can work around those and get licenses for stupid royalty free music, if absolutely necessary. This is about what the DJ plays as the new married couple are doing their first dance. Say authorities get a hold of it. Say the couple posts it online so their friends and family across the country can see their first dance. Say it's Beyonce's "Halo." Say my watermark is on it. All of this is common practice today. I didn't even actively put a copy of "Halo" onto the timeline -- just recorded what happened at the wedding, like videographers have been doing for over twenty five years.
You know, something like this.
The record companies could send both my couple and myself to prison for five years for doing that.
I think very few of us are willing to take the risk of hanging out in a federal penitentiary for five years because we wanted to make less than minimum wage taping weddings. Because my customers are pretty much done with disc-based media. They want computer files, flash drives, streaming. Can you imagine the wedding video of the future, with no sound at all -- whatsoever? Because the girls getting ready are singing along to their favorite songs on their iPod? Because I can't chance it that I might do time because they are singing?
Just think about that.