tagged w/ File Sharing
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Being a citizen journalist is getting really scary, with copyright trolls lurking in the dark.
One of the worst is the wrongly named Righthaven, run by online jackal Steve Gibson.
“I’ve been a political journalist and blogger for over a year”, says Brian Hill (right) from Mayodan, North Carolina, in an email.
Brian 20, is one of Gibson’s latest victims.
He runs USWGO Alternative Newsn (ref: http://uswgo.com/). a non-profit site “where I write my own articles and mirror others articles with links to the source (Sometimes include pictures) to educate people that certain political agendas are going on but that got me sued this time”, he says.
He carried a Denver Post picture of a Transportation Security Administration guy groping — and we do mean groping — a passenger.
The pic makes it look as though the agent is searching for buried treasure.
“A Transportation Security Administration agent performs an enhanced pat down on a commuter at a security area at Denver International Airport in Denver, CO, November 17, 2010″, says the caption, attributing the photo to Craig F. Walker/ The Denver Post.
But neither one is going after Brian, who says he’s “mildly autistic”.
Rather, lowlife Gibson got his hands on the copyright and in one of the most egregious copyright troll cases yet, is suing Brian, who only found out about the suit when he was contacted by a reporter.
“Then I searched up my name and righthaven and found a court docket/filing verifying that this lawsuit against me over the TSA photo is real”, he told me.
Brian has posted the document on scribd. In it, Gibson says he could be “irreparably harmed”, demanding damages and costs.
Meanwhile, “Number of copyright Infringement Lawsuits Filed by Righthaven, as of February 2, 231 says Righthaven Lawsuits, going on:
Estimated Total Money Settlements Righthaven’s Efforts Have Earned to Date: $318,500 (based on 91 cases closed as of January 25, 2011 and an educated guesstimate of an average of $3,500 settled per case)”
Righthaven LLC “is owned 50/50 by two limited liability companies”, says Righthaven Lawsuits, adding >>>
The first is Net Sortie Systems, LLC, which is owned by Las Vegas attorney Steven Gibson (right) – the Nevada attorney who is behind all of the lawsuits filed by Righthaven. The second is SI Content Monitor LLC, which is owned by family members of investment banking billionaire Warren Stephens whose investments include Stephens Media, LLC which owns the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
While Righthaven owes its origins to Stephens Media, Righthaven recently picked up another media company client interested in pursuing the same type of copyright enforcement efforts on its behalf — WEHCO Media (which owns several weekly and daily publications including the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and Chattanooga Times Free Press, but also has a partnership with Stephens Media regarding WEHCO’s Northwest Arkansas publications). News coverage of Righthaven’s new “client” here, here, here, and here.
While no lawsuits have yet been filed by Righthaven on behalf of WEHCO Media, a third media company – Media News Group – is also using Righthaven’s “services” – as reflected by numerous copyright infringement lawsuits that have been filed by Righthaven in the Colorado over material appearing in the Denver Post, which is owned by Media News Group. News coverage of Righthaven’s Colorado “client” can be found here and here (see also Denver Posts’ “Notice to readers about Denver Post copyright protections” on November 14, 2010).
Will Gibson get away with this legal extortion? Or will someone, somewhere, pick up the case for Brian and make sure Gibson gets what he deserves?
Stay tuned.Being a citizen journalist is getting really scary, with copyright trolls lurking in... more
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No java. No flash. You just upload the file(s) you want to share, and you can even share the link while you are uploading. There isn't a lot to go on as to how they plan to monetize, but this site/service is pretty amazing at first, second and third glance, and i thought all my current buddies would like to hear about it!No java. No flash. You just upload the file(s) you want to share, and you can even... more
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Graham Syfert, the lawyer who offered self-help to alleged BitTorrent downloaders of films such as Far Cry and The Hurt Locker, has been sued by the makers of the latter movie. On behalf of Voltage Pictures, the US Copyright Group (USCG) is seeking sanctions against Syfert and demand $5000 for the ‘work’ the self-help forms have caused them. in reponse, Syfert has requested sanctions against the plaintiffs because their filing is “completely insane.”
