RE: [digital-copyright] RE: Amazon streaming video for classroom use?

["Peter B. Hirtle" <pbh6@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

"A Netflix or Amazon or ITunes rental is no different from a "motion picture"
rental paid for at a local video store."

I disagree.  The video store rental (or using a copy we have purchased) is
based on 109 rights.  The streamed movie has license terms associated with it.
It would be quite possible to have a license that says "You have no 110
rights," and you would have to obey it.

To the extent that the license is silent on what you can do under 110, then
Kevin is right: it would be a lawfully made copy.  But if the license forbids
110-type performances, then you can't do it, no matter what the law may say.
(And this is one of the great innovations in the proposed copyright changes in
the UK: namely, users cannot sign away their rights under copyright when they
sign a license.)

The discussion seems to boil down to two issues:
1. Is classroom use a private, non-commercial performance authorized under the
licenses?
2. If not, should we ignore the license terms because Amazon/Netflix is
unlikely to sue us for violating their terms of use and the movie studios, who
are the most likely to take umbrage, have bigger fish to fry?  (And BTW, I
don't think Netflix or Amazon could grant us permission to use this stuff in
their licenses even if they wanted to.  I assume that their licenses with the
studios stipulate that they can only license content for private, in-home
viewing.  That is why people like Swank are selling separately-negotiated
streaming services to universities.)

Peter Hirtle