CyberLaw Blog

Archive for August, 2009

Families could lose broadband access as Mandelson takes on web pirates Lord Mandelson has been accused of caving into a ‘big lobbying operation’ after ordering a change in policy on internet piracy.

(Via Tech and Web from Times Online.)

Mininova Ordered to Remove All ‘Infringing’ Torrents: “

Mininova were sued this spring by BREIN, an outfit which protects the rights of several large entertainment industry corporations.

Today, the judge ruled that the world’s largest BitTorrent indexer has been ordered to clean up its site and remove all torrents that link to infringing content.

BREIN’s intention was not to shut down the site. Instead, the organization called for a filter based on infringing keywords and possibly digital fingerprints to guarantee that the rights holders have sufficient means to protect their content.

The court agreed with BREIN’s assessment that Mininova is not doing enough to protect the rights of copyright holders, and ordered the site to remove all torrent files that link to infringing content within three months, or pay a penalty of 1000 Euro per infringing torrent with a maximum of 5 million euros ($7 million).

Mininova’s notice and takedown policy that allows copyright holders to remove infringing torrents is not sufficient, the court said. Interestingly, the recently announced copyright filter that Mininova launched together with the Motion Picture Association (MPA) wasn’t mentioned in the verdict.

The court did not agree with Mininova’s defense that it is impossible to moderate all torrents that are uploaded to the site. It further said that Mininova is encouraging its users to download copyrighted material, helped by the several moderators that the site has in place.

The moderators keep the site clean and ‘family friendly’ be removing torrents that link to adult content, viruses and fake files. They do this proactively and in response to user feedback, the court concluded, pointing out that they should also be able to moderate torrents that link to copyrighted material.

It was further concluded that Mininova profits from copyright infringement though the ads that appear on the site.

Mininova co-founder Erik Dubbelboer said in a response: ‘We are obviously not happy with the verdict.’ Mininova is considering to appeal the decision, which they have to do within three months

Developing story.

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

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(Via TorrentFreak.)

News: NDSNew ideas to allow for swifter and more flexible measures to tackle unlawful peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing are published today by the Government.

The Government is seeking views on the idea of including a power, under the forthcoming Digital Economy Bill, for the Secretary of State to direct Ofcom to introduce technical measures to clamp down on piracy, if necessary.

This would involve an obligation on Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to take action against individual, repeat infringers – for example by blocking access to download sites, reducing broadband speeds, or by temporarily suspending the individual’s Internet account.

Evidence on whether such action is required would be provided in regular reports from Ofcom to the Secretary of State.

Previously, it had been proposed that Ofcom would undergo a detailed process in order to ascertain that technical measures were required. With this approach, the earliest that measures could come into play was during 2012. The Government has now reached the view that, if action was deemed necessary, this might be too long to wait given the pressure put on the creative industries by piracy. The new ideas outlined today would potentially allow action to be taken earlier.

The Government is also considering adding account suspension to the list of technical measures that could be used only as a last resort against the hard core of copyright pirates.

To enable stakeholders to provide feedback on the new ideas, the Government has today issued an explanatory statement and extended the current consultation on unlawful P2P file sharing to 29 September. Responses received so far will still be given full consideration.

Minister for Digital Britain, Stephen Timms said:

‘Technology and consumer behaviour is fast-changing and it’s important that Ofcom has the flexibility to respond quickly to deal with unlawful file-sharing.

‘We’ve been listening carefully to responses to the consultation this far, and it’s become clear there are widespread concerns that the plans as they stand could delay action, impacting unfairly upon rights holders.

‘So we look forward to hearing views on our new ideas, which along with those already received, will help us determine the best way to tackle this complex challenge.’