http://torrentfreak.com/hurt-locker-sue-lawyer-who-helped-bittorrent-defendants-101124/Graham Syfert, the lawyer who offered self-help to alleged BitTorrent downloaders of... more
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A strong coalition of two Dutch artists unions and the local consumer watchdog have submitted a proposal to permanently legalize file-sharing of music and movies. In exchange, the parties call for a levy on MP3-players and other devices that can play and record movies and music. In the future, this has to be changed to a general levy on Internet subscriptions.
http://torrentfreak.com/dutch-artist-unions-call-government-to-legalize-file-sharing-101124/A strong coalition of two Dutch artists unions and the local consumer watchdog have... more
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Limewire, one of the world's biggest file-sharing websites, has been shut down by a US judge after a four-year legal battle.
In a huge victory for the record industry, New York District Judge Kimba Wood issued a permanent injunction, ordering the service to stop supplying its software and to block the sharing of unauthorised files.
The 17-page ruling requires LimeWire to 'disable the searching, downloading, uploading, file trading and/or file distribution functionality, and/or all functionality of the software.'
The decision puts an end to one of the world's biggest services for allowing consumers to share music, movies and TV shows for free over the internet.
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), which filed the copyright complaint against Lime Wire and its founder Mark Gorton in 2007, will now seek damages that could easily top $1billion.
RIAA lawyers told the judge that LimeWire cost the record labels about $500 million a month in lost revenue by helping users swop more than 3 billion songs a month.
They claimed Limewire's software had been downloaded from the pirates' site more than 200 million times, and 98.8 per cent of download requests were for unauthorised files.
They described Limewire's actions as "rampant" copyright infringement on a "massive scale".
LimeWire has said it has more than 50 million monthly users. These users accounted for 58 percent of people who said they downloaded music from a peer-to-peer service in 2009, a survey by NPD Group showed.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1324487/LimeWire-shut-Victory-record-industry-U-S-court-closes-file-sharing-site.html#ixzz13epJ3qiiLimewire, one of the world's biggest file-sharing websites, has been shut down by... more
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BT and TalkTalk are seeking a judicial review of the controversial Digital Economy Act, BBC News has learned.
The two internet service providers want the High Court to clarify the legality of the act before it is implemented.
The act was "rushed through" parliament before the general election, they say.
Both think it had "insufficient scrutiny" and question whether its proposals to curb illegal file-sharing harm "basic rights and freedoms".
The act became law shortly before parliament was dissolved in the so-called wash-up period.
It meant it was subject to a shorter debate than other acts. MPs from all parties, including deputy prime minister Nick Clegg, protested at the time that the complex bill should have been debated for longer.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/10542400.stmBT and TalkTalk are seeking a judicial review of the controversial Digital Economy... more
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The BBC reports on the continued opposition to the Digital Economy Bill by companies like BT and TalkTalk.
Back in August 2009, the website held a story about internet service providers (mainly TalkTalk) criticising the act when it was announced as a proposal by saying "But introducing measures to simply cut people off will not work, he said."-BBC
Now in 2010, TalkTalk and BT are back with critics once again saying cutting people off would not work to stop persistent file sharing "It means we could have huge swathes of customers moving to smaller ISPs to avoid detection."-BBC
While also saying the act was rushed through before the election, resulting in a shorter debate "It meant it was subject to a shorter debate than other acts."-BBC
Since there was little debate on the act, the companies are now going to the High Courts to challenge the legality of the bill cutting off file sharers. It is stated Ofcom plans to start the cut off policy in 2011.
"The current government has the right to repeal any previous legislation and, during the election campaign, deputy prime minister Nick Clegg said that the Digital Economy Act "badly needs to be repealed". But the coalition government told the BBC it had no plans to change it"-BBCThe BBC reports on the continued opposition to the Digital Economy Bill by companies... more
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Do people commit theft when they share unauthorized copies of film and music over the Internet? U.S. Vice President Joe Biden thinks so.
"We used to have a problem in this town saying this," Biden told reporters Thursday at a press conference in Washington, D.C. "But piracy is theft. Clean and simple. It's smash and grab. It ain't no different than smashing a window at Tiffany's and grabbing [merchandise]."
