August 19, 2006
No Patent for Sony
Sony has been denied a patent by United Kingdom inspectors with respect to an invention that permits user data to be exchanged alongside peer-to-peer (P2P) file transfers. An appeal against the decision of the United Kingdom Patent Office was dismissed on the basis that the subject matter was not patentable. Nevertheless, the feature could still form an interesting addition to any legitimate P2P network established by the recording label:
When a P2P user downloads a piece of content from another user's computer, be it a song or a game or a movie, he normally knows nothing about that user -- or where that user obtained the content. Sony's proposal would change that experience. Sony describes a method for attaching a user history to content when it is shared among computers or other devices. When one user downloads a song, he can see who had it last and what he thought about it.
Note: some news sites seem to be reporting this as 'Sony denied a P2P patent', which is clearly inaccurate. The recitals only referred to a method for exchanging reviews and other data as an incidental part of the P2P file-transfer process, and even this claim was rejected.
Posted by Jaani at 9:20 PM | Comments (0)
August 17, 2006
Secrets of the Pirate Bay
Wired is running an interesting story about the popular BitTorrent tracker (frontend) known as The Pirate Bay. According to the article:
Efforts to sink the word's largest BitTorrent tracker backfired into political scandal and spurred even more downloading. But the three guys behind the Pirate Bay are facing a national controversy of their own. Part one of a two-part series by Quinn Norton, reporting from Malmo, Sweden. Plus: Gallery: The Faces of Sweden's Pirate Wars
Posted by Jaani at 9:21 PM | Comments (0)
May 26, 2006
German File-Sharers Charges with Criminal Copyright Infringement
LONDON (Reuters) - German police have filed criminal charges against 3 500 people accused of using the eDonkey file-sharing network to share copyrighted music illegally, the recording industry's trade group said on Tuesday.
The music industry has filed thousands of lawsuits in its fight against online piracy, but criminal prosecutions have been relatively rare. Users could face a maximum penalty of five years in prison if the music files were shared for commercial purposes.
'No one should be surprised that we are stepping up our campaign in this way', said John Kennedy, chairman and chief executive of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. 'Internet piracy has hurt the whole music community in Germany, with legitimate sales falling by a third in just five years.'
Posted by Jaani at 12:06 PM | Comments (0)
May 7, 2006
Bearshare Shut Down by RIAA
Pichu0102 writes "According to WebProNews, Bearshare has been shut down by the RIAA." From the article: " Online file-sharing service BearShare, along with operators Free Peers Inc., is packing it up due to a $30 million settlement with the recording industry. The conditions of the settlement were agreed to by the P2P company to avoid further copyright infringement litigation."Posted by Jaani at 10:51 AM | Comments (0)
March 26, 2006
Contempt of Court Proceedings Underway against Kazaa
The Federal Court of Australia last week gave leave to representatives of the Australian record industry to commence contempt of court proceedings against Sharman License Holdings Pty Ltd, owner of the (formerly) popular file-sharing program Kazaa.
The plaintiffs allege that by failing to comply with the orders of Wilcox J after last year’s trial, Sharman is acting in contempt of court. In finding that Sharman’s program infringed copyright in the plaintiffs’ music, his Honour ordered the unsuccessful defendant to implement a keyword filtering system that would block access to copyright works on the network. The deadline for doing so was 5 December 2005. Sharman instead chose simply to block access to the Kazaa network from within Australia, leaving the rest of the network unfiltered.
Sharman Networks said: “Today’s case was procedural and the judge has confirmed that another court will consider this matter. This clarification by the judge is useful and we look forward to the opportunity to test the record companies’ allegations.”
These latest proceedings are more than likely the result of an aggressive bargaining position being adopted by the plaintiffs in an effort to prevent an appeal against Wilcox J’s decision. With few remaining cash reserves and its primary source of revenue deemed infringement, I would not be surprised if the next legal battle for Sharman was heard in the bankruptcy list.
Posted by Jaani at 3:51 PM | Comments (0)
December 13, 2005
Grokster Goes Down
Grokster has settled with its long-running lawsuit with Metro Goldwyn Meyer by agreeing to take its file-sharing service offline. Like Napster, it seems probable that Grokster will be reincarnated in a holy aura of subscription-based, publisher-ordained legitimacy.
Posted by Jaani at 2:36 PM | Comments (0)
October 27, 2005
Hong Kong Man Convicted for Movie Sharing
A Hong Kong man has been found guilty of copyright infringement for his use of BitTorrent.
Posted by Jaani at 9:50 PM | Comments (0)
Music P2P goes legit
A new, RIAA-approved file-sharing service is launching. For all the hype, it looks like all the headaches of P2P with none of the benefits.Posted by Jaani at 9:48 PM | Comments (0)
October 15, 2005
Swedish Filesharing Test Case
'A Swedish man made history yesterday as the first Swede charged with file sharing. ... Swedish anti-piracy group Antipiratbyra (APB) tipped off the police. They contacted his ISP and used his IP number to track him down.
