Power given to anti-counterfeiting groups raises concerns
A proposed trade pact that is meant to help movie and music producers in their fight against counterfeits is raising concerns amongst privacy experts.
The pact, which was announced last October, does not need US Senate approval. Concerns are being raised regarding the private information that ISP providers would have to give to the movie industry.
From [...]
5 years of RIAA lawsuits have accomplished nothing
Today will be the 5 year anniversary of when the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) began its campaign of filing lawsuits against people who have downloaded songs from file-sharing systems.
However, the effectiveness of that campaign is in doubt.
From Threat Level Blog:
It was five years ago Monday the Recording Industry Association of America began its [...]
7.5 billion songs were swapped on file-sharing networks in 2007
Source: “Thanks, me heartie,” The Economist, July 19, 2008, pg. 74.
Blogger faces up to 5 years in prison for releasing Guns N’ Roses tracks
Kevin Cogill was arrested yesterday by the FBI for copyright violation when he posted unreleased tracks from the upcoming Guns N’ Roses album on his website.
From the LA Times:
A man accused of posting nine previously unreleased songs by the rock band Guns N’ Roses on a website where they could be accessed by the public [...]
Movies better protected against piracy than music
Due to the large files of movies, the piracy of movies are taking a smaller shares of legitimate sales compared to music files.
From Epicenter:
Downloading a pirated movie, for many Americans, is no small feat. Depending on the internet connection, it could take 24 hours to download a two-hour film — which is one reason why [...]
Threat Level blog blasts file-sharing “propoganda”
Wired Magazine blog Threat Level has blasted a pamphlet on file-sharing as “propaganda” and “the bigger crime is this leaflet.”
From Threat Level:
Propaganda is probably too light of a term to describe this piece of propaganda.
We’re referring to an educational comic strip (fat .pdf) on unlawful file sharing of music developed by judges and professors to [...]
$756 a song in settlement with RIAA
A woman is paying $756 a song in a settlement with the RIAA over charges that she downloaded songs off of file-sharing network Kazaa.
From Threat Level:
A Bronx woman is agreeing to pay the Recording Industry Association of America $6,050 to settle allegations she purloined eight tracks on the file sharing network Kazaa.
That’s $756.25 a song [...]
Band accused of leaking own album but blaming pirates
The Wall Street Journal has a report about accusations that rock band Buckcherry leaked its own album to file-sharing sites and then complained about piracy in an attempt to gain publicity.
Form the Wall Street Journal:
While entertainment companies decry filesharing, they nevertheless frequently use it as a tool to market music or gauge the popularity of [...]
Internet providers in UK to send letters to file sharers
The six largest Internet providers in the United Kingdom have agreed to send warning letters to customers who are believed to be illegally downloading and sharing music.
From Reuters:
The music and film industries launched a fight back against online piracy on Thursday, persuading the six biggest Internet providers to send warning letters to those suspected of [...]
28,000 lawsuits filed by RIAA since 2003
Reuters has an in-depth report on how the process in which the RIAA files a lawsuit against filesharers.
From Reuters:
Since 2003, labels have filed more than 28,000 lawsuits against individual file sharers. Only one suit has reached trial. Jammie Thomas, a single mother who was ordered by a federal jury in Minnesota last October to pay [...]
