Recording crimes.

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 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 a 2nd or 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 would expand 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 would, for purposes of the definition of "audiovisual works," add discs, memory cards, flash drives, hard drives, or data storage devices, or other devices to films and tapes as examples of material objects on which the works may be embodied. By expanding the scope of an existing crime, this bill would mandate a state-mandated local program. This bill would incorporate changes to Section 653w of the Penal Code proposed by AB 819, contingent on the prior enactment of that bill. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.