But there was confusion yesterday when the defendant withdrew an apparent confession that he did download, and then redistribute, the film. Police say he told them he had made the film available using the DC file sharing program. But in court yesterday the 28 year old man denied ever having the film.
Sweden's new copyright laws came into effect 1 July which is adding to the complexity of the case. The trial is seen as a test case for several others around Sweden.
The defendant's lawyer spent some time showing that an IP number alone is not enough to positively identify the man. He also accused the APB of being provocateurs and informers.
The case has been front page news in Sweden where some 800 000 people file share.'
Posted by Jaani at 6:53 PM | Comments (0)
Music Piracy Defendants Fight Back
In the last year -- particularly in the last six months -- a growing number of defendants have refused to settle music industry suits, challenging what they allege are groundless lawsuits filed by the Recording Industry Association of America. Defense attorneys allege that the RIAA is using "scare tactics" to force settlements, intimidating defendants into paying up before they can seek legal help, or dispute the charges. RIAA officials deny using any strong-arm tactics.
Posted by Jaani at 6:42 PM | Comments (0)
October 6, 2005
RIAA Takes Shotgun to Traders
The RIAA's legal campaign against online music trading has misidentified hundreds of traders and relies on bullying to get results, legal experts say. By Bruce Gain.Posted by Jaani at 9:58 PM | Comments (0)
RIAA files 757 more P2P lawsuits
The P2P networks may be fizzling out, but that hasn't stopped the Recording Industry Ass. of America (RIAA) continuing to pursue alleged copyright infringers through the courts.
Posted by Jaani at 9:54 PM | Comments (0)
Disabled woman sues RIAA
Computer snooping claim
Justice can sometimes be poetic: the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), which has sued 14,800 people for using peer-to-peer networks, is itself being sued.…
Posted by Jaani at 9:52 PM | Comments (0)
Fallout from Grokster case closes down eDonkey
Under pressure from the RIAA, the company that distributes the P2P software has decided to take eDonkey to a "closed" environment, effectively shutting down one of the most popular file-trading networks today.Posted by Jaani at 9:49 PM | Comments (0)
September 18, 2005
RIAA Says P2P Encourages Illegal Downloads
One Slashdot reader had this to say about the recent activity in the world of music copyright holders: 'The RIAA is at it again, attacking inconvenient technology because it can be abused. They have sent another round of letters to P2P services, asking them to stop "encouraging users" to illegally distribute copyrighted material. eDonkey, LimeWire, and Kazaa are all on the RIAA's hit list, along with 2Hub, BitTorrent, WinMX and Free Peers, maker of file-swapping software BearShare. One wonders how they intend to attack BitTorrent, which can be and is [primarily?] used in legitimate mass distribution efforts of legal material, such as World of Warcraft patches. Are FTP and /usr/sbin/scp next?'
Posted by Jaani at 12:25 PM | Comments (0)
RIAA Issues Ultimatum: Capitulate or Go the Way of Grokster
'The Recording Industry Association of America ('RIAA') has told seven P2P software companies to get with the programme -- or face the consequences. ... The RIAA hasn't said which P2P networks it sent cease and desist letters to, but the Wall Street Journal yesterday named LimeWire, BearShare and WinMX, and it's not hard to guess who the others might be.
The demands come three months after the US Supreme Court ruled that P2P providers Grokster and StreamCast [could be] responsible for the actions of their users [pending factual findings by a lower court]. If P2P users share content without the permission of the copyright holder [and the software developer actively induced or encouraged that infringement] then they're guilty of copyright infringement and so too are networks that did nothing to stop [and actively encouraged] them, the Supreme Court said [inter alia] in June. ...
The RIAA claimed the Supreme Court judgement had given P2P companies notice "there is a right way and a wrong way to conduct a business", and in the intervening months they have been granted "ample opportunity to do the right thing". It said firms that continue to allow users to share and download illegal copies, and "knowingly operate on the wrong side of that line do so at their own risk".
LimeWire, for one, now asks anyone downloading their software if they intend to infringe copyright, refusing to offer the software to anyone who foolishly checks the 'yes' option. That may appease the RIAA, but we doubt it -- there are plenty of copies of the code out there already, and when we checked this afternoon, still rather a lot of illicit material to grab.'
Posted by Jaani at 12:25 PM | Comments (0)
September 2, 2005
Accused Users Fight RIAA Summons
'First there was the mother, Patricia Santangelo, who has refused to roll-over to RIAA demands to pay their extortion fee because they claim to have identified her IP address as involved in Kazaa file sharing. Now Judge McMahon doesn't seem to be letting the RIAA have it all their way either in this case. Godwin's Law summarises the rebuke of Judge McMahon to the RIAA lawyer now that a court case has been filed. A transcript of the entire court appearance is also available', and includes such interesting exchanges as:And:MS SANTANGELO: ...I no longer have that computer that ... they say the music was downloaded onto, because it had developed ... a lot of major viruses, apparently, and was wiped out and taken by my ex-husband. ... I have five children, so I wasn't real sure how [the downloading] had happened, to be honest.
