Slashdot Mirror
U.S. Penalizes Ukraine for Abetting 'Piracy'
The Politech mailing list has a note and follow-up on new trade restrictions levied against Ukraine, since they haven't complied with the U.S.'s demand for 'an
optical media licensing regime.' John Gilmore's response puts the issue in perspective. Update: 01/03 23:08 GMT by M : The RIAA has a press release about the trade penalties and response to Gilmore.
"Enough of this wretched, whining monkey life." -- Marcus Aurelius, _Meditations_, Book 9, 37
I'd like to see the U.S. implement something like this before they go shoving it down other people's throats.
If don't want something here in America, why should we want it for countries abroad?
Why aren't we told when editors moderate our posts?
The US wants every replicating machine to put a tracking number on CDs showing what machine made it.
I don't see why a bootlegger couldn't just put a fake number anyway.
Will requiring some number to be added to CDs (not even a serialized number, just a number) really do anything? I don't see why it would.
The US had requested that the Ukraine implement the "optical media licensing regime" that would prevent piracy of things like DVDs. Ukraine didnt comply, so the US levied a tariff on important things like oil, shoes, and paper imported from the Ukraine to put pressure on the Ukraine to implement that "optical media licensing regime"
The One Rule Of Chess You'll Ever Need: Don't play someone who carries a kit in their bookbag.
Sayeth Gilmore...
Next thing we'll have telephone answering machines recording what phone numbers people are calling from....video libraries recording who
borrowed each book and when.....Internet ads that track and record who saw them...hotel room doors that record every time each person goes in or out...cellphones that report every move we make to the authorities...tollbooths that record every car that goes through them... guards in every airport demanding to see 'our papers' before we are permitted to travel in our own country...
Hmmm... Caller ID machines, Doubleclick.net, and Electronic, DB controlled locks at hotels and Post 9-11 'random checks' at airports.
Gilmore's being sarcastic, isn't he?
Remember that the U.S. stoped being 'Of the people, for the people a long time ago'. It's been 'Of the corporate interest for the corporate intrest for quite a while... at least since the Vietnam War, (The Johnsons had a significant stake in Bell Helicopter, which profited outrageously from the war) and probably before, but I'm not a good enough history student to tell you how far back.
I know a 'Sherman Act' would sure as hell never make it out of committee in today's congress.
Well, when it gets too repressive, now I know where I can go. They speak Russian in the Ukraine, right?
The next Slashdot story will be ready soon, but subscribers can beat the rush and slashdot the links early!
Is this just another example of the All Powerful United States flexing its mighty iron fist around smaller countries that have almost no means by which to fight back?
Or, is this a legitimate action? Why not protect people who work hard to make their intellectual products? Does information really want to be free, and, if it does, should it be? Who is to decide?
I often find myself torn between these two schools of thought, as I believe that the IP could be integral to the lives of those who do not have the resources to pay for it, but, then again, does that justify the essential theft of such IP? Chairity theft, perhaps?
It's all very complex. Any opinions? I'd hate it if the US hurt more innocent people, only because of something as seemingly insignificant as IP law.
Man is born free; and everywhere he is in chains.
"Reader, in case you didn't know, every color Xerox machine and color laser printer prints the serial number of the machine on every page they produce, covertly hidden in the output, under a long-standing private "arrangement" with the US Treasury Department. I have been unable to confirm whether this is also true of black-and-white xerox machines."
I'm as paranoid as the next PGP-using, hard-drive encrypting, tin-foil-hat-wearing guy. BUT... I have a really hard time buying this, and I cold not locate any creditble documentation on Google.
Anyone have any good links?
Method of processing duck feet
So your argument is that no one else in the U.S. government, besides military personel, should do their jobs until "the war on terror" is over?
That's ridicules! So the police should stop chasing thieves and rapists until all the murderers are caught? Every one that needs to be doing something about the war is doing it, all the rest have their jobs to do, too.
I don't agree with this policy, but I don't like using the terrorist attack to be a scape-goat for everything else, either.
Stupid sexy Flanders.
And here we (USA) go, getting right back into the swing of things, just like pre 9/11/01.
I find it fascinating that people like the Bush family can't figure out why America is globally hated.
"Sorry, you are not allowed to have strong encryption, supercomputers, nuclear weapons, shoes, food, oil, etc. Why? Because we are the USA, and we said so........"
(...a few years later...)
"Boo-hoo....I don't understand why these people are so mad at us...I don't understand why they would blow up our landmarks..."
"A terrorist is someone who has a bomb but doesn't have an air force." -William Blum
Isn't is ironic that the one tactic that drew the American colonies to revolt against England, America reuses again and again to gain leverage over countries dependent on American trade?
The only thing that this will cause is Ukraine products being shipped somewhere else. This doesn't sound too good, since the former Soviet Union prevented OPEC from cutting production on oil, thereby giving us low gas prices ($.99 where i live)just one month ago!
