American Citizen Detained At Border Due To Drawing Of An SUV - Techdirt, 10/9/08

American Citizen Detained At Border Due To Drawing Of An SUV:

"If you want to understand why we're so troubled by the ACTA treaty that many nations are working on in secret, we just need to look at a story highlighted recently at Boing Boing about an American woman who was detained for a while at the US-Canadian border because she had a drawing of an SUV. The customs officials accused her of being an industrial spy and copyright infringer. In actuality, she's a professor and artist, who was doing an art project involving an SUV."
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20081008/1618002497.shtml

Dear Bands: No Matter How Much You Dislike John McCain, He Can Most Likely Use Your Song - Techdirt, 10/9/08

Dear Bands: No Matter How Much You Dislike John McCain, He Can Most Likely Use Your Song:
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20081009/0139482501.shtml

Library Copyright Alliance

Library Copyright Alliance: Homepage statement:

"The Library Copyright Alliance (LCA) consists of five major library associations - the American Association of Law Libraries, the American Library Association, the Association of Research Libraries, the Medical Library Association, and the Special Libraries Association. These five associations collectively represent over 80,000 information professionals and thousands of libraries of all kinds throughout the United States. These five associations cooperate in the LCA to address copyright issues that affect libraries and their patrons. For over ten years now, our five library associations have worked together as a coalition.

The purpose of the LCA is to work toward a unified voice and common strategy for the library community in responding to and developing proposals to amend national and international copyright law and policy for the digital environment. The LCA's mission is to foster global access and fair use of information for creativity, research, and education.

Copyright and related intellectual property laws have important and substantial effects on the nature and extent of information services libraries provide to their users. Intellectual property laws are currently undergoing major changes in response to the growth in the use of digital formats for works.

The LCA is principally concerned that these changes do not harm, but rather enhance, the ability of libraries and information professionals to serve the needs of people to access, use, and preserve digital information. Our concern in [sic] heightened because of emerging technology applied to copyrighted works that is intended to prohibit access, use and preservation of digital information."
http://www.librarycopyrightalliance.org/

Yoko Ono, EMI drop suits over Lennon song - Reuters, 10/8/08

Yoko Ono, EMI drop suits over Lennon song:

John Lennon's widow Yoko Ono and EMI Records, the world's fourth largest music company, dropped copyright infringement lawsuits against the makers of a documentary that used the portion of the song "Imagine" without permission...

"We think it was clear from the beginning that our clients had every right to use the 'Imagine' clip as they did, and we're happy we've vindicated that right," Anthony Falzone, a Stanford law professor and lead counsel for Premise in the case said in a statement.
The documentary looks at alleged discrimination against scientists and teachers who support so-called intelligent design as an alternative to Darwin's theory of evolution.
In his blog, Falzone said the song won't appear in the DVD version of the documentary as the move came too late."
http://www.reuters.com/article/peopleNews/idUSTRE4971QH20081008

Judge: Copyright Owners Must Consider 'Fair Use' - PCMag.com, 8/21/08

Judge: Copyright Owners Must Consider 'Fair Use':

"A case involving the YouTube "dancing baby" video will continue after a California judge ruled that content owners must consider 'fair use' before sending Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) takedown notices...

At issue is a 2007 home video Stephanie Lenz took of her young children dancing in the family's kitchen to Prince's "Let's Go Crazy." Lenz posted the 29-second video to YouTube on February 8 with the title "Let's Go Crazy #1."
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2328578,00.asp

Commerce Dept Cites Bogus Stats, Chamber Of Commerce Uses Them To Ask Bush To Accept Copyright Czar - Techdirt, 10/6/08

Commerce Dept Cites Bogus Stats, Chamber Of Commerce Uses Them To Ask Bush To Accept Copyright Czar:

"In urging President Bush to sign into law the ProIP bill, which would give him a copyright czar (something the Justice Department had said it it doesn't want), the US Chamber of Commerce is claiming that 750,000 American jobs have been lost to piracy. Yet, it doesn't cite where that number comes from."
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20081003/1946432453.shtml

Judge's Top Secret Decision Blocks Sale of DVD-Copying Software - Wired.com, 10/6/08

Judge's Top Secret Decision Blocks Sale of DVD-Copying Software:

"U.S. District Judge Marilyn Hall Patel, who previously presided over the original Napster litigation, issued the tentative decision late Friday, the sources said...

