BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                       



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                              UNFINISHED BUSINESS


          Bill No:  SB 830
          Author:   Wright (D), et al
          Amended:  8/17/10
          Vote:     21

           
           PRIOR VOTES NOT RELEVANT

          SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE  :  7-0, 8/26/10
          AYES:  Leno, Cogdill, Cedillo, Hancock, Huff, Steinberg,  
          Wright

          ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  76-0, 8/23/10 - See last page for vote


           SUBJECT  :    Recording crimes

           SOURCE  :     Author


           DIGEST  :     Assembly Amendments  delete the previous language  
          relating to the horse racing law.  

          This bill now expands the definition of a "recording" for  
          the purposes of prosecution for failing to disclose the  
          origin of a recording when utilizing the recording for  
          financial gain, as specified.  Specifies that "recordings"  
          shall include memory cards, flash drives, hard-drives, or  
          data storage devices.

           ANALYSIS :    Existing law provides that a person is guilty  
          of failure to disclose the origin of a recording or  
          audiovisual work if, for commercial advantage or private  
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          financial gain, he or she advertises, sells, rents,  
          manufactures, or possesses for those purposes, a recording  
          or audiovisual work that does not disclose the name of the  
          manufacturer, author, artist, performer, or producer, as  
          specified. Failure to disclose the origin of a recording or  
          audiovisual work is punishable by imprisonment in a county  
          jail, imprisonment in the state prison, or a fine, or by  
          both imprisonment and fine, as specified, depending on the  
          number of articles of audio recordings or audiovisual works  
          involved, and whether the offense is a first offense, or  
          2nd subsequent offense. Existing law defines "recording"  
          for the purpose of these provisions to mean any tangible  
          medium upon which information or sounds are recorded or  
          otherwise stored, including any phonograph record, disc,  
          tape, audio cassette, wire, film, or other medium on which  
          information or sounds are recorded or stored, but does not  
          include sounds accompanying a motion picture or other  
          visual work. Existing law defines "audiovisual works" as  
          the physical embodiment of works that consist of related  
          images that are intrinsically intended to be shown using  
          machines or devices such as projectors, viewers, or  
          electronic equipment, together with accompanying sounds, if  
          any, regardless of the nature of the material objects such  
          as films or tapes on which the works are embodied.

          This bill expands the definition of "recording" for the  
          purposes of the above provisions to expressly include, but  
          not be limited to, a memory card, flash drive, hard drive,  
          or data storage device.  This bill, for purposes of the  
          definition of "audiovisual works," add discs, memory cards,  
          flash drives, hard drives, or data storage device, or other  
          devices to films and tapes as examples of material objects  
          on which the works my be embodied.  By expanding the scope  
          of an existing crime, this bill mandates a state-mandated  
          local program.

          This bill incorporates changes to Section 653w of the Penal  
          Code proposed by AB 819, contingent on the prior enactment  
          of that bill.

           Estimated Economic Losses to the Greater Los Angeles Area  :   
          According to a February 2007 study published by the Los  
          Angeles Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC), criminal  
          piracy costs businesses in California massive economic  

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          losses.  The study concluded that global piracy  
          disproportionately affects Los Angeles due to the number of  
          entertainment firms located in southern California.  LAEDC  
          estimated that entertainment firms in Los Angeles alone  
          lost an estimated $5.2 billion dollars in 2005.  Those  
          losses were from motion picture production ($2.7 billion),  
          sound recording ($851 million), trademarked clothing ($617  
          million), and software publishing ($355 million).  The  
          study can be found at  
          http://www.laedc.org/reports/consulting/2007_piracy-study.pd 
          f.

          The Los Angeles Police Department's (LAPD) anti-piracy  
          unit, in coordination with the Recording Industry  
          Association of America (RIAA), is aggressively targeting  
          music piracy.  In one instance, a private residence was  
          searched and LAPD seized 22 CD-R burners; 2 computers; 4  
          DVD records; 6,812 alleged counterfeit compact discs; and  
          349 counterfeit DVDs.  A 14-month in-vestigation by the  
          Orange County District Attorney and the RIAA resulted in a  
          two-year sentence for the defendant, from whom 8 CD-R  
          burners and 17,982 completed unauthorized discs were  
          seized.  The Los Angeles High Tech Crimes Task Force raided  
          a CD-pressing facility and seized 17,000 finished discs; 2  
          sets of molds; and 38 burners.  These examples illustrate  
          the widespread nature of this problem.  

          According to RIAA, the trade group that represents the  
          United States recording industry, today's music pirates  
          operate on the Internet, in illegal CD factories, in  
          distribution centers, and on the street.  "Piracy"  
          generally refers to the illegal duplication and  
          distribution of sound recordings.  There are four specific  
          categories of music piracy:  pirate recordings, counterfeit  
          recordings, bootleg recordings, and online piracy.  Though  
          it would appear that record companies and artists are still  
          making money, these impressions are mere fallacies.  Each  
          sale by a pirate represents a lost legitimate sale.  Each  
          year, the industry loses about $4.2 billion to piracy  
          worldwide.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  Yes    
          Local:  Yes


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           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  8/24/10)

          Recording Industry Association of America

           ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT  :    According to the author's office,  
          "SB 830 will clarify existing piracy laws by expanding the  
          term 'recording' to include all newer forms of storage  
          media.  California has a serious problem with intellectual  
          property piracy.   Nearly one-half billion dollars in  
          revenue were lost by the state and local governments due to  
          counterfeited goods, including music and movies.  The  
          state's existing statute to protect against music piracy  
          has not kept pace with latest downloading technologies such  
          as memory cards, flash drives, and data storage devices.   
          SB 830 is intended to plug this loophole in the law.  SB  
          830 is supported by the Recording Industry Association of  
          America.  The bill has no opposition."

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  : 
          AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Bass, Beall, Bill  
            Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bradford,  
            Brownley, Buchanan, Caballero, Charles Calderon, Carter,  
            Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon,  
            DeVore, Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes,  
            Fuller, Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gatto, Gilmore,  
            Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Huber,  
            Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Lieu, Logue, Bonnie  
            Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Miller, Monning, Nava, Nestande,  
            Niello, Nielsen, V. Manuel Perez, Portantino, Ruskin,  
            Salas, Saldana, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Audra  
            Strickland, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres, Torrico, Tran,  
            Villines, Yamada, John A. Perez
          NO VOTE RECORDED: Furutani, Norby, Vacancy, Vacancy


          RJG:do  8/27/10   Senate Floor Analyses 

                         SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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