Digital Purchases, Digital Rights, And What You Really Get

Digital Purchases, Digital Rights, And What You Really Get

People talk about digital media as if they owned it. "I bought that movie." "I own that album." Money changed hands, so the content should be there whenever you want it, right? The platforms sure make it sound that way when they're taking your payment. But the legal reality behind most digital purchases is far narrower than consumers expect.

Here's the thing: copyright ownership, the actual statutory bundle of exclusive rights under federal law, stays with the studio, the label, the publisher. What you're getting is almost always a contract-based license to access content under the provider's terms of service. Your ability to keep watching or listening depends on the platform staying in business, maintaining the distribution rights, and continuing to recognize your account as authorized. That's a very different animal from ownership.

Three completely different concepts get mashed together under the word "ownership," and that's where all the confusion starts.

Copyright ownership means the exclusive rights spelled out in 17 U.S.C. § 106, reproduction, distribution, and all of that. Owning a copy means you own a specific physical item (such as a disc) as personal property. Licensed access means a platform gave you permission to view or listen under their rules.

When you "purchase" music or movies through the major digital services, you're not getting the exclusive rights. The reproduction right? Still belongs to the rightsholder. Distribution right? Same. What you're getting is defined permission to access content under specified conditions.

Physical Media And Why The Copy Matters

Physical media actually delivers what people think they're buying. When you buy a DVD, Blu-ray, or CD, you own that physical copy as personal property. That matters because of the first sale doctrine in 17 U.S.C. § 109, which limits what the copyright holder can control after they've sold you that particular copy. That's why you can resell a used disc, give it to your kid, or lend it to a friend. Nobody thinks twice about it.

Physical collections have another advantage that's not even technical—they exist outside any account relationship. A shelf full of discs doesn't care about your password, doesn't get affected by fraud flags on your credit card, and doesn't vanish when a platform decides to discontinue a feature. The object is yours. Your ability to use it stays under your control.

Digital Storefront Purchases And The License Structure

Even when the interface says "buy," "own," or "purchase," digital storefront transactions are almost always structured as licenses. Read the terms sometimes. They'll describe your rights as a nonexclusive, limited license for private, noncommercial viewing or listening. They'll restrict transfer and assignment. They'll prohibit copying, modification, or trying to bypass content protection.

This is why your "digital library" isn't the same as a bookshelf of discs. The library is really a set of permissions attached to your user account. The platform treats those permissions as conditional on compliance with the terms, continued account access, and continued availability of the title under whatever upstream licensing deals they've got in place.

Why Digital First Sale Usually Breaks Down

Clients ask me all the time why they can't sell or give away a digital album the same way they could a used CD. The law doesn't treat them the same way, and here's why.

With a physical disc, you hand over the same object. With digital content, there's almost always a new copy created somewhere, i.e., during transmission, on a server, or on the buyer's device. That implicates the reproduction right under 17 U.S.C. § 106, which the first sale doctrine doesn't cover.

The big case here is Capitol Records, LLC v. ReDigi Inc. The Second Circuit held that ReDigi's resale process resulted in unauthorized reproduction, and first sale didn't excuse it. So in practical terms? You can sell your physical library as a collection of items. Your digital library usually isn't lawfully transferable title by title, even though you paid money for each one.

DRM And The Anti-Circumvention Layer

Most major movie and music platforms use DRM. The terms prohibit attempts to disable or bypass it. And federal law adds a second layer through the DMCA's anti-circumvention provisions, which make it illegal to circumvent technological measures that control access to copyrighted works.

This becomes critical when clients talk about wanting permanent access. Any plan that assumes you can strip DRM to create a personal archive is going to run into both contract restrictions and federal law. I get that the motivation is preservation, not piracy. But the risk analysis has to account for reality.

How Digital Libraries Become Unavailable

Digital libraries fail in two main ways.

First, account risk. You lose your credentials. Your payment method expires. A chargeback triggers consequences. There's a family dispute and someone locks you out. Or the platform decides you violated a rule and suspends your access. When everything's tied to the account, losing the account can functionally erase your entire collection.

Second, catalog and licensing risk. Platforms lose rights to distribute titles. They change offerings, retire features that supported downloads, or just remove content when rights change hands. Many platforms explicitly state that even "purchased" content can become unavailable if they lose rights or for other licensing reasons. That's probably the most misunderstood point in all of this—"purchased" often means indefinite viewing subject to platform availability, not permanent possession the way you'd think of physical property.

Your "collection" exists as a feature of your ongoing account relationship, not as something you possess independent of the service.

Provider Shutdown And Product Discontinuation

When the service goes away, your access can go with it. Some companies offer refunds, credits, or migration to a successor platform. Those are business decisions. They're not consumer property rights.