The MPAA, in seeking to block RealDVD sales, claims (.pdf) the software is illegal and a violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The group says the software illegally circumvents technology designed to keep DVDs from being copied. "
http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/10/judges-top-secr.html

Judge temporarily halts sales of RealDVD in wake of lawsuit - ars technica, 10/5/08

Judge temporarily halts sales of RealDVD in wake of lawsuit:

"Real has been ordered to temporarily suspend distribution of its new DVD ripping and archiving product, RealDVD, thanks to a lawsuit filed by the MPAA claiming that it facilitates copyright infringement...

From the moment Real first announced RealDVD, the company was aware that there would be legal questions about the product, but seemed to think that everything would be fine since the company said it had "licensed the DVD technology for a legal right to play back DVD content."...

"RealNetworks' RealDVD should be called StealDVD," MPAA executive vice president and general counsel Greg Goeckner remarked about the product."
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081005-judge-temporarily-halts-sale-of-realdvd-in-wake-of-lawsuit.html

Musicians Realize They Need Their Own Lobbying Group - Techdirt, 10/6/08

Musicians Realize They Need Their Own Lobbying Group:

"It's almost amazing it's taken this long, but a bunch of musicians, including Radiohead, are now forming their own lobbying/bargaining group, called the Featured Artists' Coalition. One of the goals, actually, is to put pressure on the record labels to allow the musicians to retain the copyright on their music, rather than handing it over to the labels...
Though, my fear is that this new group really just promotes more of the same, and doesn't focus on new business model opportunities, but again looks for ways to "protect" rather than to innovate."
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20081005/2310512458.shtml

RIAA v. The People: Five Years Later - Electronic Frontier Foundation, September 2008

RIAA v. The People: Five Years Later:

"On September 8, 2003, the recording industry sued 261 American music fans for sharing songs on peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing networks, kicking off an unprecedented legal campaign against the people that should be the recording industry’s best customers: music fans.1 Five years later, the recording industry has filed, settled, or threatened legal actions against at least 30,000 individuals.2 These individuals have included children, grandparents, unemployed single mothers, college professors—a random selection from the millions of Americans who have used P2P networks. And there’s no end in sight; new lawsuits are filed monthly, and now they are supplemented by a flood of "pre-litigation" settlement letters designed to extract settlements without any need to enter a courtroom.3

But suing music fans has proven to be an ineffective response to unauthorized P2P file-sharing. Downloading from P2P networks is more popular than ever, despite the widespread public awareness of lawsuits.4 And the lawsuit campaign has not resulted in any royalties to artists. One thing has become clear: suing music fans is no answer to the P2P dilemma."
http://www.eff.org/wp/riaa-v-people-years-later

British pop stars form group to demand more power - Yahoo.com, 10/4/08

British pop stars form group to demand more power:

"Radiohead, Robbie Williams and Kaiser Chiefs are among more than 60 founding members of the Featured Artists' Coalition.
The group says it wants musicians rather than record labels to retain control over the rights to their music. It says new technology is rapidly changing the music industry, and artists are often left out when their songs are distributed over the Internet or mobile phone networks.

"It is time for artists to have a strong collective voice to stand up for their interests," said Brian Message, co-manager of Radiohead and the singer Kate Nash. "The digital landscape is changing fast and new deals are being struck all the time, but all too often without reference to the people who actually make the music."...

Musicians are increasingly turning to the Internet — and sometimes bypassing traditional record labels — to distribute their music. "
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081004/ap_en_mu/eu_britain_musicians__group

Fiction or Fiction: 750,000 American Jobs Lost to IP Piracy - Wired.com, 10/3/08

Fiction or Fiction: 750,000 American Jobs Lost to IP Piracy:
"Declaring that 750,000 Americans are out of work because of intellectual property piracy, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is urging President Bush to sign legislation creating a cabinet-level copyright czar to oversee expanded IP enforcement efforts.
Those are eye-popping numbers, equaling 8 percent of the official number of 9.4 million unemployed Americans.
But the origin of that 750,000 number -- which was included Thursday in a Chamber of Commerce lobbying letter (.pdf) to the president -- is a mystery."
http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/10/fiction-or-fict.html

