Relevant book recommendation: Year Zero by Rob Reid.

Aliens listen in on our radio broadcasts, find (and copy) all our music, and only afterwards find out about the US Copyright laws.

u/drdoctorphd · 18 points r/AskScienceFiction

Year Zero by Rob Reid has humans as the universe's best musicians. And the writers of the universe's most devastating copyright laws.

u/KorbenD2263 · 11 points r/WTF

You should read Year Zero.

u/MissingKarma · 7 points r/space

Didn't read the article, but I'm reminded of Year Zero by Rob Reid.
Summary: Aliens realize they're guilty of copyright infringement due to intergalactic law dictating that they're subject to the DMCA while listening to popular Earth music. They now need to hire a copyright lawyer and find a way to pay damages without bankrupting the universe.

u/Nanosauromo · 6 points r/TumblrInAction

Is this it?

u/Soontir_Fel · 5 points r/sciencefiction

Year Zero: A Novel https://www.amazon.com/dp/0345534514/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_wM9ADbY4HECJR

It's very entertaining, it's about aliens downloading all our music and distributing it thoughout the universe only to learn that or copyright laws don't allow that so they now have to destroy earth to cancel it the debt they owe the music industry. Some want to find a solution, so they solicit the help of an Earth lawyer to help them save the world. This has a lot of clever humor on it, and I would categorize it with Hitchhikers Guide.

u/Marzhall · 4 points r/WritingPrompts

"So let me get this right: you have the ability to create whatever you want - gold, jewels, platinum - at any moment, for effectively free -" Jeb paused, then decided to repeat this last bit to emphasize it even more - "effectively free - purely out of the energy from your 'dsyon balls' or whatever they are - and your price of admission is a former American President playing saxophone at the ceremony?"

The reply came back smooth and unconcerned, with the slightest hint of amusement at Jeb's incredulity - the perfect tone to really piss Jeb off. "Yes."

Jeb gripped the handle of his "#1 President" coffee mug until his knuckles went white and the blood pressure alarm started vibrating on his smart watch. "Now listen here, you alien or machine or whatever you are, the American people - and what's more, the people of Earth - are not fools. We know there's no such thing as a free lunch, we've lived and grown up knowing that, it's in our blood, in the blood of our forefathers and our fathers' forefathers, and what's more, we don't tolerate freeloaders. I'm not going to have you sit me through a 5 hour meeting to convince me you're some good Samaritan species so you can make a fool out of me and my country, or worse, enslave us with some fancy clause you forget to mention until the last moment, just to be a world of, of - galactic welfare queens." He slammed his mug on his desk as he spat the last words at his computer screen, splashing cold coffee onto his shirt cuffs.

"And don't think I believe for one minute your baloney about all the Koreans playing WoW being your 'researchers' gathering information on our culture and music because no actual Koreans would play WoW when they have better things in their country - frankly, I find it offensive you'd suggest we'd be foolish enough to believe it and -"

"Jeb, I assure you our intentions -"

"DON'T YOU DARE INTERRUPT ME," boomed Jeb, losing the last bit of patience he had struggled to hold during this ridiculous meeting with this smug, silver, sentient being before him. "I AM THE PRESIDENT OF THE GODDAMN UNITED STATES. AND, AND, and I am NOT, I repeat NOT, going to let you just absorb my country and my planet into your, your, collective or whatever you call it!"

The machine was making a frowny face - pissing Jeb off only more that they would condescend to him so much as to pretend human emotion.

Jeb felt a cool chill run down his back, and decided this discussion was over. "If America and the Earth enters space," he said, voice deadly calm in a manner he had practiced in the oval office mirror for dealing with the Russians, "it will be on America's terms, not yours." The machine mimed slight surprise back at him. "Until then, you'd better leave us the hell alone."

The president cut the connection, and slammed a button on his desk. "Susan, do we still have that supermajority in the Congress?"

"Yes sir, Mister President," came the reply.

"Tell them they're taking the budget out of medicare and slamming it into the defense budget, and pulling out that old Star Wars bill from Reagan and passing it immediately."

"Yes sir, Mister President."