Microsoft's ebook store shutdown in 2019 is often discussed for this reason. Microsoft closed the store, refunded purchases, and removed all the purchased ebooks from customers' libraries. It was ebooks instead of movies or music, but the structural lesson is identical. When access is contract-based and account-based, you don't have much leverage after a shutdown.

Wills, Digital Collections, And New Jersey Law

Estate planning for digital content means separating transferable property from nontransferable licensed access. New Jersey has the Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act, which provides executors and agents with a framework for requesting access to digital assets and account information. It can help a fiduciary step into the user's position for account management and permitted information retrieval. But it doesn't create new property rights beyond what the user had while alive.

If the platform's terms say the library is a personal, nontransferable license, your estate can't convert it into an inheritable ownership interest just by putting it in your will. A realistic goal is usually getting lawful fiduciary access to manage the account, preserve what's actually preservable within the rules, and close accounts without creating headaches for your family.

The operational problem in most estates isn't legal authority, it's practical access. Two-factor authentication, recovery channels, and password managers. That's where things break down.

Clients who want durability for their families are usually better off owning at least some important titles in formats that survive account disruption. Physical discs and lawfully obtained DRM-free files on devices you control are more durable than account-bound libraries that need continued platform authorization.

Consumer Protection Pressure On "Ownership" Language

The confusion gets amplified by point-of-sale language. Words like "buy" and "own" suggest unrestricted ownership. The actual terms describe a license with restrictions. Regulators have started pushing back, including through public guidance explaining that many digital "buys" are really licenses subject to changing terms and upstream licensing risk.

California's AB 2426 reflects this trend. It calls for clearer disclosure when consumers receive a license rather than unrestricted ownership. New Jersey consumers should pay attention. When large jurisdictions demand clearer labeling, platform practices often shift across the entire market.

Why Physical Media Is Having A Moment

The renewed interest in physical media is a rational response to the fragility of account-based access. A physical copy doesn't disappear when a platform loses rights. It doesn't require a login or continued service support. And you can transfer it in ordinary ways that digital licenses prohibit.

Industry data shows the countertrend is concentrated in collectible and premium formats rather than mass-market discs. Vinyl remains a dominant physical music format. Premium 4K UHD Blu-ray has shown real growth even while overall disc sales have declined. From a rights and planning perspective, those consumer choices align with a desire for durability, transferability, and predictable access.

Practical Guidance For Clients Who Want Fewer Surprises

Here's a straightforward way to think about it:

Streaming is a rental service available as long as your subscription is active and the content is offered. Digital store purchases are usually licenses tied to an account, subject to platform control and rights changes. Physical media is ownership of a tangible copy that works independent of any platform.

Risk management usually means mixing formats based on how much a title matters to you. If there are a handful of movies or albums you really care about keeping, you're often better off owning them on disc. If you want long-term music preservation, focus on lawful DRM-free sources and keep backups on devices you control. If family continuity matters, treat digital estate planning as both a drafting project and a systems project—maintain a current inventory, document clear fiduciary authority, and have a plan for authentication and recovery.

Final Thoughts

Digital media transactions rely on ownership language that doesn't match the underlying legal structure. Copyright ownership stays with the rightsholder. You're usually getting a limited license tied to an account, enforced through contract and DRM, dependent on continued platform operations and licensing rights.

Once you understand that structure, you can make clearer decisions about what to buy digitally, what to hold physically, and what planning steps make sense for access and administration in New Jersey.

Contact us today to discuss your business or legal matter. Put our 20+ years of legal experience to work for you.

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For detailed insights and legal assistance on topics discussed in this post, including litigation, contact the Law Offices of Peter J. Lamont at our Bergen County Office. We're here to answer your questions and provide legal advice. Contact us at (201) 904-2211 or email us at  info@pjlesq.com.

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About Peter J. Lamont, Esq.

Peter J. Lamont is a nationally recognized attorney with significant experience in business, contract, litigation, and real estate law. With over two decades of legal practice, he has represented a wide array of businesses, including large international corporations. Peter is known for his practical legal and business advice, prioritizing efficient and cost-effective solutions for his clients.

Peter has an Avvo 10.0 Rating and has been acknowledged as one of America's Most Honored Lawyers since 2011. 201 Magazine and Lawyers of Distinction have also recognized him for being one of the top business and litigation attorneys in New Jersey. His commitment to his clients and the legal community is further evidenced by his active role as a speaker, lecturer, and published author in various legal and business publications.

As the founder of the Law Offices of Peter J. Lamont, Peter brings his Wall Street experience and client-focused approach to New Jersey, offering personalized legal services that align with each client's unique needs and goals​.

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