No Excuses for pirating music on campus

The new Ruckus service now available on campus at no charge is designed to complement the University’s ongoing efforts to educate students about the importance of responsible computer use and the dangers of pirating songs and other material.

The “No Excuses” campaign launched last year has included the distribution of magnets, posters and T-shirts reminding students about the consequences of illegally downloading copyrighted materials. Pirating music and movies, for example, results in a referral to the UD judicial system, no computer access for 30 days and a mandatory computer cleaning costing $70. Outside the University, fines imposed by courts for willful pirating can amount to $150,000 or more.

“While the penalties can be quite severe, the University also is committed to making students aware of legal options for downloading and sharing music, movies and other digital media,” according to a UD web site, [www.udel.edu/legaltunes/]. The site offers information about Ruckus and other resources for enjoying digital media legally at either no charge or at a reasonable cost.

More details about Ruckus and how to use that service are available at [http://www.udel.edu/legaltunes/ruckus].

Another resource to educate students about violations of copyright law, which encompasses songs, movies, software and other protected works, can be found on the web site [www.udel.edu/security/copyright_abuse.htm]. The site includes links to information about the University’s policies on responsible computing.