Canadian election Copyright Pledge gains steam - Boing.Boing.net, 10/2/08

Canadian election Copyright Pledge gains steam:
"...The pledge again: Will you commit to a balanced approach to copyright reform that reflects the views of all Canadians by pledging:
1. To respect the rights of creators and consumers.
2. Not to support any copyright bill that undermines or weakens the Copyright Act’s users rights.
3. To fully consult with Canadians before introducing any copyright reform bill and to conduct inclusive, national hearings on any tabled bill."
http://www.boingboing.net/2008/10/02/canadian-election-co.html

First Royalty Rates Set for Digital Music - New York Times, 10/3/08

First Royalty Rates Set for Digital Music:
"In a decision closely watched by the music industry, a panel of federal judges who determine royalty rates for recordings ruled on Thursday to renew the current royalty rate for CDs and other physical recordings, while setting rates for the first time for downloads, ring tones and other services.
The ruling by the Copyright Royalty Board — a panel of three judges appointed by the Librarian of Congress — applied strictly to mechanical royalties, which are paid to the songwriters and publishers of music, not the performers...
Some in the industry warned that the measures might not be enough to stem the losses suffered since the rise of illegal file-sharing a decade ago. Jonathan Feinstein, a music lawyer at the Krasilovsky & Gross firm in New York, said the ruling introduced needed flexibility and certainty.
“Whether these developments will be sufficient to return the music industry to health is not clear,” Mr. Feinstein said."
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/03/business/03royalty.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=copyright&st=cse&oref=slogin

Even Senators Who Want Stronger Copyright Laws Are Worried About ACTA - Techdirt, 10/3/08

Even Senators Who Want Stronger Copyright Laws Are Worried About ACTA:
from the as-they-should-be dept:
"We've been wondering for a while now about why the ACTA treaty is being negotiated in such secrecy -- since the treaty will almost certainly greatly expand copyright laws around the world, without any real judicial approval. So it's good to see our concerns are echoed even by politicians who have long supported Hollywood's efforts to strengthen copyright law."
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20081003/0029142439.shtml

Key senators oppose DRM, ISP filtering in secret ACTA treaty - ars technica, 10/3/08

Key senators oppose DRM, ISP filtering in secret ACTA treaty:
"Most of the concerns are about the limits ACTA could put on "Congress's ability to make constructive policy changes in the future." But the concerns are compounded by "the lack of transparency inherent in trade negotiations" and the "speed with which the process is moving.""
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081003-key-senators-oppose-drm-isp-filtering-in-secret-acta-treaty.html

Free Our Libraries, Cry University Presidents - Chronicle of Higher Education, 10/2/08

Free Our Libraries, Cry University Presidents:

"At the Universal Access Digital Library Summit, held on September 24 and 25 at the Boston Public Library, Mark Huddleston, president of the University of New Hampshire, Peter Nicholls, provost of the University of Connecticut, and Jack Wilson, president of the University of Massachusetts, called for new approaches to the digitization of library collections that will allow access for all. The presidents urged libraries to halt what they described as an assault on the public’s right to knowledge, done in the name of copyright."
http://chronicle.com/wiredcampus/article/3362/free-our-libraries-cry-university-presidents?utm_source=at&utm_medium=en

Why The Online Music Industry Should Move To a Rev-Share Model - Washington Post, 10/1/08

Why The Online Music Industry Should Move To a Rev-Share Model:
"Moving to a revenue-sharing model makes a lot more economic sense. That way digital music sales has more breathing room to establish itself, and the artists will be able to grow with the industry. Eight percent of a bigger pie is better than nine percent of a smaller one. Rather than focus on how much each publisher gets per track, the Copyright Royalty Board should try to maximize the total amount of fees that publishers will get. A rev-share model is the way to go."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/01/AR2008100101433.html?sub=AR

Royalty rate stays same for iTunes, other download services - ars technica.com, 10/2/08

Royalty rate stays same for iTunes, other download services:
"The Copyright Royalty Board has handed Apple and other online music store operators a big victory, as it has decided to keep the royalty rate the same for physical media and "permanent" (nonsubscription) music downloads. "
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081002-royalty-rate-stays-same-for-itunes-other-download-services.html