--------------------------

P.S. - If you like this prompt, consider reading Year Zero: a Novel. It's absolutely hilarious, the idea being that humans are about to enter the galactic stage, but so many aliens have pirated human music that the amount of money owed humanity by aliens exceeds the amount of money in the universe. So, the aliens contact a human lawyer, and the following adventure feels very Douglas Adams.

u/draculthemad · 3 points r/worldnews

You laugh, but theres actually a novel about that.
http://www.amazon.com/Year-Zero-Novel-Rob-Reid/dp/0345534514

u/Noy2222 · 3 points r/WritingPrompts

There is a fantastic book about this very subject - https://www.amazon.com/Year-Zero-Novel-Rob-Reid/dp/0345534514

u/BillyBumbler00 · 3 points r/suggestmeabook

Year Zero.

u/miyakohouou · 2 points r/technology

There was a book called year zero that is all about taking this concept to a completely ridiculously absurd conclusion.

u/HappilyMeToday · 2 points r/AskMen

You should read the book Year Zero :)

u/citylims · 2 points r/aliens

You should check out the goofy book Year Zero.

u/Gluesuf · 2 points r/funny

Don't even get me started. We once cause the whole universe to almost go bankrupt, evidently nearly ending it until Nick Carter went ahead and saved the day. -Year Zero

u/gumbulum · 2 points r/space

> They'd probably have access to all sorts of Radio, TV and even internet/telemetry information being leaked into the cosmos by humans.

Yes they have and it is a big copyright problem! Nice little read i can only recommend :)

"The entire cosmos has been hopelessly hooked on American pop songs ever since “Year Zero” (1977 to us), resulting in the biggest copyright violation since the Big Bang and bankrupting the whole universe."

u/stratospaly · 2 points r/audiobooks

The Humans by: Matt Haig. An interesting story told from the point of view of an alien living among us.

I am now out of new content and re-listening to Year Zero by: Rob Reid. This is a "hitchhikers guide" like book about aliens who LOVE our music! It talks about funny subjects like the 1970s, insane copyright laws, the evils of Microsoft, and Lawyers. It is entertaining enough to keep me happy on the commute to work.

u/didyouwoof · 2 points r/booksuggestions

Year Zero: A Novel, by Rob Reid. I particularly recommend listening to the unabridged audio book read by John Hodgman. He's an excellent reader, with great comic timing.

u/docwatts · 2 points r/ifyoulikeblank

Amazon recommended a book to me when I bought RPO off their site. It's called "Year Zero", and while it's not QUITE as engaging as Cline's writing it's a pretty fun premise.

u/natnotnate · 1 point r/whatsthatbook

Could it be Year Zero, by Rob Reid?

>Low-level entertainment lawyer Nick Carter thinks it’s a prank, not an alien encounter, when a redheaded mullah and a curvaceous nun show up at his office. But Frampton and Carly are highly advanced (if bumbling) extraterrestrials. The entire cosmos, they tell him, has been hopelessly hooked on American pop songs ever since “Year Zero” (1977 to us), resulting in the biggest copyright violation since the Big Bang and bankrupting the whole universe.

u/elperroborrachotoo · 1 point r/science

The aliens didn't get around to say "hi" yet, they are all glued to their new-fangled TV screens.

see also Year Zero

u/OddSensation · 1 point r/Showerthoughts

You'll like this book then

u/Fuckyousantorum · 1 point r/Futurology

Here it is...
http://www.amazon.com/Year-Zero-Novel-Rob-Reid/dp/0345534514

u/UnlikelySoccerStar · 1 point r/Christianity

They dig all our music. Source is the book Year Zero.

u/ossej · 1 point r/Random_Acts_Of_Amazon

Annnnd here we go again. I'm doing this with all books, just because.

Allegiant

Berenstain Bears

Calvin and Hobbes

Dune

Edgar Allen Poe collection

Fahrenheit 451

Gulliver's Travels

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

If You Give A Mouse A Cookie

Julie of the Wolves

Kite Runner

Little House on the Prairie

Machine of Death

Neverending Story

Omnitopia Dawn (The book I'm reading now, actually!)

Pilgrim's Progress

Quarter Share (Also available free as a podiobook!)

Room

Snow Crash

[Tell-Tale Brain](http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_9?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&amp;field-keywords=tell-tale brain&sprefix=tell-tale%2Cstripbooks%2C222&rh=i%3Astripbooks%2Ck%3Atell-tale brain&ajr=2)

Uglies

Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Watership Down

Xenocide

Year Zero

Zen and the Art of Knitting