After listening to views from all sides, the Government is also seeking views on how the costs of the process should be covered. It proposes that some costs, such as the operating costs of sending out notifications and Ofcom’s costs as the Regulator, should be shared equally between ISPs and rights holders.
Notes to editors

1.The explanatory statement on P2P file-sharing can be viewed at : http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file52658.pdf
2. On 16 June, the Government set out its action plan for the digital economy in the Digital Britain report http://www.culture.gov.uk/what_we_do/broadcasting/5631.aspx
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS)

is building a dynamic and competitive UK economy by: creating the conditions for business success; promoting innovation, enterprise and science; and giving everyone the skills and opportunities to succeed. To achieve this it will foster world-class universities and promote an open global economy. BIS – Investing in our future.
Contacts

NDS Enquiries
Phone: For enquiries please contact the above department
ndsenquiries@coi.gsi.gov.uk

UK Pirates Face Disconnection, ISPs Object: “

When it comes to confusion and contradiction, the UK’s Digital Britain report is in a league of its own. Just days after denying the reports that Lord Mandelson would be toughening things up when dealing with alleged copyright infractions, it turns out that it’s true. Also, despite assurances last year that the whole process would have a factual basis, that also turns out to be a lie.

It would seem that wherever Peter Mandelson goes, controversy soon follows. He’s resigned from the British cabinet twice before over allegations of improprieties, so he’s just the sort of person qualified to head up the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) (or the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) as it was renamed in June).

The timing is seen as suspicious by some, coming just days after he took a holiday with David Geffen. A government source told The Times ‘Until the past week Mandelson had shown little personal interest in the Digital Britain agenda. Suddenly Peter returned from holiday and effectively issued this edict that the regulation needs to be tougher.’

The proposal, released in a statement by the BIS today says that waiting to see how the previous recommendation – of seeing how things were going over the next few years, with technological measures to come into force by 2012 – were going to be too slow. As such, they want to push forward with the measures, even if unnecessary, as they make clear:

Previously, it had been proposed that Ofcom would undergo a detailed process in order to ascertain that technical measures were required. With this approach, the earliest that measures could come into play was during 2012. The Government has now reached the view that, if action was deemed necessary, this might be too long to wait given the pressure put on the creative industries by piracy. The new ideas outlined today would potentially allow action to be taken earlier. (emphasis added)

Of course, if action is NOT deemed necessary, if the facts to back up the claims can’t be found for instance, then much of the legislation requested by the copyright industries will not go ahead. That evidence would be hard to find, since at least two separate examinations of content industry figures have shown little to no impact on box office movie sales, or music sales. This may be why there is the sudden push for the legislation, based again on a claim of need, rather than facts.

The ISPs are up in arms about this as well, with Talktalk’s Andrew Heaney telling the BBC: ‘Disconnecting alleged offenders will be futile given that it is relatively easy for determined file-sharers to mask their identity or their activity to avoid detection.’ They are rightly concerned with disconnecting the wrong people, based either on mis-identification by investigators, or the use of open/inadequately secured wifi spots.

The music industry is enthusiastic though, with the BPI happy. ‘Digital piracy is a serious problem and a real threat to the UK’s creative industries,’ it said in a statement to the BBC, while yet again failing to release any data to back up their claims. ‘The solution to the piracy problem must be effective, proportionate and dissuasive,’ it then says, omitting that these proposals are none of these, just as the 1865 Locomotive Act was not effective, proportionate or dissuasive to the take-up of the personal motor vehicle, or in protecting the railway and equine-based industries from the progress of technology.

Meanwhile, as one commenter indicates in a comment on the Digital Britain site, more people will be joining the UK Pirate Party, although the party currently says it’s experiencing only a slight increase in membership. Its members, however, are livid.

Stephen Timms, minister for Digital Britain also made the following statement: ‘We’ve been listening carefully to responses to the consultation this far, and it’s become clear there are widespread concerns that the plans as they stand could delay action, impacting unfairly upon rights holders. So we look forward to hearing views on our new ideas, which along with those already received, will help us determine the best way to tackle this complex challenge.’

Clearly he hasn’t been listening to the comments made by 6 million file-sharers in the UK, but there’s no harm in making him more aware. The consultation is open until September. So there’s still time to make your voice heard, but please, keep it civil and factual – even if the Content Industry can’t manage the second.

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

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(Via TorrentFreak.)

(Via TorrentFreak.)

The Pirate Bay Returns With Guns Blazing

When The Pirate Bay was shut down yesterday many believed that this was the end for the Internet’s largest BitTorrent tracker.

However, despite the fact that the site is set to be sold later this week, the Pirate Bay team worked around the clock to serve their users in these final hours.