THE COURT: I have some guesses.
MS SANTANGELO: I realized when I looked at [Exhibit B], the screen name that this Kazaa [user] was under doesn't belong to anyone in my family. ... Apparently, it belongs to a friend of my son, who is now 14.
...
THE COURT: -- I live in perpetual fear that something I don't know my kids are doing is going to come back and bite me in the butt. And the difference between you and me, Ms Santangelo, if it happens to me, it will be in the headlines of the New York Post.
MS SANTANGELO: That's true.
THE COURT: Right. So, anyway, you have my sympathy.
THE COURT: I'm in no hurry to see this case resolved. So far, Mrs Santangelo has raised enough issues, including the use of a screen name or an account name -- not hers, but some other person's -- that suggests that she might have some really interesting defenses to this. And there are defenses that maybe even ought to be litigated. The whole concept of a young person using the parent's computer access is bad enough, but if this name is not hers, she doesn't pay for this account.
MR MASCHIO: They wouldn't have brought the action, your Honor, if they hadn't verified that very carefully.
THE COURT: Well, we'll see, won't we? We'll see.
Posted by Jaani at 11:37 AM | Comments (0)
August 26, 2005
Clerks Rejoice, The MPAA Is on the Prowl Again
‘The Motion Picture Association of America said it filed 286 lawsuits against people around the United States based on information acquired from file-trading sites shut down earlier in the year. Most of those sites were hubs connecting people using the BitTorrent technology, a peer-to-peer application designed for speeding downloads of large files’:
As with previous lawsuits filed by the MPAA and the Recording Industry Association of America, this round of cases is aimed at anonymous “John Does” identified only by their Internet addresses. The defendants’ true identities will be sought through a later court process.
Essentially the MPAA is relying on server logs netted during last year’s Operation Bucaneer to establish wilful infringement. This is problematic. First, BitTorrent websites only offer for download lists of peers (the .torrent file), not the copyrighted works themselves. The lists, being automatically compiled by a computer program, are not subject to copyright, and users who download the .torrent file will not necessarily go on to obtain the full file (or even a substantial portion of it).
Second, even if investigators were able to combine the record of a .torrent file download with an ISP logfile, it’s unlikely that proof could be established to the required degree (balance of probabilities). IP addresses are surprisingly easy to spoof, and such is indeed a common practice amongst filesharers. The computer might not even be under the control of the registered ISP subscriber: so-called ‘zombie’ computers are often used to download files on behalf of third party hackers.
And if you thought the evidentiary case looked thin, the supporting agitprop is even weaker than usual:
“Internet movie thieves be warned: You have no friends in the online community when you are engaging in copyright theft,” MPAA Senior Vice President John Malcom said in a statement.
Google begs to differ.
Posted by Jaani at 11:02 PM | Comments (0)
August 25, 2005
Australian Movie Industry To Target Illegal DVDs, Sue Downloaders
According to The Australian, ‘The movie industry may consider prosecuting internet users who download pirated copies of Hollywood blockbusters, warning it will take pirates to court if consumers “migrate to illegal downloads en masse”.
The Australian Federation against Copyright Theft (‘AFACT’) is already warning that organised crime is using popular peer-to-peer networks and pirate websites to download illegally copied movies and burn them to DVD, selling them in markets.’
The industry is awaiting a Federal Court judgment in the record labels’ civil copyright violation case against Kazaa. The US Supreme Court found in July that peer-to-peer networks Grokster and StreamCast were liable for copyright infringement.
Ms Pecotic said although most movie piracy still involved DVDs, the internet was beginning to play a bigger role as a direct delivery mechanism and as an intermediate delivery mechanism before the content was burned to DVD.
There are two things worth noting about this announcement. First, it seems to mark a shift away from low-level casual piracy towards identifying and preventing large-scale commercial infringement. To the extent that the film industry has begun to realise that its true threat is commercial bootlegging — not casual internet filesharing — this is a positive development.
Second, and far less reassuringly, the blame is still being laid at the foot of peer-to-peer filesharing networks as though they were what enabled commercial piracy to occur. Empirical studies suggest this view to be somewhat misguided: the products of bootlegging are uploaded to filesharing networks, to be sure, but the converse is not true: most commercial bootleg DVDs are made from source videos other than those obtained via the internet — typically leaked from industry insiders, intercepted during transmission or simply recorded during a screening. They would thus continue to be distributed even without a reliable electronic P2P source.
The movie industry was worried that young people did not understand or appreciate copyright issues.
