ABSTRACT
The purpose of copyright laws is to ensure that the owners of materials are protected from theft and misuse. Twenty years ago copyright law was a subject of interest to a fairly limited number of people whose interests were involved because of their possession and use of print materials. The advent of digital technology has moved the issue into the homes, dorm rooms, and offices of thousands of people. Today the Internet has provided a path for the dissemination of digital copies of sound files, movies, TV shows, images, and other creations in addition to print. It has also made it easy and convenient to copy and share these files for free, a development which Hollywood executives and other distributors say is costing them millions of dollars in lost revenues.