Apple Threatens iTunes Shutdown over Copyright Royalty Dispute - Wired.com, 10/01/08

Apple Threatens iTunes Shutdown over Copyright Royalty Dispute:
"Apple has threatened to shut down the iTunes music store if an obscure three-person board appointed by the Librarian of Congress increase the royalties paid to publishers and songwriters by six cents per song.
The Copyright Royalty Board is scheduled to hand down its decision on these rates by Thursday."
http://blog.wired.com/music/2008/10/thursdays-copyr.html

Judge forces U of Oregon to cough up student data to RIAA - ars technica, 9/30/08

Judge forces U of Oregon to cough up student data to RIAA:
"A recent court ruling shows the difficulty that colleges caught up in the RIAA's war on student P2P users are facing. Late last week, Judge Michael R. Hogan quashed the RIAA's subpoena seeking identifying information on 17 University of Oregon students, but gave the labels another shot at getting the names of the students whom they believe were using P2P networks for copyright infringement."
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080930-judge-forces-u-of-oregon-to-cough-up-student-data-to-riaa.html

House Lets Orphan Works Legislation Die; Tons Of Content Remains Locked Up - Techdirt, 10/1/08

House Lets Orphan Works Legislation Die; Tons Of Content Remains Locked Up:
"An orphan works bill makes a tremendous amount of sense. Unfortunately, some content creators whipped up supporters into a frenzy, at times by lying about what the bill actually included, leading to a push to block the legislation. Those folks should be happy: while the Senate did pass the legislation, the House is letting it die, at least until after the election this November."
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080930/1946332421.shtml

Tech-Policy Positions of McCain & Obama - Washington Post, 9/26/08

Re-Computing Your Presidential Choices, Washington Post's Rob Pegoraro:
"Both Sens. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and John McCain (R-Az.) provide lengthy position papers on their Web sites. Let's dig through McCain's first, then Obama's. But let's also set aside verbiage covering broader economic topics, such as upgrading the educational system or reforming research-and-development tax credits, to focus on each candidate's stances on five key consumer-tech topics: broadband availability, "net neutrality," copyright policy, the patent system and electronic privacy...

McCain's roughly 2,700-word statement doesn't get to any of those issues until about halfway down the page. There, we have a statement that might not exactly thrill the folks at the RIAA and the MPAA:

Protecting intellectual property creates the incentives for invention and investment in commercial innovations. Yet too much protection can stifle the proliferation of important ideas and impair legitimate commerce in new products to the detriment of our entire economy.

But there's little substance following it, aside from the goals of hiring more patent examiners and setting up a faster mediation process to resolve patent disputes...

On intellectual-property policies, Obama "believes we need to update and reform our copyright and patent systems to promote civic discourse, innovation and investment while ensuring that intellectual property owners are fairly treated." But how? I was looking for more info on that this spring and I still am now. (For what it's worth, the Copyright Alliance, a group advocating stronger copyright enforcement, seems slightly nervous about Obama's views in this blog post.)
Obama, like McCain, wants to hire more patent examiners but, in addition, endorses "opening up the patent process to citizen review."
People who read Obama's tech-policy statement this spring may notice that the current version is shorter and less detailed, but it links to a roughly 5,200-word PDF that fills in some of those blanks. "
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/fasterforward/2008/09/re-computing_your_presidential.html

Hollywood aims to block RealNetworks' DVD software - Washington Post, 9/30/08

Hollywood aims to block RealNetworks' DVD software:
"Hollywood's six major movie studios on Tuesday sued RealNetworks Inc. to prevent it from distributing DVD copying software that they said would allow consumers to "rent, rip and return" movies or even copy friends' DVD collections outright...
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, alleges RealNetworks' RealDVD program, which launched Tuesday, illegally bypasses the copyright protection built into DVDs...
The software locks the copy to the hard drive where it is copied and to the program it was copied with, Kimball said, and he asserted that copying one's personal collection of DVDs amounts to "fair use" allowed by law. "
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/30/AR2008093001308.html?sub=AR

