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Vol 7 No 1 - Roger Williams University School of Law

Vol 7 No 1 - Roger Williams University School of Law

Vol 7 No 1 - Roger Williams University School of Law

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traffic in unauthorized recordings <strong>of</strong> live musical performances.116Moghadam was convicted <strong>of</strong> violating the statute after he pleadedguilty to knowingly distributing, selling, and trafficking in bootleg(unauthorized) compacts discs featuring live musicalperformances by recording artists including Tori Amos and theBeastie Boys. Moghadam then sought to challenge theconstitutional validity <strong>of</strong> the statute arguing it did not fall withinany <strong>of</strong> the federal legislative powers enumerated in Article I,Section 8, Clause 8 <strong>of</strong> the Constitution.117 The governmentresponded that it was constitutional under either the CopyrightClause or the Commerce Clause.118 The anti-bootlegging statute,which was enacted as a consequence <strong>of</strong> and in implementation <strong>of</strong>the TRIPS agreement provides in 18 U.S.C. section 2319A that:(a) Whoever, without the consent <strong>of</strong> the performer orperformers involved, knowingly and for purposes <strong>of</strong>commercial advantage or private financial gain–(1)fixes the sound or sounds and images <strong>of</strong> a live musicalperformance in a copy or phonorecord, or reproducescopies or phonorecords <strong>of</strong> such a performance from anunauthorized fixation;(2)transmits or otherwise communicates to the public thesounds or sounds and images <strong>of</strong> a live musicalperformance; or(3)distributes or <strong>of</strong>fers to distribute, sells or <strong>of</strong>fers to sell,rents or <strong>of</strong>fers to rent, or traffics in any copy orphonorecord fixed as described in paragraph (1),regardless <strong>of</strong> whether the fixations occurred in the UnitedStates;shall be imprisoned . . . or fined . . . or both . . . .119The Act also contains a similar provision establishing civil liabilityfor the same conduct but omitting the commercial advantage orprivate financial gain requirement.120 There is little legislative116. Moghadam,175 F.3d at 1271.117. Id.118. Id.119. Id. at 1272.120. See 17 U.S.C. § 1101 (1994).

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