“When you talk about stealing physical property, we were taught as toddlers not to steal from the supermarket,” Ms Pecotic said.
“When you talk about intellectual property, there’s no moral or legal underpinning.”
The movie makers were mainly concerned about people who “make a business model out crime”, particularly rogue ISPs that turn a blind eye to downloaders, she said.
That’s all well and good, but there is a qualitative difference between youthful ignorance of (and perhaps rebellion against) institutional IP structures and organised black-market film piracy. Further, suing casual downloaders isn’t exactly the kind of action that’s going to instill respect for copyright law in the defendants and their friends.
Hopefully this announcement signals the commencement of a more directed campaign to stem the flow of illegal DVDs and pirated audio discs into Australia — not another antagonistic, inflammatory attack directed at genuine consumers and impecunious teenagers.
Posted by Jaani at 10:52 AM | Comments (0)
August 24, 2005
UK ISP Offers Music Downloads Amnesty
'Cory Doctorow reports that a UK ISP called PlayLouder MSP has secured a licence from Sony that allows its customers to legally share any song in the Sony-BMG catalog with other PlayLouder customers: "This is such stupendously good news that I frankly didn't believe it...I spent the day going back and forth with the two [principals] from PlayLouder MSP, Paul Sanders and Paul Hitchman, and based on what they've told me, I'm prepared to say that this is the best thing to happen to the copyfight all year -- maybe all century."
It's pretty astounding. According to Cory, for the cost of regular ISP service, you get:
- The right to share any song in the Sony-BMG catalog
- Even if it's out of print
- In any file-format
- Using any file-sharing software
- At any bitrate'
Posted by Jaani at 2:25 PM | Comments (0)
Sony to launch P2P music swapping network
In one of the most significant digital music announcements of the year, Sony BMG has partnered with British digital music outfit Playlouder MSP to make its music catalog available online. Subscribers will be able to exchange licensed music freely, in any bitrate they want, since a portion of the subscription fee goes to a digital pool which is divided amongst Sony and other artists. Playlouder MSP will supply the broadband connection itself, and attempt to monitor leakages.
Posted by Jaani at 12:12 PM | Comments (0)
August 21, 2005
Film Publisher Offers Free Content, Uses BitTorrent as Marketing Tool
P2P technologies like BitTorrent are most commonly associated with pirated content and copyright infringement. While there is a great deal of legitimate content benefiting from the decentralised distribution network provided by BitTorrent technology, it can't be denied that the vast majority of 'torrents' are infringing copies of works.
Until now, copyright owners have insisted on strict enforcement of their legal rights, refusing to allow unauthorised electronic duplication. However, by outlawing the entire technology, industry groups have not only failed to stem the flow of unauthorised material (if anything, they have fuelled its consumption); they have denied themselves access to its many benefits.
Now one publisher of anime films is adopting a different tactic, using the BitTorrent community's culture of sharing and remixing, and the technology that supports these activities, to promote its works among fans and other viewers:
'BitTorrent has been used extensively in a kind of underground environment up until now', said David Williams, a producer at ADV, in a telephone interview from the company's Houston headquarters. 'There's a large group of people who have it on their systems. Since this core group already exists, we figured why not give them legitimate material to download that would help them learn about some of our products.'
BitTorrent and BitTorrent-like filesharing technologies are presently the only feasible way to stream movies to large numbers of users in real time, so it seems likely that they will be adopted with increasing enthusiasm by copyright-holders. Whether they are able to successfully exploit the ancillary cultural benefits of the medium remains to be seen.
Posted by Jaani at 1:00 PM | Comments (0)
August 15, 2005
CD-Burning More Costly Than P2P: RIAA
'The Recording Industry Association of America ('RIAA') has acknowledged that P2P file-sharing is less of a threat to music sales than bootleg CDs.
The RIAA's chief executive, Mitch Bainwol, last week said music fans acquire almost twice as many songs from illegally duplicated CDs as from unauthorised downloads, Associated Press reports.
Legal downloads accounted for four per cent of music acquisitions, while official CDs accounted for almost 50 per cent of the total. ... Only 16 per cent came from illegal downloads.'
Source: The Register
Some interesting speculation from Ars TechnicaIt seems possible that the RIAA has renewed its anti-CD-R rhetoric in order to lay the groundwork for a campaign to enact a Canadian-style tax on recordable media. The RIAA can argue that they've tried copy protection and that it just doesn't work, so a recordable media tax is necessary to make up for sales lost to CD-R-based 'piracy'.
Posted by Jaani at 11:04 PM | Comments (0)
August 14, 2005
Research into Legal Music Downloads in Australia
Australian lawyer, academic researcher and music industry commentator Alex Malik presents the second of a two-part look at the Australian market for digital downloads. His research has found that while IFPI are spinning the success of authorised downloads, the reality shows that at least in Australia, there are substantial gaps in available repertoire and a heavily protected market controlled by the majors.