Hope this doesn't mean that my gas prices will go up to subsidise software companies' "right to innovate"
http://cincyboys.blogspot.com/ Everything Cincinnati. Including the word 'Finnih'
We Love it!
-- Give me ambiguity or give me something else!
Funny that we'll impose terriffs against the Ukraine at the whim of the RIAA to protect the profits of Time Warner, but we won't lift a finger against China in the trade department even when they go around torturing and shooting political dissidents.
I guess it shows what the U.S. is about, eh?
---
Play Six Pack Man. I
But you know, the Ukrainians could throw those out, and that could help.
Employee of Inrupt, Project Release Manager and Community Manager for Solid
The only problem with that idea is that things tend to get really worse before they get better.
At the next eco-hypocrisy-meeting, count the private jets used to get to the meeting. Should be interesting to see that
I know some people might say I'm overreacting, but this honestly scares me. Over the course of this week, we've given full trade access to China, despite the fact that it is a communist nation of the worst kind that openly hunts, tortures, and kills people for belonging to a religion that isn't sanctioned by the government or coming anywhere near defying the government's will, and we've punished Ukraine for abetting piracy.
For Americans, we are now living under a government that cares far more about the profits of groups like the RIAA and MPAA than it does about human lives and our country's base freedoms. This week, it has rewarded one country for cruelty, torture, murder, and oppression, while punishing another for having a potential small effect on industry groups that make large contributions to political campaigns. The DMCA is a stupid and dangerous peace of legislation, and the SSSCA might fully qualify as evil... but these trade decisions belong to a whole new level of sick that nothing else on Slashdot has ever brought up.
The most powerful government in the world openly caring more about profits than about human lives... welcome to the world of several of the dystopian future sci-fi novels you've read.
Well, now. The US is attempting to destablize a country. Or so it seems. Over what? Over some gibberish term? Over outdated copyright laws? The Ukraine is a nation of farming (last time I checked, could be different now), and this seems like a move to incite revolts and millitary governments. I wish we would wake up and smell the international coffee, which isn't "The Government Is Subservent To Corporations" Blend anymore. Please, for the love of god, don't destroy another country over something stupid.
Everything is mainstream now.
Do companies operating under one countries legal structure gain the same amount of protection when operating (or having their goods sold) in another country?
I find an interesting correlation here between "lassaie faire" business practices and the anti-corporation/IP movement. The movement wants corporations to recieve no help from the government for their business practices (IP, relief from economic hardship, etc), which are essentially leftist ideals. However, the fairly right ideal of lassaise faire essentially espouses the same thing, no? By all means correct me if I'm off base here.
(btw: sorry for the poli-labeling, but it helps to illustrate the constrasts in my point.)
"Moving through the masses like a fish through water." syrup
"[Summary: In response to the Ukraine government's "failure to enact an
optical media licensing regime that would preclude the piracy of such
products," the U.S. government has levied 100 percent tariffs on
Ukraine exports such as fuel oil, sneakers, paper, and diamonds. --Declan]"
Do we actually BUY that much stuff from them? It seems most of these exports can find ready markets elsewhere. It seems the loss in trade is greater than any piracy could be. Any comments?
Oh wait, something about that logic looks a little flawed...
"Ask not what your country can do for you." --John F. Kennedy
Massive loss of privacy != POLICE STATE.
In police states they throw you in jail for political speech, shoot you randomly, whip you with a rattan cane, cut off your hands, etc, usually in a highly arbitrary fashion. This is NOT what is happening here. Claiming that it is severely weakens your case.
sulli
RTFJ.
It becomes a matter of disrespect for national self rule. Also it is a matter of foreign policy being dictated by greed of business interests, morte than anything else.
I somehow like the old system where there always was a place on the planet that was outside the reach of the grasping hand of your local government. This is starting to go away now. Not yet, but soon.
"It is a greater offense to steal men's labor, than their clothes"
Perhaps you aren't aware of this, but the government does have other duties than the "war on terrorism."
Granted, but I can't think of anything more pressing in foriegn policy right now. Although, seeing as how the US is the premiere content provider to the world, I could see the priority level for this. I'm just curious as to whether or not this came to a vote, and if so, which of our representatives needs a new job?
If you fall off a building, go real limp, because maybe you'll look like a dummy and people will be like hey, free dummy
> There is a similar tracking requirement imposed on CD recorders (by
:-)
> the patent licenses issued by Philips). It requires that each CD
> burner record on the CD the serial number of the recorder, so that
> every burned CD-R can be traced back to which individual CD-burner
> recorded it.
Now _this_ was news to me. I'd like to see this proven or debunked. Is this software driven, or done by drives' firmware when a burn is started? Is there any way to disable this?