A mere three hours after it went offline the site reappeared from a different location, but because of technical issues at the new ISP a full comeback took almost a day. The site is back online and the tracker is expected to follow soon.

The Pirate Bay team has always anticipated an unwanted disconnection of the site. After their servers were raided in 2006 several measures were taken to ensure that the site could simply come back online from a new location in a few hours, and this is the first time that this backup plan had been executed.

With its reemergence the people behind the site hope to show the authorities and the entertainment industry that the war is not over just yet. Perhaps it’s only the beginning of a battle on a different front. The future will tell.

A few minutes ago, the Pirate Bay team released the following statement, adapted from Churchill’s famous ‘We Shall Fight On the Beaches’ speech. Make of it what you will.

We have, ourselves, full confidence that if all do their duty, if nothing is neglected, and if the best arrangements are made, as they are being made, we shall prove ourselves once more able to defend our Internets, to ride out the storm of war, and to outlive the menace of tyranny, if necessary for years, if necessary alone.

Even though large parts of Internets and many old and famous trackers have fallen or may fall into the grip of the Ifpi and all the odious apparatus of MPAA rule, we shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the ef-nets and darknets, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our Internets, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the baywords.org, we shall fight on the /. and on the digg, we shall fight in the courts; we shall never surrender, and if, which I do not for a moment believe, the Internets or a large part of it were subjugated and starving, then our Empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the Anon Fleet, would carry on the struggle, until, in Cerf’s good time, the New World, with all its power and might, steps forth to the rescue and the liberation of the old.

Signed;

The Pirate Bay Crew – Now until needed.

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

Pirate Bay offline, shut down by ISP: “

This article has been published at RLSLOG.net – visit our site for full content.

File-sharing site The Pirate Bay went down today after its Internet service provider, Black Internet, cut its connection to avoid being fined by the Stockholm district court. A 500,000 Swedish kronor (US$70,000) fine would be the result if Black Internet did not comply with the decision in the district court. The Stockholm court’s decision goes back to May when a number of movie and record companies filed a motion with the court to fine the people behind the Pirate Bay operation, including Black Internet, as long as The Pirate Bay users can access copyright-protected material.

Black Internet isn’t the only operator that sells capacity to The Pirate Bay, but it’s by far the largest. There is some redundancy with capacity from other operators, but not enough for the site to be up and running. A Swedish court apparently decided it is illegal to be an ISP, said former Pirate Bay spokesman Peter Sunde via Twitter today.

This isn’t the first time copyright holders have been able to block The Pirate Bay by taking action against an ISP. The same tactic worked in Denmark, but failed in Italy. There is also a case pending in in Norway, which will go to court Oct. 17. Meanwhile, Global Gaming Factory X is planning to acquire The Pirate Bay. Its shareholders will decide at a meeting Thursday whether the deal should go through.

Source: Computer World

more at RLSLOG.net

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(Via Releaselog | RLSLOG.net.)

Government details how Digital Britain Report will become reality: “The Government has announced the details of how it will implement the recommendations of the Digital Britain report. It said that though preparatory work on the recommendations will be complete by autumn, some work will not be finished until 2012.”

(Via OUT-LAW News.)

Vogue model Liskula Cohen wins right to unmask offensive bloggerA Vogue cover girl has won a precedent-setting court battle to unmask an anonymous blogger who called her a ‘skank’ on the internet.

(Via Tech and Web from Times Online.)

British MP David Davis, Google, and Setting the Record Straight: “We were surprised and disappointed to open the Times newspaper today and find a vitriolic column on Google and our record on privacy, from Conservative Member of Parliament David Davis. Responding to speculation in the Times several weeks ago that the Conservative party was in favour of giving patients the ability to transfer their medical records to private companies, Mr Davis decided to launch an extraordinary attack on Google, riddled with misleading statements. Of course, Mr Davis didn’t ask us first for our comments or to check his facts before going to press.

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(Via European Public Policy Blog.)

Oz gov suggests world’s worst copyright protection scheme: “

Desperate to retain internet villain of the year title

After taking the prize of internet villain of the year for worst internet blocking proposal on the planet, the Australian Government appears determined to do the double, with what has already been described as the world’s worst comms interception scheme.…

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(Via The Register – Public Sector.)