CyberLaw Blog

Archive for August, 2009

Facebook promises to clarify privacy policy and allow more user control: “Facebook will make changes to its privacy policies and practices in a move it says will help users to understand why it collects personal information and to control its use. The changes are the result of an investigation by Canada’s privacy watchdog.”

(Via OUT-LAW News.)

Band Thanks File-Sharing For Greater Exposure and Success: “

We’re all familiar with the aggressive anti-piracy stances of artists like Prince and bands like Metallica. But file-sharing doesn’t have to be all about conflict, and for many artists it is proving to be a very effective promotional tool to reach people who otherwise may remain oblivious to their art.

One band embracing file-sharing are Toronto-based melodic folk rock group Great Lake Swimmers.

In an interview earlier this year, the band’s lead vocalist Tony Dekker said that although he doesn’t share files himself and would prefer it if fans got music from legitimate sources, he’s OK with it since people are ‘spreading the word about a band they love through file sharing.’

Now, in a recent interview, Dekker recalls their performance at an Ontario music festival in 2008, after which Robert Plant said he liked the band’s songs. Getting noticed by a big name was a boost for them but it was the band’s transformation from playing small venues to becoming more widely known that he says demonstrates the power of a new type of marketing.

Dekker says that this development of the band’s wider exposure is down to the modern equivalent of word-of-mouth promotion. We know it as ‘file-sharing’ and it is this technology that Dekker says has allowed the band to move far beyond its Canadian roots.

‘It’s not just something that’s specific to a region anymore. It’s global. It’s global word-of-mouth,’ he says.

‘People can share ideas, share music files and stuff, and I think it’s good. It’s good for music because you don’t have to scratch far below the surface to find interesting music that doesn’t have the machinery of a big record label behind it,’ he concludes.

Indeed, as the anti-filesharing antics of the big labels continues to further alienate them from their artists’ fans, finding good music that they have nothing to do with is becoming more important than ever.

Article from: TorrentFreak, check out our new blog at FreakBits.

“

(Via TorrentFreak.)

Home Office coughs to larger data loss: “

Another 250,000 records lunched

The Home Office has admitted to losing a quarter of a million more records than it originally thought.…

“

(Via The Register – Public Sector.)

BBC NEWS | Technology | File-sharers’ TV tastes revealed

Page last updated at 00:16 GMT, Friday, 28 August 2009 01:16 UK
By Rory Cellan-Jones
Technology correspondent, BBC News

Millions of television viewers are now using illegal file-sharing services to access free and unauthorised copies of programmes, research has revealed.

US drama Heroes was the most popular illegal download this year, according to research firm Big Champagne.

Around 55 million people downloaded the show, whilst 51 million chose to access Lost, the second most popular show.

Visits to leading “torrent” sites, which index video and music files, have also nearly doubled in the last year.

The proportion of file-sharing involving films and television rather than music is continuing to rise, the research shows.

“Millions of television viewers now access free, unauthorised versions of favourite shows at least some of the time,” says Eric Garland the chief executive of Big Champagne.

“This is a socially acceptable form of casual piracy – and it is replacing viewing hours.”

All of the programmes in the top 10 were American, but the survey also examined unauthorised downloads of popular BBC show Top Gear.

Most Popular Film Torrents
Watchmen; 16,906,452
The Curious case of Benjamin Button; 13, 133, 137
Yes Man; 13,038,364
Twilight; 11,632,645
Fast and Furious; 10,613,668
Gran Tourino; 9,880,700
Marley and Me; 9,099,219
Slumdog Millionaire; 8,840,884
Bolt; 8,690,633
Australia; 8,628,012

During the most recent series, the figures show around 300,000 downloads of each episode in the days immediately following their broadcast in the UK.

But the UK accounted for just 4% of the download activity, with 47% coming from the United States.

Big Champagne says Top Gear has been among the most pirated television programmes internationally.

The series appears on BBC America some time after it is shown in the UK, and it appears that some American fans are eager to download it before it is available legally.

The research also looks at unauthorised film downloads and shows they are getting lower audiences than those for TV programmes.

Most Popular TV Torrents
Heroes; 54,562,012
Lost; 51,151,396
24; 34,119,093
Prison Break; 29,283,591
House; 26,277,954
Fringe; 21,434,755
Desperate Housewives; 21,378,412
Grey’s Anatomy; 19,916,775
Gossip Girl; 19,706,870
Smallville; 19,598,999

Top of the chart was Watchmen, downloaded nearly 17 million times, followed by The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, with 13 million.

The Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire, a relatively low budget film compared with the two Hollywood blockbusters, was viewed by nearly 9 million unauthorised downloaders.

The research will be presented on Saturday at the Edinburgh Television Festival in a session on what television can learn from the music industry’s experience with online piracy.

Mr Garland says there are major differences between the two industries and the impact on television may not be as severe as some TV executives fear: “We may see a lot of disruption but it is premature to say ‘we’re next’.”

“The effect on the business is going to be very different.”

Big Champagne’s research also shows that the rate of piracy for live events, such as sport or talent shows, is much lower than that for popular drama series.

Mininova Must Remove all Friggin Torrents: “While few are crying over The Pirate Bay, Mininova is a different case. Mininova has been fighting BREIN, the Dutch copyright authority, but unlike The Pirate Bay, this isn’t a fight to the death. Instead, BREIN doesn’t want to see the more moderate Mininova eliminated – rather only torrent files it feels link to copyrighted works.”

(Via Slyck.com File-Sharing News And Information.)

UK – Facebook threats woman detained: “(BBC)
A teenager has been detained for three months in a young offenders’ institution for harassing a woman on social networking website Facebook. Keeley Houghton swore at and threatened Emily Moore in person and on the internet in July, Worcester Magistrates’ Court heard. The 18-year-old of Elgar Avenue, in Malvern, Worcestershire, admitted a charge of harassment on 31 July. She was also given a five-year restraining order. Houghton is prohibited from contacting Ms Moore, or commenting about her on any social networking system or website during that time.

(Via QuickLinks Update.)

Facebook to tighten privacy policies and give users more control over personal data: “Facebook, the world’s largest online social network, has bowed to pressure and agreed to tighten up its privacy policies further.“

(Via Tech and Web from Times Online.)

Government unbans dirty vids but bans ‘legal highs’: “

Thatcher’s legacy – dirty DVDs for all

Legislation introduced by Margaret Thatcher in 1984, which banned the sale of unclassified videos and computer games, is not actually enforceable because the government of the day never told the European Commission.…

“

(Via The Register – Public Sector.)

Swiss privacy watchdog demands withdrawal of Swiss Street View: “The Swiss privacy watchdog has told Google to take down its Street View service because it violates Swiss privacy law. Google has said it is ’surprised’ at the request.”

(Via OUT-LAW News.)

Unmasked blogger Rosemary Port to sue Google for $15m$: “Google is to be sued for $15 million ($£9 million) by an anonymous blogger who was unmasked by the internet search company.

(Via Tech and Web from Times Online.)