I don't mind my drive containing an electronic copy of its serial number for the purposes of identifying an individual unit with the manufacturer if I happen to need service.
I sure as hell mind if my drive is disclosing that information without my knowledge or consent!
As an example: John Doe works in a government agency, and notices some truly heinous and illegal activities going on with regards of that agency towards citizens of that government. John wants to blow the whistle, but he isn't stupid either. He anonymizes the information as best he can, cites several sources within the agency for the information in question, and writes it to a series of 5 CD-R's that he then sends to major newspaper editors in the hopes that they'll print it. CD-R's are the write-once/read-many diskette of the day, after all, and you don't have to worry about accidental magnetic erasure, so John thought he was being smart.
The story gets printed, there's a huge public outcry, the agency gets investigated, and this goes all the way to charges being laid and a lot of very powerful people being made _very_ uncomfortable, and quietly swearing to find the mole and give unto him a share of the misery that they are going through.
Fine, it's fictional, it probably has holes in it, and I've probably not drafted the perfect hypothetical scenario, but the basic gist of it is there.
There's a lot of cases where accidental disclosure of any information that would allow the source to be accurately identified is a _bad_ thing. Admittedly in some cases it can be a good thing, but I'm leery of making it _too_ easy.
Is there any way to prevent this little function from working correctly?
1. Change the electronic serial number of the drive?
2. Disable the routine that spits out a serial number?
3. Disable the routine that writes the serial number to the drive?
Rom microcode disassembly anyone?
Ukraine has it worse with computers than does Russia. And back in Russia things are really bad with computers. Software piracy is not as big an issue in Ukraine because well... not too many people own computers, and those that do probably own old ones.
Not saying that piracy isn't wrong but come on! Ukraine? That's just rediculous!
------
Sig
If you hadn't skipped to the bottom, you would have noticed that he was drawing a parallel between tracking CD-Rs and puting a tracable serial number on every sheet of paper, printer, and printing press. This parallel is not very far fetched, as more and more information is distributed digitally.
__
Do ya feel happy-go-lucky, punk?
Stop posting lameass "boy this sucks" complaints on Slashdot, and, if you don't like this, complain. Write your congressmen. Write your senator. Write the president. Heck, in the accouncement, there are three numbers you can call...
Kira Alvarez, Office of Services, Investment and Intellectual Property, Office of the United States Trade Representative (202) 395-6864
David Birdsey, Office of European Affairs, Office of the United States Trade Representative, (202) 395-3320
William Busis, Office of the General Counsel, Office of the United States Trade Representative, (202) 395-3150
(Me, I'd like to see some unbiased reports on this thing before making a decision, as neither Politech nor the RIAA seem like the best sources of information for something like this. But there's none of that being posted here, just loads of "me too!" posts. If you're certain its wrong, get off your "trying to be geeky cool" ass and do something...)
Obviously, you have to release the information anonymously, othervice they would kill you.
Unfortunately, all the paper in the world is marked. The manufacturer has inserted a unique watermark, and they have extensive records of who buys each sheet of paper. If the secret police get their hands on any of the documents you distribute, it will point right back at you. You'll be dead.
To figure out who the "pirates" are, this is what RIAA et al. wants, even if they don't dare state it up front. They want extensive records of all the CDs, so that when a "pirated" CD is found, it points right back at everyone involved, and they can be nailed for it.
I think this small label is not going to do much to achieve that goal, but it is really beside the point.
And so what? Paper is one thing, CDs is an entirely different matter?
OK, so you get a piece of footage. Compressed down to 650 MB (by Ogg Tarkin... :-) ), you can burn it on CDs and distribute it to have it aired worldwide.
Unfortunately, because RIAA needs protection from "pirates" you can't do that. You can't do that to free your country from oppression.
OK, this is a bit far-fetched perhaps, but you never know if this could happen.
Employee of Inrupt, Project Release Manager and Community Manager for Solid
To all the people griping along the lines of "It is so horrible for us to do this when we don't do the same to China/India/Russia..."
If you really want to see the government do the right thing, call or write the politicians who did THIS, as well as their buddies, and commend them. Let them realize that the American people will support them when they do the right thing against smaller countries, and maybe they will start showing the courage to try pulling the stops against other nations guilty of human rights violations, which piss us off but do not hurt us economically. If all the politicians ever hear from people is "This sucks, these guys only do this to satisfy company X.," they sure as hell won't be willing to do something nasty just to protect the rights of some shmucks that they never deal with anyway.
As a Canadian citizen, I am fully used to taking it up the ass (I can see the Troll moderation already).
No, really. We Canadians are taxed around 55% of our total income. Our own government (my province anyways) allows companies the right to a monopoly in areas like Home/Auto Insurance, Transportation, local Telco etc... and even worse, grants those companies the right to levy citizens, even if those citizens don't use the service provided by the company (eg. Bus tax on Auto-Insurance).