Posted by Jaani at 12:32 PM | Comments (0)
August 4, 2005
Senators Grill P2P Providers
Having suffered a recent setback at the hands of the Supreme Court, file-swapping companies face the specter of new federal legislation aimed at reining in porn and piracy. Michael Grebb reports from Washington, DC.Posted by Jaani at 12:23 PM | Comments (0)
June 29, 2005
Perzanowski Comments On Grokster
No one paying attention to Grokster expected the Court to give an unequivocal thumbs up to Sony's substantial non-infringing use test. The question was whether Sony would be supplemented, altered, or discarded. Which, if any, of those possibilities will actually come to fruition is still anybody's guess. Sony's applicability appears to have been definitively limited to refuting imputed intent, but Grokster offers little by way of substantive clarification of the standard.
But one thing is clear. Despite the Court's misleading pronouncements and the flurry of hurried blog punditry, Grokster does not provide for an active inducement test. Instead, the court announced an intent-based test, one that holds developers liable not only for specific actions that encourage end users to infringe copyrights, but also for the "object" of their endeavor.
Posted by Jaani at 12:36 PM | Comments (0)
March 30, 2005
Grokster Appeal News Roundup
Yesterday, oral arguments were presented to the Supreme Court of the United States by the parties in MGM Studios v Grokster. There has been extensive news coverage of the appeal, which is important for a number of reasons — both legal and social. As the analysis begins to trickle in, I’ll post relevant links here:
- Summarising the Court’s reactions to submissions: US judges debate file-sharing, The Age newspaper, Australia
- Providing background about the respondent’s case: Grokster gains ally with deep pockets
- Good summary of the arguments put by both parties: Court conflicted over file-swapping
- First-hand observations and photos: Displaced final call, including a photo of a somewhat-bewildered Jack Valenti
- Comments from an EFF attorney: On the Steps of the Supreme Court
- Heartening analysis of the judicial reaction: Justices Ask the Right Questions in MGM v Grokster; see also Grokster: From the Courthouse Steps
- Detailed summary of submissions by a law student: A Few Notes from the Grokster Argument
- General observations: Evolving superficial thoughts and on-the-ground observations
- An unintended concession in argument: MGM says ripping MP3s is OK
The general consensus is that things went better than expected for the respondents (Grokster Ltd and others), with the Court evincing sensitivity to the effects upon technological innovation of any modifications to the Sony-Betamax standard. The final judgment is expected to be delivered in June 2005, and will — whatever its content — be likely to catalyse some form of legislative response.
Posted by Jaani at 11:53 AM | Comments (0)
March 26, 2005
Closing Arguments Delivered in Universal Music v Sharman License Holdings
With Universal Music due to conclude its case against Sharman Networks next week, users of popular filesharing software ‘Kazaa’ will soon find out whether their much-revered application is permissible in the Australian jurisdiction. Concluding arguments were last week submitted to Wilcox J of the Federal Court of Australia, marking the end to another chapter in the litigation of peer-to-peer technology:
Reporters, law students and observers filled a Sydney courtroom this week to hear the lawyers’ final oral submissions to Justice Murray Wilcox. Closing arguments wrapped up Wednesday, with the predictable rhetoric emanating from both camps. The music industry said Kazaa is a “system” that encourages piracy on an unprecedented scale; Sharman Networks says it can’t be held responsible for the illegal actions of its users, and that its software has legitimate, non-infringing uses.
And what about Apple’s iPod? Making personal copies of CDs onto a portable music device — even one as iconic and ubiquitous as Apple’s — is still an infringing use. Sure, everyone does it, but such transcoding and duplication isn’t (arguably) allowed under Australian copyright law, as this Wired article notes. Does this then make the iPod a ‘system that encourages [infringement] on an unprecedented scale’? One can’t help but wonder whether the same arguments would be made in such a case.
Until the music industry tweaks its business models to suit the peer-to-peer user … it’s never going to stamp out internet piracy. The practice will continue and so will the court cases. The irony is that recording cartels continue to contribute to the phenomenon by allowing a market vacuum to stay in place.
If the Court enters judgment for the plaintiff, the calculation of damages could pose quite a quandary. The effect of their users’ infrginement is far from clear: statistical evidence is fraught with inconsistencies and muddying factors, making accurate data difficult to find. At a basic level, with US record sales up 5.3% in 2004 — a year whose peer-to-peer activity was the highest yet seen — it seems difficult to correlate the alleged infringement with any loss at all.
Regardless of the forthcoming decision, it seems clear that filesharing will continue substantially unchanged. Though popular, Kazaa is now a relatively insignificant force in online data transfer. In the event of a verdict for the plaintiff, it thus seems inevitable that another, more accessible (and as yet unlitigated) alternative will quickly step into fill the void.