Biden spoke to the media alongside Victoria Espinel, the U.S. intellectual property enforcement coordinator, to introduce the government's strategy on protecting the country's intellectual property.
Espinel issued a report that included more than 33 recommendations, such as cooperating with foreign governments to go after foreign-based pirate sites. Biden and Espinel were scheduled to discuss how to implement the recommendations following the press conference. Through reporters, Espinel issued a warning to those who infringe on U.S. intellectual-property rights.
"We have committed to putting you out of business," she said, adding that copyright owners who are losing money to piracy can rest assure "help is on the way."
Biden and Espinel's comments were welcomed by the large Hollywood studios and recording companies. The entertainment industry has said for years that digital piracy, thanks mostly to the rise of the Internet, is costing them billions of dollars and thousands of jobs every year. Plenty of skeptics have debated the costs of piracy on the entertainment sector but the Obama administration has appeared very sympathetic to IP protection.
"The big picture is that the sands are shifting," said Rick Cotton, NBC Universal's general counsel. "An important political consensus is emerging."
Said Philippe Dauman, CEO of Viacom, parent company of Paramount Pictures and MTV: "For the first time our government is bringing to bear its full powers to the critical mission of protecting intellectual property."
In Espinel's report, called the Joint Strategic Plan on Intellectual Property Enforcement, she recommends ways to protect industries that go far beyond the entertainment industries and content creators. Espinel and Biden said that billions of dollars worth of phony goods are entering the U.S. every year and hurt much more than the nation's economy. Biden said manufacturers of tires, airplane parts, pharmaceutical products, and even Kevlar vests are plagued by counterfeiters.
Biden said that when counterfeit drugs or wheel assemblies for jet aircraft are bought by unwitting Americans, these phony products can prove fatal.
"This is not just about the new 'Robin Hood' movie," Biden said. "It's not just about creative talent...It's about whether a Kevlar [bulletproof] vest we are putting on some guy and whether it works or not."
But Biden and Espinel spent time discussing online piracy and illegal file sharing. Biden suggested that Internet service providers should hop aboard the antipiracy efforts of the film and music sectors. For nearly two years, Hollywood and the major labels have tried to get companies such as AT&T, Comcast, and Time Warner Cable to create policies that penalize chronic copyright offenders.
The vice president also said that the U.S. government is going to step up pressure on foreign governments where pirate Web sites operate.
"We want to make sure that these countries know we want these sites shut down," Biden said. "We are going to shine a light. If these sites are operating openly in a country that is not taking action...we can make it very public and shine a light on rogue actors. It's the government's responsibility to respond."Do people commit theft when they share unauthorized copies of film and music over the... more
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"The Irish Recorded Music Association (Irma) has begun supplying Eircom with "thousands of IP addresses", from which the ISP will initially cross-reference about 50 per week to extract the physical address of identified net pirates."-BBC
The article states the company will start sending out letters to the illegal file sharers, with a follow up phone call or a pop up message from Eircom. They received the addresses with help from a company called Dtecnet, who picked out files sharers away from downloaders.
It also sounds like the three strike rule will be in place, with Eircom suspending internet access from users for a week and a year for further violations.
"The pilot scheme is the conclusion of a long-running dispute between Eircom and Irma. It [Irma] took the ISP [Eircom] to court in January 2009, saying it was not doing enough to protect the intellectual property of its members."-BBC who also state Irma will take other ISPs to court."The Irish Recorded Music Association (Irma) has begun supplying Eircom with... more
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In a decision that could mean sweeping changes to file sharing in the United States, a federal court has found the company that operates file-sharing service LimeWire liable for copyright infringement, according to court records reviewed by CNET.
U.S. District Judge Kimba Wood, for the Southern District of New York, on Tuesday granted summary judgment in favor of the music industry's claims that Lime Group, parent of LimeWire software maker Lime Wire, and founder Mark Gorton committed copyright infringement, engaged in unfair competition, and induced copyright infringement.
"The evidence demonstrates that [Lime Wire] optimized LimeWire's features to ensure that users can download digital recordings, the majority of which are protected by copyright," Wood said in her 59-page decision. "And that [Lime Wire] assisted users in committing infringement."