I've always said that our governemt could not get away with, or even propose, the things they do here in any other country. The people wouldn't stand for it.
What I want to know, is what Americans do when their government does something that obviously by the replies to this post, the people don't agree with. Do you guys just sit by and bitch about it like us Canadians?
I've come to accept that nothing I do or say will change the vast scheme of the big-business take over in the world. I'm not rich enough to have a voice. I've written letters, petitioned my local office, even protested, nothing changes.
So I ask in this case of the world's self-proclaimed big-brother pushing around yet another perfectly content country. What are American Citizens going to do about it?
"You are not a beautiful and unique snowflake."...Tyler Durden
Sadly enough, it is. When I travelled there, it was quite easy to buy a warez copy of Win2K, Office, Autocad, or 3D Studio at a kiosk in any bazaar, for about $5 US a pop.
But consider that the average wage there is is about $40 US a month. The people of Ukraine can either copy software without permission, in the hopes of keeping the country current enough to get them out of their economic mess, or they can give up on software altogether, because competing with the USA for prices would mean nobody would own software.
This is not an issue of law, as Ukraine is soverign, it can pass whatever law it wants. This is a question of morals, ethics, and practicality. Will USA copyright holders make more sales in Ukraine if these laws were passed? I don't think so, because Ukrainians can't afford those prices. I say the US should turn a blind eye, and give Ukraine a chance to catch up economically, so that in the future they can afford the full price of commercial software.
My 2 cents, on a topic I care about.
E
Ask yourself this... did Ukraine's refusal to agree to these standards come from principled opposition to the suppression of free speech by multinational corporations... or from internal pressure by Ukraine's homegrown media piracy industry?
I suspect the latter. Which sucks, because it's exactly what the corporate thieves are saying, and i'm not used to them telling the truth about anything.
Either way, ordinary Ukrainians lose, not to mention Americans.
Hand me that airplane glue and I'll tell you another story.
The RIAA knows. From their statement-
"Today's action by the Rada in rejecting legislation supported by President Kuchma and the world trading community will have dramatic implications on Ukrainian society at every level--economic, political and cultural."
They say that they "applaud the sanctions with heavy hearts".
Lives for greed. So that millionaires can become multimillionaires. It makes me ill.
jr
It's hard to believe that's how Micronians are made. Why don't we see it right now by having you both kiss one another?
Before I offend anyone I just want to make clear that this truly is meant as a question and not an accusation.
Disclaimer stated, are the citizens of a country considered responsable for the country's actions?
Specifically should these sanctions be considered the fault of the average american who chooses not to prevent their own government from taking such actions?
I see lots of people complaining about America no longer being for the people, instead for corporations. Does anyone else out there wonder if these same people have done even so much as to write a letter to their representatives making these decisions?
Just some questions. Any one else have any thoughts?
Well, this kind of things suddenly become a horror to the US /.ers, just because the case has something to do with CDs, copyright, "piracy", RIAA, ... which are things that /.ers care most.
/.ers.
However, the US government has been using this kind of economic imperialism tactics in almost every domain and industry to bully other countries, big and small (not that everything always works the way the US government want to, though). Unfortunately, a lot of those are not interesting to the typical
Well, get out of the US, talk to the honest people who are trying to do business with the US (which shout out loud on every roof that they are pro-free-trade, human right protector and freedom figther), and you will get really nasty horror stories.
Maybe next time, you will think twice before electing (or letting the court appoint) a president. Or maybe you will get involved more too. And maybe, some days, the world might be better too.
Or put another way:
The needs of the few record companies outweigh the rights of the many to back up their valuable data without having to get an id number from the government.
--
E_NOSIG
since they haven't complied with the U.S.'s demand for 'an optical media licensing regime.'
I wonder how our USian friends would react to a demand that they create/alter some legislation to suit the needs of some non-US multinational? I guess things like national sovereignty only apply to superpowers, and the industries they represent.
And why is it that when the it is decided that some sort of multi-lateral standard is required, why is the US standard is the one that almost certainly adopted?
*** Where are we going? And what's with this handbasket?
While I'm at it, I should call my congressman and senators
even though I don't know they are.
Those within these corporations remind me of school bullies who tease anyone who dares to tell their parents, yet as soon as their classmates gang up on them they are the first to go crying to mommy.
You infer (by extension) that the world would be better off if we lived in a government which used all of the powers available to it to help the creative class (artists/programmers/etc) sell its product to Everyone Else.
That's bullshit; a government which is strong enough to enforce such laws is strong enough to harm not only the 15-year old freeloaders but to do great harm to the "creative class" which strengthened it in what they saw as their best interests.
I'm not willing to grant the government more powers than it has presently, even if it would result in a 10% revenue increase for my employer (a very questionable result). I'm not so short-sighted as to sell my freedoms for a little extra cash; a profitable software company can be run without the likes of the DMCA or this CD-labeling scheme which the US is presently bullying other (supposedly sovereign) governments about.