Posted by Jaani at 2:27 PM | Comments (0)
March 3, 2005
MGM v Grokster Ltd Amici Curiae Briefs Filed
Inter alios, 17 professors of computer science have made amici submissions to the United States Supreme Court concerning MGM’s forthcoming appeal. The brief likens peer-to-peer network topologies to those underpinning the Internet, and in its technical precision (and, for the large part, apoliticism) brings much needed clarity to a debate frequently clouded by self-interest and moral dogmatism:
First, the United States’ description of the Internet’s design is wrong. P2P networks are not new developments in network design, but rather the design on which the Internet itself is based. … Thus, any liability rule applied to these technologies in general applies in general to the Internet also.
Numerous other submissions were made. Several of the different perspectives by reference to which they defend Grokster’s peer-to-peer software are listed below:
- Creative Commons (P2P the only economic form of distribution)
- Intel Corporation (overrulling Betamax would hamper innovation)
- Internet Law Professors: Fisher, Zittrain and Palfrey (copyright law inappropriate protection)
- Free Software Foundation and New Yorkers for Fair Use (change better left to congress)
- Musical artists (P2P beneficial for music distribution)
- Sharman Networks, makers of Kazaa (inconsistent with international law)
Additional briefs are available on the website of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (‘EFF’). The EFF has volunteered to defend Grokster Ltd in the upcoming appeal made by 28 entertainment companies.
The substance of Grokster’s defence is that because their P2P software is capable of a ‘substantial non-infringing use’ it should — like Sony’s technology in Betamax — be lawful to make and distribute, despite being used by many to infringe copyright. The Court will hear the appeal on 29 March 2005.
Posted by Jaani at 4:25 PM | Comments (0)
February 26, 2005
Hollywood Files New Round of Filesharing Lawsuits
(Reuters) - Hollywood’s major movie studios filed a new round of lawsuits nationwide Thursday against people who trade illegally copied films and TV shows on the Internet.
The civil suits against unnamed ‘John Doe’ defendants seek up to $150 000 per downloaded digital file and come as the film industry prepares for its annual Oscar telecast in Hollywood… The studios claim they lose [USD] $3.5 billion worldwide in annual revenues from sales of illegally copied movies on video and DVD formats in street bazaars and black markets.
‘When rampant online theft occurs, these films become that much harder to finance…we cannot and will not let that happen,’ MPAA Chief Executive Dan Glickman said in a telephone conference call with reporters.
The facts say otherwise. Private filesharing should be the least of the studios’ worries: commercial bootleg and street vendor rings are the real problems, if any:
The pirate CD market is now so big, $4.6bn (£2.86bn), it is ‘of greater value than the legitimate music market of every country in the world, except the USA and Japan’.
Source: Reuters, CNN Money
Ken Fisher, Ars Technica
Mark Ward, BBC News
Posted by Jaani at 9:19 AM | Comments (0)
February 5, 2005
Rest In PC? RIAA Sues Deceased Defendant
Apparently not satisfied with the outcomes to its civil actions against earthbound mortals, the RIAA has taken to suing the dead. In one of the latest batch of lawsuits, the statement of claim names the recently deceased Gertrude Walton as sole defendant. She stands (or, perhaps, rests) accused of sharing over 700 songs owned by member publishers via peer-to-peer networks:
More than a month after Walton was buried in Beckley, a group of record companies named her as the only defendant in a federal lawsuit. They claimed Walton made more than 700 pop, rock and rap songs available for free on the Internet under the screen name “smittenedkitten.” On Thursday, a spokesman for the Recording Industry Association of America acknowledged that Walton was probably not the smittenedkitten it is searching for.
What’s most surprising about this is not that the defendant lacks a computer (after all, the RIAA has accused computer-illiterate grandmothers of sharing copyrighted rap music before) or, indeed, an existence; instead, what I find peculiarly perplexing is that their lawyers continue to rely on automated (and, clearly, inaccurate) detection processes to identify targets; further, they fail to perform even rudimentary background research into their potential targets (eg, whether they’re still alive) — despite their recent pledge to do so.
I suppose one can forgive the occasional slip when several thousand defendants are routinely the subjects of litigation (the clerks in their county must be doing quite handsomly). However, considered in light of the RIAA’s track record in these matters — which, I might add, includes such notable actions as RIAA v Lahara, a 13 year-old student, and RIAA v Ward, a macintosh-using grandmother) — this suit is the final nail in the coffin for the authority of their ‘moral’ campaign against filesharing.