Copyright Czar's Fate in Bush's Hands; Veto Looms - Wired.com, 9/29/08

Copyright Czar's Fate in Bush's Hands; Veto Looms:
"[T]he Bush administration also doesn't want a copyright czar, a position on par with the nation's drug czar Congress created in 1982 to wage the War on Drugs...
The proposed copyright czar, a position which requires Senate confirmation, "constitutes a legislative intrusion into the internal structure and composition of the president's administration. This provision is therefore objectionable on constitutional separation of powers grounds," the White House wrote lawmakers.
That was code for the Bush administration being in no mood to commence another war, this one the War on Piracy. The government is too busy battling the War on Terror and the War on Drugs."
http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/09/copyright-czars.html

Who Owns the Law? Arguments May Ensue - New York Times, 9/29/08

Who Owns the Law? Arguments May Ensue:
"To be clear, it has been established by the United States Supreme Court (no less) that the law and judicial decisions cannot be copyrighted. They are in the public domain and can be used and reused in any way possible, even resold.
Yet, in the real world, judicial decisions and laws and regulations can be exceedingly hard to find without paying for them, either in book form or online...
“The law is pretty clear that laws and judicial opinions and regulations are not protected by copyright laws,” said Pamela Samuelson, a professor at Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California, Berkeley. “That isn’t to say that people aren’t going to try.”
A favorite method of trying, as Ms. Samuelson and other legal scholars explain, is to copyright the accoutrements surrounding the public material...
In other words: the beer is free, but you have to pay for a specially designed stein."
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/29/business/media/29link.html

The Importance of Orphan Works Legislation - U.S. Copyright Office, 9/25/08

The Importance of Orphan Works Legislation:
By Marybeth Peters, Register of Copyrights:
"Legislation is pending in Congress that would ease the “orphan works” problem....Based on the recommendation of my office, as published in our 2006 Report on Orphan Works, the legislation would allow good-faith users of copyrighted content to move forward in cases where they wish to license a use but cannot locate the copyright owner after a diligent search...The problem is pervasive. Our study recounts the challenges that publishers, film makers, museums, libraries, universities, and private citizens, among others, have had in managing risk and liability when a copyright owner cannot be identified or located..."
http://www.copyright.gov/orphan/

S. 2913: Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008 Passes U.S. Senate- govtrack.us, 9/26/08

S. 2913: Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008 Passes U.S. Senate:
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s110-2913#votes

Searchable "breaching copyright" video clips ruffle Parliament - Guardian, 9/25/08

Searchable video clips ruffle Parliament:
"While proceedings are open to free viewing, any re-use is subject to licensing by the Speaker of the House of Commons. This states that material "must not be hosted on a searchable website and must not be downloadable". The reason for the restriction, Helen Goodman, parliamentary secretary to the House of the Commons, told MPs earlier this year, "is to ensure that it is not re-edited or reused inappropriately for campaigning or satirical purposes.
Web activist charity MySociety is challenging this position in the latest phase of its campaign to open government up on the web. With the help of a small army of volunteers, it has created a searchable library of video clips of MPs speaking in the Commons, indexed by name and subject, on its website, theyworkforyou.com...
Another MySociety venture, the freedom of information clearing-house site whatdotheyknow.com, has had a head-on collision with Parliament over the issue of copyright. A request for information made through Whatdotheyknow has been refused because "the material could not be posted on the whatdotheyknow web pages without breaching copyright"...
"Parliament is supposed to be the home of the core of transparency and accountability, yet sometimes it seems to be the least responsive and least culturally open of the 100,000 bodies covered by Freedom of Information."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/sep/25/freeourdata.digitalvideo

Senate Gives The White House A Copyright Czar - Techdirt, 9/26/08

Senate Gives The White House A Copyright Czar:
"While some of the worst provisions were removed, this still remains a bill that has one purpose: to protect an obsolete business model, rather than letting more innovative models proliferate."
http://techdirt.com/articles/20080926/1429572385.shtml

Senate Passes Controversial 'Copyright Czar' Bill - PC Mag, 9/26/08

Senate Passes Controversial 'Copyright Czar' Bill:
"The RIAA voiced its support for the bill. "This bill truly is music to the ears of all those who care about strengthening American creativity and jobs," Mitch Bainwol, chairman and chief executive of the RIAA, said in a statement. "At a critical economic juncture, this bipartisan legislation provides enhanced protection for an important asset that helps lead our global competitiveness. The intellectual property industries are widely recognized as a cornerstone of the U.S. economy. Additional tools for intellectual property enforcement are not just good for the copyright community but for consumers who will enjoy a wider array of legitimate offerings."
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2704,2331291,00.asp