Copyright is a Good Thing, yes; by promoting creative works it does a great deal in the public interest -- but like any good thing, it can be taken too far. Measures like this are most certainly too far.
I find this rather amusing. Wouldn't the logical solution to this problem be better security features in the currency?
Seriously, if colour copiers are that good, what's to stop somebody from just stealing one, or buying one with cash (and false ID if required)?
It's actually pretty nifty what security features the new Euro has, I bet the U.S. treasury could adopt some of those while still keeping the classic Slashdot theme for American dollars.
It is tempting, if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail. - Abraham Maslow
So where can I buy a "Made in the Ukraine" CDRW?
there are no stupid questions, but there are a lot of inquisitive idiots
I lived in Kiev, Ukraine for a year (95-96). Piracy of music and software was/is common and not considered unethical by the populace. There are laws against it, but they aren't enforced.
While I am against market control to the extent that industry is trying with DVD's (region encoding controlling which discs you can play and from where you can purchase them), I do believe that protection of intellectual property is required to provide a more stable environment in which to do business. What is going on in Ukraine, and other countries such as Russia, China and the rest of Asia, is directly damaging to America's interests. We are providing the capital for the software development, and yet others are reaping the rewards, in effect stealing our labor and capital. This is wrong. If we were a rogue state that did not respect international intellectual property conventions/laws I would feel differently. However, we are one of the most strict enforcers of copyright/patent laws, and feel we deserve the same in return. (yeah, I know, our patent office is a joke, but this has nothing to do with enforcement of law). Difficult thing is, countries which do not respect international intellectual property laws tend to have little or no intellectual property themselves, thus it is to their immediate economic benefit to steal, and we can't do anything in return except impose tarrifs on their products.
I do think Ukraine is being unfairly singled out, and that the main thieves of intellectual property, Russia and China, should have been targeted first. I can only think that this is due to the fact that Ukraine is one of the main recipients of U.S. foreign aid.
Just to end on a personal note, I do find myself conflicted when it comes to punishing people for pirating Microsoft IP. It is a struggle between my love of country, and hatred of Microsoft's business practices, but in the end, love of country wins out.
But - and you have obviously been lucky and privileged enough to have the luxury of ignorance on this point - in much of the world, people have had a bad history of actually being persecuted by actual police states. They often used a technique that is actually the main point of the article; licensed, traceable presses. In former East Bloc states (I know you weren't born before the fall of the Soviet Empire, so go ask your history teacher), typewriters were licensed. They had serial numbers, they were registered with the police, and they had sample pages stored on file to compare against any counter-revolutionary screeds. This way, if anyone criticised the state, it was possible to find and punish the misdoers.
The serial numbers discussed in the article are, in effect, Big Biz and the Gummint doing an end run around constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech. They are accomplishing what the East Bloc folks did with laws meant, allegedly, to PROTECT the interests of authors. They have put in place a massively intrusive mechanism for destroying privacy and created extremely effective tools for violating the rights of citizens. You don't know of any cases of these tools being used, but that's a poor guarantee of freedom. Don't throw away that mimeograph machine just yet.
And since you go for the ad hominem thing, I won't hold this last one back. Sure, he's paranoid, but you are a toady. Gimme a choice between a paranoid and a vicious whiner with his nose up the Man's ass, and guess which one I'll toss out of the lifeboat?
Expanding a vast wasteland since 1996.
Next thing we'll have telephone answering machines recording what phone numbers people are calling from....
...in short, we'll be living in a POLICE STATE.
Caller ID
video libraries recording who borrowed each book and when.....
Library card
Internet ads that track and record who saw them...
Cross-site cookies
hotel room doors that record every time each person goes in or out...
Key cards
cellphones that report every move we make to the authorities...
Universal 911
tollbooths that record every car that goes through them...
E-ZPass
guards in every airport demanding to see 'our papers' before we are permitted to travel in our own country...
Flagged for search when paying cash
Shouldn't that be present tense?
Nope, no sig
They didn't destabilize the while economy, but this is a more far-reaching legislative act that it appears.
As a fledgling country with a not-very-stable economy, they are obviously investing in the technology to produce items such as CD Blanks and Recorders. This technology has, it would seem, already been invested in, since without the capability to create non-conforming CD's, there would be no reason for this legislation.
Were they able to produce such items cheap enough, it might have been to the US consumer's advantage to purchase them from the Ukraine, instead of Taiwan, or China, or wherever. If for no other reason than Ukraine wouldn't be as susceptible to regional economy scales. And multiple source markets are always good leveraging tools in our economy.
However, the RIAA has spurred this legislation into being, effectively shutting down the chance for the Ukraine to export their goods to the US. After they apparently invested in the technology. Which means any money spent is now pretty much wasted.