Posted by Jaani at 7:29 PM | Comments (0)
Underground Filesharing Continues: BitTorrent Sites Proliferate Despite Takedown
This is what industry groups like the Recording Industry Association of America (‘RIAA’) are afraid of: exponential and untraceable growth of underground data distribution networks. Analysis suggests that current technologies — in particular, a method of filesharing known as BitTorrent — are indeed capable of large-scale electronic duplication of copyrighted files in relative privacy. Despite last month’s dramatic takedown of leading BitTorrent site Suprnova.org, filesharing is up and content proliferates even more rapidly than before:
many diverse groups of people are embracing BitTorrent, and the number of sites hosting torrent files is growing by the day. This fragmentation makes tracking down central sites difficult, if not impossible, and also shows how easy it is to host a front-end to torrents. Projects like BlogTorrent will only drive this trend more and more mainstream… [S]earch engines like TowerSeek.org will help unite these disparate sources of information, and make things easy to find, regardless of where the files are.
It is thus an interesting side effect of the RIAA’s crusade against private acts of copyright infringement that they have transformed what was essentially a centralised, easily manipulable distribution network (Napster, Kazaa) into what are now many decentralised systems far less susceptible to monitoring or control. Monkey Methods describes the resulting situation as a ‘fragmented ecosystem of thousands of centralised servers.’
Filesharing must increasingly be looking like a hydra to the RIAA: for every litigation they instigate, every cease and desist they deliver, ten more websites and a hundred more users begin in earnest. Filesharing thus looks set to continue in spite (or even because) of their continued efforts to enforce non-digital business practices in intangible cyberspace.
Posted by Jaani at 6:06 PM | Comments (0)
January 30, 2005
RIAA Sues 717 for Unauthorised Distribution
The Recording Industry Association of America (‘RIAA’) has sued a further 717 US-based individuals it claims have been distributing music without permission on peer-to-peer (‘P2P’) networks. Among them are 68 university students.
The latest bout of legal action brings the total number of individuals sued for filesharing to almost 8500. The RIAA last initiated a round of lawsuits in December 2004, targeting 754 alleged copyright infringers.
Source: Tony Smith, The Register
Posted by Jaani at 8:01 PM | Comments (0)
May 5, 2004
The Beginning of the End (of Bad Puns)
In a request filed by six Australian music labels to the Federal Court, access has been granted to documents and computer records of Sharman Networks, including source code and encryption technologies used by the infamous P2P file-sharing application, Kazaa. Universal Music, Festival Mushroom Records, EMI, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music, and BMG Australia successfully applied to the court for an Anton Piller order, the effect of which is to prevent the destruction of what the Court ruled as evidence vital to their ongoing proceedings in the United States.
Though Sharman Networks requested a stay of the applicants' motion until the completion of their United States litigation, this request was explicitly denied by Willcox J, who upheld last week's ruling. Implicit in His Honour's reasoning is the assumption that an Anton Piller order is the only means by which transitory, digitally-stored evidence concerning the Kazaa network's operation could be obtained (at [79]):
The effect of the order is to require Sharman Networks to provide detailed information about the structure and content of the Kazaa network. If the applicants are able to identify a way that Kazaa could potentially exert control over the distribution of copyrighted materials, this could spell an end for Sharman's last defence.
Sharman Networks is expected to appeal the decision early next month.
Posted by Jaani at 12:12 PM | Comments (0)
November 22, 2003
Have You Been iJacked?
Wired brings word of yet another bizarre, technology-inspired urban trend beginning to crop up amongst owners of Apple iPod music devices. Ranking among flash mobbing and playlistism, morning joggers seem to be approaching one another and exchanging headphone jacks (hence the term 'jack swapping') in order to gleen a glimpse of the other person's musical taste. Blogger Tigilinde was first to notice this interesting technological trend, which may promise to be the pickup line for the noughties:
"We listened for about 30 seconds," Crandall said. "No words were exchanged. We nodded and walked off."
Not being a member of either zealous group (namely, recipient of an iPod or morning exerciser - to say the least), I can't say I've ever partaken of this rather peculiar emergent norm. No doubt the practice has the potential to increase the breadth of many people's musical tastes (within reason). I have my doubts about the ability of the age bracket likely to engage in the practice to experience a cultural epiphany after being subjected to the likes of Brahms and Schoenberg, which are frequently heard eminating from my MP3 player in all their lossy glory. Elitism aside, I wonder how many more social crazes will be spurned by Apple products.
Posted by Jaani at 11:53 PM | Comments (0)
September 19, 2003
Nutty Power and the RIAA
Gympie, Queensland has a new 'green' power plant fuelled entirely by the discarded shells of Macadamia nuts, which burn cleaner than other fossil fuels (less CO2 emission). "Mmm... Macamadamia..."
In completely unrelated news, C|Net news has an insightful article examining the validity of the RIAA subpoena process and the potential ramifications of the new bill yesterday introduced into the United States Congress. Further discussion thereupon can be found here. Thanks Slashdot.