The court decision could represent the biggest threat to online file sharing in years. According to a survey by the NPD Group, LimeWire users account for 58 percent of the people who said they downloaded music from a peer-to-peer service last year. At CNET's Download.com, the LimeWire software has been downloaded more than 200 million times. In the last week along, the software was downloaded nearly 340,000 times.
Wood's ruling could at the very least mean a shift in the downloading habits of millions. The logical next step by the Recording Industry Association of America, the trade group representing the four largest recording companies, is to get a preliminary injunction and force Lime Wire to cease LimeWire's file-sharing functionality.
LimeWire responded predictably with strong opposition to the judge's decision and said it looks forward to a scheduled June 1 status conference with Wood.
"LimeWire remains committed to developing innovative products and services for the end-user and to working with the entire music industry, including the major labels, to achieve this mission," it said in a statement.
What may spell serious trouble for creators of music and video Web sites in the future is Wood's decision to hold Gorton personally liable. If the ruling stands, it could set a precedent that might dissuade other entrepreneurs from challenging the entertainment sector's copyrights when developing new technology.
The RIAA has said it is entitled to the maximum statutory damages, which is $150,000 for each registered work that was infringed. The number of infringing works they could try to claim is likely in the millions.
The RIAA first filed suit against Lime Group in August 2006 and a month later the company filed a countersuit, claiming the top labels engaged in unfair business practices designed to scare away Lime Wire's users.In a decision that could mean sweeping changes to file sharing in the United States, a... more
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Following pressure from the US Government, Canada is preparing to ram through a revamped copyright bill that will have disastrous consequences for consumers. The Government is hereby ignoring the public consultation held last year, where many Canadians spoke out against harsher copyright legislation.
In 2008, Canadian lawmakers proposed a new anti-piracy bill dubbed C-61. The plans met great opposition from the public and were eventually wiped from the table later that year prior to the federal elections. Last year, the Government decided to consult the public on what they would want from a new copyright bill.
In that consultation the public made it clear that stricter copyright laws are not welcome. However, it seems that this has had very little effect as Canada’s Prime Minister is about to announce a ‘new’, even more draconian law. Michael Geist, prof. E-commerce Law in Ottawa, described the bill as “the most anti-consumer copyright bill in Canadian history.”
http://torrentfreak.com/canada-fast-tracks-draconian-anti-piracy-law-100506/Following pressure from the US Government, Canada is preparing to ram through a... more
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Thanks to new technology and the modern lassiez-faire attitude towards intellectual property, people are bootlegging their entertainment at an unprecedented rate.
Or so the record companies would like you to believe.
The truth is that media piracy has been rampant through all of history... probably since the first guy to smear his feces on the wall in the shape of a buffalo turned around and immediately saw 50 more just like it being smeared on the walls behind him.
Here are five other historical piracy scares that make this one seem even less relevant:
READ MORE HERE:
http://www.cracked.com/article_18513_5-insane-file-sharing-panics-from-before-internet.htmlThanks to new technology and the modern lassiez-faire attitude towards intellectual... more
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Dropbox has revolutionized the way people share and store files in the internet. In this age when people have multiple devices to access the internet, dropbox plays an integral role in syncing the files and data. But Is dropbox secure? Is Dropbox safe? Here is the answer to these questions.Dropbox has revolutionized the way people share and store files in the internet. In... more
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The High Court in Dublin has given the go ahead for the music industry and ISP Eircom to implement a 3 strikes-style regime for suspected file-sharers. The private arrangement between the industry and the ISP had been held up over a legal objection, but today that was waved aside by a judge.
my own personal views is that file sharing is beautiful, as is with all foms of sharing, but when one person (the uploader) risks themselves to give other people a chance to appreciate art in many forms, it makes you question why the government wants to implement these plans, apart from the obvious reason of money and pressure from outside corporations.
http://torrentfreak.com/high-court-gives-go-ahead-to-3-strikes-in-ireland-100416/The High Court in Dublin has given the go ahead for the music industry and ISP Eircom... more
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Last night the UK Government rammed through the controversial Digital Economy Bill after its third reading and just two hours debate. This means that it will later become law, everyone will stop sharing files online and the music and movie industries will net billions in the years to come. Better still, it has the full support of the people.