This space for rent. Call 1-800-STEAK4U
Search for Counterfeit Deterrent Marking System.
Or see our old story, but several of the links are dead now.
Do you mean 'thousands' like in: "Thousands of people are starving every day because the US and Western Europe are so rich allready that poorer country's can never compete with them." ?
... "US Punishes self because Ukraine supports piracy".
After all, the Ukrainains aren't the ones with a huge surplus of productive capacity, the US is.
___
It's the end of my comment as I know it and I feel fine.
I just travelled to the USA. I saw first hand a huge amount of blind ignorance and arrogance when it comes to anything beyond your borders. Sad thing is, is that these nice Americans didn't even realize how offensive they are being. I thought to myself "One of these days, they're going to upset some foreign country so bad, that the USA will get a collective punch in the nose right back."
Whups, that already happened... Very sad, and not excusable. If a kid insults enough jocks at school, he's gonna get beat up. Sad, unexcusable, but there definately are preventative measures that could be taken.
I hope you learn the correct lessons. Being the toughest kid on the block shouldn't mean it's ok to thoughtlessly offend anyone you care to. Americans do this far more than they understand. It's time to re-learn the age old skill of diplomacy, understanding, and consideration of others.
Duh...to answer my own questions (and perhaps those of a few others) I found this blurb at cdrfaq.org...
Hacker Public Radio is our Friend
and interrupt all the (probably quite justified for many other reasons) hysteria against the RIAA and the gov't officials they own, but:
Stamped ID codes on the CD's are nothing new. Book, magazine, and newspaper publishers always identify themselves in their publications. Look down at the bottom of the table of contents in most magazines -- there's the publisher's name and address, among other information. A book will have the publisher's name on the title page, much more information on the reverse side of that page, and an ID # somewhere on the cover. This isn't some sinister plot to extend their monopoly on printed material, or for the gov't to control printing, but rather it's just good for business. You want more copies of that book or article -- here's where you go to buy them legally...
OTOH, the RIAA's belief that those ID codes will prevent piracy seems rather too naive for a business that routinely deals with rap singers and comes out of the deal with most of the money and no bullet holes. I'm sure the pirates will get the message from this Ukrainian action -- when you counterfeit CD's, also counterfeit some legitimate mfg's ID #...
[2] http://www.jj-johnson.com/copiers.htm
[3] http://www.c-prompt-dev.com/bulletin.0119.htm
[4] http://www.naqp.org/staging1/press/copier_fraud.h
[5] http://www.parascope.com/articles/0197/xerox.htm
Sheesh. Do you believe everything you read? You forgot this site.
-h-
Case in point.
__
Do ya feel happy-go-lucky, punk?
"And why is it that when the it is decided that some sort of multi-lateral standard is required, why is the US standard is the one that almost certainly adopted?"
Can you imagine if US standards of measurement would be applied to Science?
Instead of:
Meters you have Yards
Milimeters you have Inches
Centimeters you have eigths (and half the country can't do fractions..)
Where the hell did a foot come from?
Instead of Nanotechnology, you'd have pinkie toe technology.
Would anyone have a clue as to wafer size?
Sometimes when you see the U.S. coming, it IS best to just run for the hills, and it's NOT because of military might..
"I can't give you a brain, so I'll give you a diploma" - The Great Oz (blatently stolen sig)
Interested readers seeking background information on this subject may enjoy this 30-page excerpt from Questioned Documents: A Lawyer's Handbook by Jay Levinson, from Academic Press.
However, there are some very strong interests that want Trade with China, and frankly Ukraine doesn't have very much. Therefore China continues with Govt endorsed counterfeiting (some plants are under military control) and the Ukraines gets hit.
See my journal, I write things there
Extracted from this link.
You can find it in the spec for lots of copiers by searching the web for Counterfeit Deterrent Marking System.
It really pisses me off that we will get tough on Ukraine for not genuflecting to the American IP cartel (RIAA/MPAA), yet just days ago, grant PERMANENT most favored nation trade status to China.
China, after all, is a country that murdered enough people in the 20th Century to make Hitler look like an amateur. It's a country that forces women to have abortions, that jails religious leaders and condems them to death, that wants to hide it's citizens from the Internet...
Not only that, but just last year, China forced down a US plane over international waters, KIDNAPPED airmen, and tried to ransom them.
China is FAR more deserving of 100% tariffs than is Ukraine. But then, Ukraine isn't home to American megacorp sweatshops, and doesn't willingly supply slave labor to man them.
When will it end? How do we fight a war against the corporate IP cartel? How far will our government let it go?
The way I see it, all the way to the world of "Demolition Man" or "Rollerball", so long as our sheepizens keep voting for the same old parties.
Bending over for corporations is a bi-partisan effort. Both parties do it almost equally.