IP bill passes Senate - ars technica, 9/26/08

IP bill passes Senate:
"Until recently dubbed the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act, S.3325 was rebranded as the "Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property Act," or PRO-IP, to match its sibling in the House of Representatives. It also now resembles the House bill, which passed overwhelmingly in May, in that it lacks a clause that would have given the Justice Department authority to bring civil suits against patent and copyright infringers, turning the damages over to the IP holders."
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080926-ip-bill-passes-senate-no-civil-enforcement-power-for-doj.html

Public Knowledge Statement on Senate Passage of Intellectual Property Legislation - 9/26/08

Public Knowledge Statement on Senate Passage of Intellectual Property Legislation:

Background: The Senate today passed S. 3325, the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act of 2008. The following statement is attributed to Gigi B. Sohn, president and co-founder of Public Knowledge:

“It is unfortunate that the Senate felt it necessary to pass this legislation. The bill only adds more imbalance to a copyright law that favors large media companies. At a time when the entire digital world is going to less restrictive distribution models, and when the courts are aghast at the outlandish damages being inflicted on consumers in copyright cases, this bill goes entirely in the wrong direction.
“Instead of being focused on giving large media companies what they want, Congress instead should take a comprehensive look at the current state of the law, and of technology and write legislation that recognizes the reality of the situation and the reality that consumers have rights also.
“At a minimum, we are pleased that the Senate bill as passed does not include the egregious provision allowing the Justice Department to file civil suits against alleged copyright violators on behalf of copyright holders. This provision was a total waste of the taxpayers’ money. We are grateful to Senator Wyden for his leadership in getting that provision removed. We still would have preferred that the bill not pass.”

Note: We understand the House may pass the bill tomorrow under suspension of the rules.

A copy of the bill, as passed by the Senate, is available here:http://www.publicknowledge.org/pdf/110-s3325-20080926.pdf"
http://www.publicknowledge.org/node/1766

Senate Passes Bill Creating 'Copyright Czar' - Wired.com, 9/26/08

Senate Passes Bill Creating 'Copyright Czar':
"The measure (.pdf) creates an executive-level "Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator" -- a copyright czar requiring Senate confirmation.
The executive and its office would be charged with creating a nationwide plan to combat piracy and "report directly to the president and Congress regarding domestic international intellectual property enforcement programs...
The intellectual property measure approved Friday was strongly backed by Hollywood, the recording industry, unions, manufacturers and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce...
Digital rights groups, including Public Knowledge, opposed the measure.
Gigi Sohn, the group's president, said the bill goes too far but she was nonetheless pleased that the Justice Department won't be suing copyright infringers on behalf of the entertainment industry. "
http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/09/senate-passes-b.html

Thomas Mistrial Decision Bolsters RIAA Litigation - Wired.com, 9/25/08

Thomas Mistrial Decision Bolsters RIAA Litigation:
"At first glance, the decision appeared to have deflated the RIAA's legal position, (.pdf) which has helped it prevail in almost every one of its 30,000 cases –- most all of which have settled out of court.
But almost in passing, Judge Davis said that the music files the RIAA investigators allegedly downloaded from Thomas' share folder on Kazaa "can form the basis of an infringement claim."
http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/09/despite-thomas.html

$222,000 Copyright Infringement Damage Award for RIAA Against Jammie Thomas Overturned - ars technica, 9/24/08

Thomas verdict overturned, making available theory rejected:
"A federal judge has overturned the $222,000 copyright infringement verdict against Jammie Thomas, striking a huge blow to the RIAA's pet legal theory that making a file available over a P2P network is copyright infringement. He also calls on Congress to fix the Copyright Act so that the RIAA can't get six-figure judgments for P2P use."
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080924-thomas-verdict-overturned-making-available-theory-rejected.html

Secret ACTA treaty emerges blinking into the sunlight - ars technica, 9/24/08

Secret ACTA treaty emerges blinking into the sunlight:
"The much-maligned, drafted-in-secret, Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, is an odd beast. It's being drafted by a group that includes the US, the EU, and Japan... but also Canada, Mexico, and Korea, which are on US Trade Representative's "special 301" watch list for intellectual property problems."
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080924-secret-acta-treaty-emerges-blinking-into-the-sunlight.html