Posted by Jaani at 12:16 PM | Comments (0)
September 14, 2003
Lawsuits and Satellites
The latest in the recent spate of RIAA subpoenas seems to have been served to a 12 year-old girl from New York, America. Realising the unwanted publicity this could generate, the RIAA quickly settled with the girl's mother for $2000 (several times less than most suits). The child was allegedly more than 1000 songs using the popular P2P program KaZaA - it sounds like many parents are going to have to have yet another one of "those" discussions with their children. However, unlike safe sex and puberty, this is one issue that many parents simply don't understand.
Funnily enough, several volunteers have stepped up to help her cover the $2000 settlement, with some speculating that she will now reap a handsome profit out of the affair.
So much for deterrence! Other P2P users seem to have similar sentiments, with overall usage of file-sharing networks up by 25% since 1 September. This comes despite the RIAA's new amnesty program (haha, amnesty). I wonder when the RIAA will realise that the only reason file-sharing took a downturn last month was because most American teenagers were on school holidays.
The EEF also has a petition (useless though they may be) up on their site protesting the use of invasive and unconstitutional techniques to combat music piracy. What will those zany lackeys think of next?
Some hunting around over the weekend also revealed several interesting NASA sites containing obcenely high-resolution satellite imagery of earth. These video zooms are also cool (thanks Kashi). A little less inspiring are these images of an unfortunate accident involving a satellite. As one forum-goer put it in a much-overused commercial parody: Cost of Satellite? $50 million. Watching it topple over when you forget to screw it down to the transport vehicle? Priceless!
Posted by Jaani at 11:31 PM | Comments (0)
August 6, 2003
RIAA Ignores the Real Pirates
In an insightful article at BBC, Mark Ward describes the true threat to the music industry: street piracy. According to the article:
Ken from Ars Technica correctly notes that the true definition of a pirate is one who steals for personal gain. And gain these pirates do, especially in comparison to those hapless individuals the RIAA continues to target in its subpoena scaremongering. Street music piracy continues - unimpeded and on unparalleled scale - while teenagers and university students continue to be hounded for trading copyrighted files online.
Not only is the evidence in such prosecutions obtained through dubious means, online piracy is not having the effect upon legitimate music sales that the RIAA claims. In a legal sense, no causal relationship between them can be substantiated.
Despite this, however, the list grows ever larger. Is your name there?
UPDATE: this site has some handy hints about how to avoid attracting the RIAA's attention, should you be a P2P user. Though not foolproof, they should make your IP address less likely to be marked as high priority. International users appear safe for now.
Posted by Jaani at 7:40 PM | Comments (0)
August 1, 2003
The RIAA's First Hurdle
Boston College and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology last week evinced the first signs of opposition to RIAA scaremongering. Over the past 3 months, the Recording Industry Association of America has issued 871 subpoenas demanding information from several major tertiary institutions about the use of file sharing P2P applications on their local area networks.
Previously collected data has been used to serve hefty penalties to persons found sharing copyrighted material. Convicted users could face damages suits of up to $150,000 USD for breaching US copyright law. With 75 new subpoenas being issued daily, this spells big bucks for the RIAA.
However, the constitutional validity of the subpoenas is being questioned by SBC Communications Inc in an action filed on Wednesday.
The suit challenges the RIAA's use of the DMCA to glean information about internet users, claiming the subpoenas were issued from the wrong jurisdiction and requests for information about each user need to be filed separately. The case also raises more fundamental issues about the DMCA's interference with individual liberties:
'The action taken by SBC Internet Services is intended to protect the privacy of our customers,' said SBC spokesman Larry Meyer. 'Misapplication of DMCA subpoena power raises serious constitutional questions that need to be decided by the courts, not by private companies which operate without duty of due diligence or judicial oversight.'
A similar crackdown on online music sharing has recently been attempted in Australia, but through a special task group of the law enforcement authorities. This distinction is important: representatives of private corporations should not be given power which exceeds that granted to public authorities in accordance with federal legislation. This becomes especially important where a citizen's right to privacy is not constitutionally protected by a Bill of Rights.
Predictably, the RIAA's response followed the standard party line:
Hah - lies and propaganda, I tell you! Anyone worth their salt in computing ought to know how to mask their IP address in P2P programs, preventing their being tracked to any particular ISP in the first place; while a user without this knowledge is unlikely to have amassed such a large collection of files of dubious legality as to warrant the RIAA's attention. Indeed, some newer file-sharing applications, such as Kazaa Lite, automatically mask user information in an attempt to thwart remote browsing of shared files by unapproved users. Unless the RIAA conceals their identity, it seems unlikely that Joe Mule will allow 'filecop1324' to access his MP3 collection.
Though SBC's objections may be merely procedural ones, they may prove a sizeable hurdle for the RIAA to overcome. At any rate, a successful outcome for SBC/Verizon would raise the cost of litigating file-sharers significantly, and serve to prolong the days of relatively safe online privacy - which, sadly, seem numbered.
Posted by Jaani at 3:35 PM | Comments (0)