=== The price of freedom is eternal vigilance
It's going to come down to something akin to a Digital Boston Tea Party. The original BTP was an "enough-is-enough" protest against unjust taxes. Remember, those taxes were legal, but when enough people got pissed off about them, they staged a protest that made the Animal House parade mods seem pale by comparison.
In economic terms it's beginning to look like the recording industry, born in analog and transmogridifed into new digital clothes, is no longer a viable business model. Thus we have the spate of new laws to protect their interests and prolong their economic strength. The industry can no longer sustain its lifeblood without the help of artificial government laws and regulations. The atmosphere of legal bribery - political campaign donations and lobyists - has allowed them to pull off the DMCA, UCTIA and other patently absurd legislation.
The time is drawing near when nothing short of mass protest will suffice to throw off these usurpers of democracy and purveyors of digital tyrrany. I say COPY, COPY, COPY music. Then COPY some more. Don't be content with making backups for youself. Actively copy music and then MAKE AN EXTRA COPY AND GIVE IT TO A FRIEND. The music industry fears for their bottom line, despite numbers which suggest that casual copying and does not hurt their sales. Time to give them something to cry about.
About the only flaw I see in my plan is that there is way too much garbage out there that noone of moderately mature taste and sophistication would touch with a ten-foot pole. Time to show the bastards who's boss, and do it in ways that make their lawyers impotent and expose their paid whores in Washington for what they are. Strike a blow for freedom in America. When old business models can't stand up to modernization it's time for them to go.
My civil liberties are more important than some Robber Baron's paycheck, period.
This extends to the soveriegn rights of nations.
Also, it's at least understandable when the Robber Barons themselves advocate these sorts of police state measures. They are looking out for their own interests. However, it is quite pathetic when a mere peasant such as yourself rises in their defense.
Quite simply, the Titans don't need you.
Piracy has always been rampant. Yet despite this, media conglomerates and software publishers continue to thrive. So obviously your first stated article of faith is simply dead wrong.
Infact, much of Microsoft's current success is due to the tolerance of piracy. They just want to have their cake and eat it too now.
A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
For whatever it is worth, I flew to the US less than 3 weeks after the bombing.
I met lots of nice people, but I never stopped being amazed about why it so seldomly were asked why the US were being . It was all about how to deal with the perpetrators.
But maybe it was the fear of the hoover commission all over again among the public, and that no sign of fear must be visible.
..if there should be any doubt, I didn't like the attack on sep. 11th either..yet understand that I as a small foreigner, are vulnerable to the actions of the mighty giant, nomatter if the giant notices or not..and I don't like this dependency more than an American would be of an Englishman..
On Declan's website, here is the RIAA response to Gilmore--Don't cheer piracy! (RIAA words, not mine).
This is actually quite fitting, since the US are - alongside with China - amongst the 5 (in words: FIVE !) countrys worldwide that still have the death toll as a legal and operational means of punishment.
That statement is so misleading and outright false as to be completely farcical. Thanks for a good laugh, though!
Originally I'm from Ukraine and have somehow mixed feelings about the piracy issue. Just some comments:
1) Yes, the piracy level is really insane there in Ukirane. The price of "a software" is $2 per CD. No matter what it is - Windows, Oracle, any games, etc. Just $2, and you can buy it in kiosks at any shopping mall, near almost every bus stop, etc. The situation with music and video is similar. Most of the music now is in MP3 format, so 1-2 disc set covers all the albums of an artist. The discs also contain an MP3 player (Winamp usually) plus album lyrics, pictures, etc. The same $2 per disc.
2) I talked to some people selling the pirated stuff. From what they told me, almost all the software CDs are made in China. The video and audio discs usually come from Russia, China and Bulgaria. Not Ukraine.
3) Average monthly salary there is about $50-100; individuals could not buy the licensed software anyway. It's not an excuse, of course; JFYI.
4) Ukrainian companies is different story. They do buy licensed software. I'd say, the piracy level in corporations there is on about the same level as here in the US.
Just so you know, it's only the auto insurance that's compulsory. Home insurance is an open market, but SGI happens to be a good deal. One of the few well-run government anythings that I've ever dealth with.
Endless arguments over trivial contradictions in books written by ignorant savages to explain thunder in the dark.
Stop posting lameass "boy this sucks" complaints on Slashdot, and, if you don't like this, complain.
This attitude is half the problem, it implies that any tenable solution comes via working thru the system - what a crock! The only way people are going to get real results is thru outright civil disobedience of intellectual property law.
When you just talk, that's all you're going to get back - bullshit. I am so sick and tired of self-proclaimed self-rightous clowns wanting me and others to direct our efforts to something so useless and so beholden to those who want to controll us. They would have Martin Luther King go on letter writing campaigns to klan funded congreeemen instead of gatherings and sit outs. No thank you.