The ACTA Hearing: USTR Claims There's Nothing To See Here... Move Along - Techdirt, 9/25/08

The ACTA Hearing: USTR Claims There's Nothing To See Here... Move Along:
"Earlier this week, the US Trade Representative held an open hearing on the international intellectual property agreement currently being negotiated in secret, ACTA."
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080924/1732262362.shtml

Copyright's Paradox: brilliantly argued scholarly book tackles free speech vs. copyright - BoingBoing.net, 9/18/08

Copyright's Paradox: brilliantly argued scholarly book tackles free speech vs. copyright:
"Netanel explores the history of copyright through this free speech lens, starting with the first copyright statutes in the 18th century and moving through the history of American publishing, the explosion in reproduction technologies at the start of the 20th century, and the horrible mess that is the 21st century."
http://www.boingboing.net/2008/09/18/copyrights-paradox-b.html

Fox News to McCain Camp: ‘Cease and Desist’ - Washington Independent, 9/19/08

Fox News to McCain Camp: ‘Cease and Desist’:
"Fox News sent a tersely-worded “cease and desist” letter to the McCain campaign today, demanding the removal of Fox correspondent Major Garrett’s voice from a campaign ad, according to Politico...

The campaign has also received a long list of similar requests from artists and their representatives, whose material has been used without permission in ads, videos and campaign events, including: musicians Jackson Browne, Van Halen, Heart, Frankie Valli and comedian Mike Myers."
http://www.washingtonindependent.com/6554/fox-news-to-mccain-camp-cease-and-decist

Scud Stud Arthur Kent settles copyright infringing movie lawsuit - Brattleboro Reformer, 9/19/08

Scud Stud Arthur Kent settles movie lawsuit:
"The NBC reporter who became known as the Scud Stud during the first Gulf War has settled a lawsuit against the makers of "Charlie Wilson's War" over footage used in the Tom Hanks-Julia Roberts movie.
Arthur Kent, whose live reports on Iraq's Scud missile attacks on Saudia Arabia made him a celebrity, claimed in a lawsuit filed last April that Universal Studios and other violated his intellectual property rights by using without his consent segments of a 1986 news program he made about the Soviet Union's war in Afghanistan."
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/P/PEOPLE_ARTHUR_KENT?SITE=VTBRA&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Groups Demanding That ACTA Negotiations Be Made Public - Techdirt, 9/16/08

Groups Demanding That ACTA Negotiations Be Made Public:
"We've been asking for months why the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) treaty is being negotiated in near total secrecy, allowing the entertainment industry to effectively rewrite international copyright law in substantial ways with almost no legislative review. Basically, various trade representatives, together with industry insiders, have been crafting ACTA to their own liking, with a plan to push it through for approval, claiming it's a trade agreement that shouldn't involve any legislative overview. It's an incredibly one-sided affair, from what's been leaked so far, and would substantially change copyright law around the globe in favor of protecting the entertainment industry's business model. "
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080916/1839352286.shtml

Hari Puttar and the case of the film that sounded too familiar - Scotland on Sunday, 9/14/08

Hari Puttar and the case of the film that sounded too familiar:
"The release of Hari Puttar, a children's Bollywood film, has been postponed after Warner Bros complained its name was too similar to Harry Potter.
The Hollywood company filed a lawsuit against Bollywood film-makers Mirchi Movies because the name of the film was "confusing" and could infringe their copyright...
The lawsuit is the latest in a string of legal battles to protect the intellectual property rights of Scottish author JK Rowling's hugely successful creation."
http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/entertainment/Hari-Puttar-and-the-case.4489918.jp

The Future of Copyright - Cato Institute, 6/9/08

The Future of Copyright:
"Unauthorized sharing of files will prevail in darknets, online and offline. On the other hand, certain non-digital activities, like book publishing, continue to work relatively well under the terms of classical copyright law designed for printing presses. Still other fields, like software and music, are characterized by complex competition among different models, where some make money on selling copyable units, while others profit by delivering uncopyable services. A qualified guess is that we will have to live in this landscape of gray zones for quite a while, for good and bad."
http://www.cato-unbound.org/2008/06/09/rasmus-fleischer/the-future-of-copyright/