In a late night session yesterday the Digital Economy Bill was forced through by the Government with the assistance of the Conservative opposition.
Complaints that the Bill is far too important to be passed through the “wash-up” period were ignored and after just two hours of debate in the Commons, it will now almost certainly become law.
The anti-piracy measures in this Bill have been essentially written by the music industry but despite opposition from just about everyone, it was approved by 189 MPs with just 47 against.
Former Cabinet Office minister Tom Watson, who was one of the few who voted against, was clearly upset as he wrote on Twitter: “First time I’ve ever broken the whip in the chamber. I feel physically sick.”
A total of 650 MPs could have been present but only 236 bothered to turn up and many of those that did were still in for criticism.
all together now, lets say a big goodbye to our freedom of internet!
http://torrentfreak.com/digital-economy-bill-passes-file-sharing-end-soon-100608/Last night the UK Government rammed through the controversial Digital Economy Bill... more
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It’s been exactly one year since the introduction of the controversial IPRED anti-piracy legislation in Sweden and it has been a great success for everyone involved. Not only have legitimate online media availability and sales increased, piracy has both increased and decreased, pirates have been left alone and VPN providers are doing a roaring trade.
A year ago today, Sweden introduced its highly controversial IPRED legislation designed to make it easier find and take action against illicit file-sharers.
The entertainment industries, who were hugely in favor of the new law, said it would lead to decreases in illegal file-sharing, boost online availability of media and encourage citizens to spend money legitimately in official online stores.
http://torrentfreak.com/happy-birthday-ipred-the-best-anti-piracy-law-ever-100401/It’s been exactly one year since the introduction of the controversial IPRED... more
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No, it's not what you think: a swash-buckling extra-legal pirate hunter with a musket, a clipper ship and letters of mark stalking the coasts of Somalia. It's about copyright piracy. And it's kind of sinister.
The British Secretary of State is proposing legislation that would give his position the ability to create anti-piracy legislation without Parliamentary debate. The goal is to crack down on copyright infringement in a big way.
Cory Doctorow at Boing-Boing broke the story:
This is as bad as I've ever seen, folks. It's a declaration of war by the entertainment industry and their captured regulators against the principles of free speech, privacy, freedom of assembly, the presumption of innocence, and competition.
This proposal creates the office of Pirate-Finder General, with unlimited power to appoint militias who are above the law, who can pry into every corner of your life, who can disconnect you from your family, job, education and government, who can fine you or put you in jail.
This comes as some see the music industry starting to recover from a hard decade of battling piracy. The Economist wrote last week that though sales across the industry are down a third, the music business is adapting successfully. And moving beyond suing the pants of off random downloaders. Viacom's chief counsel told a group of Yale law students that suing P2P users "felt like terrorism".
Well it certainly seems like the Brits are gearing up for the sort of extralegal powers we're used to over here with our War on Terror. ...But...wait...that's backward...the terrorists are....the lawyers? Ah, somebody'll figure it out.
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After losing its High Court case against several Hollywood movie studios yesterday, Usenet indexing site Newzbin has responded angrily. They say that their defeat was the result of flawed evidence and the unfair legal might of the MPA, and have slammed the studios’ broken business model and monopolistic commercial practices.
Following a case brought by Twentieth Century Fox, Universal, Warner Bros., Paramount, Disney, Columbia Pictures, yesterday Usenet indexer Newzbin lost its High Court case.
Newzbin was found liable for copyright infringement and will later this week discover the terms of an injunction which will forbid it from indexing movies and TV shows to which the above complainants own the copyrights.
“We are very disappointed with the judgment,” said Newzbin in a statement emailed to TorrentFreak. “Regrettably the court has accepted the distorted and flawed evidence that Hollywood presented.”
http://torrentfreak.com/newzbin-slams-movie-studios-after-court-defeat-100330/After losing its High Court case against several Hollywood movie studios yesterday,... more
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