Copyright

I was not aware that cases of copyright violation involving more than 10 copies and value over $2,500 could be tried as a felonious offense. That is a pretty horrifying thought...its not hard to surpass that 10 copy limit, and I would imagine that most online pirates or individuals pursuing other means of copyright violation commit more than 10 violations on a regular basis.

I suppose it makes sense from the perspective of the copyright holder or law enforcement. It would be difficult to make a very convincing case arguing that profits are not being lost to holders when copyrights are violated. When someone uses a program such as LimeWire to download music without any form of compensation, they are flat-out stealing music, and it makes sense that record companies should have the capacity to protect themselves from piracy.

At the same time...a felony charge is serious business, and is probably overkill when the offense could be as minor as illegally downloading 10 songs. Other crimes in this category include: murder, aggravated assult, burglary, rape, treason, arson, kidnapping, ect. I do not believe that relatively minor cases of copyright violation really hold much of a candle to rest of the felonies an individual may feel compelled to commit. I agree with the notion that individuals should be held legally accountable for the theft of another's intellectual property, but I feel that the potential punishment should be more fitting to the gravity of the offense.