Don’t Buy That Textbook, Download It Free - New York Times, 9/14/08

Don’t Buy That Textbook, Download It Free:
"Unlike other projects that share course materials, notably OpenCourseWare at M.I.T., Connexions uses broader Creative Commons license allowing students and teachers to rewrite and edit material as long as the originator is credited. Teachers put up material, called “modules,” and then mix and match their work with others’ to create a collection of material for students. “We are changing textbook publishing from a pipeline to an ecosystem,” he said."
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/15/technology/15link.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&em

Research Shows Students View Music Piracy as Socially Acceptable - Idaho Examiner, 9/14/08

Research Shows Students View Music Piracy as Socially Acceptable:
"[University of Idaho researcher Darryl] Woolley said that piracy may not be perceived as an “immoral behavior” for students. They may not see it as unethical because they have no first-hand knowledge of prosecutions for piracy, and they may try to rationalize it because of financial situations. “They also view recording labels negatively and think that it does not hurt the recording artist,” he said."
http://www.idahoexaminer.com/reports/10057/research-shows-students-view-music-piracy-as-socially-acceptable

Copyright row dogs Spore release - BBC News, 9/10/08

Copyright row dogs Spore release:
"Hundreds of people have complained about the copyright protecting system on the long-awaited game Spore. Scathing criticism of the Digital Rights Management (DRM) system have been posted by reviewers on Amazon.com...

In what reviewers described as "a draconian DRM system", the game can only be installed three times...

But many reviewers reacted with anger at the SecuROM DRM system used by EA. Some wrote that it would stop them from purchasing the product; others cancelled pre-orders...

"Our system works just like online music services that limit the number of machines on which you can you can play a song," an EA spokesman told the BBC. "This system is an effort to control piracy."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7604405.stm

A Perfect Storm of Bad Copyright Legislation - Public Knowledge, 9/10/08

A Perfect Storm of Bad Copyright Legislation:
"Here at PK, we’ve been keeping our heads down the past few days, trying to fight against some really bad legislation. Once we finally get word of one, another one popped up. There are three in all (so far) are four (another was introduced during the writing of this post!!!) and we’re going to need your help to put them away...

First up is the Senate’s version of the House’s PRO-IP bill, S. 3325, “The Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act of 2008.”...

[Second:] The Fair Copyright in Research Works Act
Not long ago, Congress required that when grants from National Institutes of Health for research are made, researchers must deposit a copy of their articles in PubMed Central, an online archive...

[Third:] Broadcast Flag
Believe it or not, we’re hearing rumors of the broadcast flag returning...

[Fourth:] International Intellectual Property Protection and Enforcement Act of 2008
We just received word of this bill being dropped this morning...."
http://www.publicknowledge.org/node/1733

A Great Day for Creators - Copyright Alliance, 9/11/08

Pro-"Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act of 2008" blog entry by Patrick Ross, Executive Director, Copyright Alliance

A Great Day for Creators:
"It is in my humble opinion a no-brainer that everybody wins when copyright laws are better enforced. Creators see their rights upheld. Both creators and their partners in distribution earn more due to a decrease in lost sales. Federal, state and local governments see tax revenue increases as goods that are taxed (legitimate creative works) are bought vs. untaxed goods (counterfeits). And society benefits, as the incentive remains for those works to be created to begin with.
The Senate Judiciary Committee demonstrated their understanding of that earlier today with the overwhelming passage of S. 3325, the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act of 2008, authored by Chairman Leahy (D-VT) and ranking Republican Specter (PA)."
http://blog.copyrightalliance.org/2008/09/a-great-day-for-creators/

Opposition mounts to bill enabling US to prosecute suspected IP thieves - Beta News, 9/11/08

Opposition mounts to bill enabling US to prosecute suspected IP thieves:
"The Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act of 2008 (PDF available here), S.3325, would create a new appointed federal office called the Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator (IPEC), who would report directly to the President. That person would chair what the bill describes as an "interagency advisory committee" on IP law enforcement, as well as serve as the principal coordinator of policy with regard to anti-counterfeiting and anti-piracy activities.
But opponents see this IPEC position as a potential loose cannon..."
http://www.betanews.com/article/Opposition_mounts_to_bill_enabling_US_to_prosecute_suspected_IP_thieves/1221148060