Anybody who wants some real results will get far better milage by defying copyright laws, putting freenet servers on their systems, and doing the things you like doing for and with "free" (as in freedom) software as much as possible.
the measuring standards don't matter as long as they are a known standard.
its all in what you're used to.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
When was the last time you were asked for proof of ID when buying a colour laser? If you are going to print out your own bank notes, just make sure you do not use the same printer to print anything that remains on-site, then junk the printer.
Of course, be sure you can trust your OS:
"No officer, I hve no idea how my MS Passport number ended up on this $100 bill... honest..."
Xix.
"Everything is adjustable, provided you have the right tools"
I once spent 6 years of my life fixing photocopiers (Thank god I write code now). I can say that the comment above is absolutly not true. The technology used in all black and white photocopiers, and in all color copiers that use toner rather than a photographic process, does not have a high enough resolution to accuratly embed a serial number into the "pixels" of a copy.
It's hard enough just to get the black areas dark enough and the white areas bright enough much less having to worry about modifying individual pixels.
Moreover, most photocopiers work by shining a bright light on the original and using the reflected light off the page to effect the static charge on a selenium covered drum. The original is not scanned, modified, and re-broadcast onto the drum.
The new digital copiers do scan the original one time and then use a laser to "print" the page on the drum from memory, but then you have to ask yourself:
It's unfortunate that Gilmore makes these outrageous claims in an otherwise well thought out article. It seems to push him from the "well-informed protector of our rights" to "crackpot". I wish he would write about what he understands instead of resulting to conspiracy theories. There is enough evil in the RIAA without having to make up conspiracies.
Is there any way to prevent this little function from working correctly?
1. Pay cash for the drive.
2. Don't register the product. Of course, if they get physical possession of the drive, this won't work, but short of that, it's foolproof.
As a Canadian citizen, I am fully used to taking it up the ass
So, that's what they mean by back bacon.
Or one billion potential customers.
Best Slashdot Co
You know, some whiners have spent the last few months telling me we're starving the good people of Iraq. I've told them to bug off, that it wasn't our fault the Iraqi government wanted to destroy us and we couldn't afford to waste "aid" that would only wind up in the hands of a corrupt government instead of its people.
Now there's some room for disagreement over it, but I felt like it was reasonable to support the U.S. government's stance because of the way the government of Iraq is. To be blunt, they're evil and untrustworthy. I don't think it makes us evil to say we don't want to support Saddam Hussein.
But we're going to do the same thing to Ukraine --- because they're COPYING CD's?????
Again, as in the case of Sklyarov, I wonder why we feel people in other countries should obey our laws. I don't obey theirs.
Secession is the right of all sentient beings.
Like if Ukraine will give a shit... After all, Europe is far closer and has a bigger market that is unencumbered by the silly prejudices americans harbor towards everything foreign...
Secondly, there are parts of the world that have very good reason for hatred of corporate America, as well as for US foreign policy, shaped as it is by corporate America. Don't dismiss this as envy, because it ain't. Even some of us in the comfy west, in countries that support the US, and enjoy the same lifestyle made possible by the exploitative values of corporate culture, can see and deplore the viler excesses committed in the name of profit.
Thirdly, I find it ironic that you claim that all those who hate the US are evil, envious factions, and then immediately go on to list a few areas where the US is currently thrashing the bejeesus out of the locals. Those areas are not threatening the US. Why then should the US want to shaft them, and don't you think some of those locals might understandably feel a trifle piqued that the US is throwing its (very heavy) weight around in a quarrel that's not really its concern? You can talk about justice and all if you like, but there are too many counter-examples, of fights where the US has supported the side that's clearly *unjust*, for that to be credible.
And no, those people in New York did *not* deserve to die. There's no justification for that atrocity. But they're not the only ones. Others are dying, in equally objectionable circumstances. And I think western governments owe it to everyone to ensure that such a situation doesn't happen again, and one of the most effective ways of doing that is to prevent the circumstances leading to it: that is, by trying to understand *why* those guys were driven to do such a thing (note that understanding does not == justifying). Calling them names does nothing: if the hatred continues, those that follow will just find other ways to achieve the same end.
Finally, a post with some sense.
In an effort to get off my lazy duff and write correspondance, how can I figure out who voted for this crazy piece of crap? I dont wanna go off on my congressman if he did the right thing and voted no. ya know?
I dont think this is the case at all. Most ordinary muslims that i've met are perfectly nice people and more than tolerant of other people's religions and beliefs.
/. comment could explain, but imagine this situation:
Perhaps the reason the arab world dislikes the usa is something to do with $1.8BN Annual Military Aid to Israel. Especially when Israel turn round and use that money to attack palestinian settlements.
I appreciate that the whole israel - palestine dispute is far more complex than a
You are a arab who has to watch isreal destroy parts of your home town with american made and paid for missiles, naturally you'd feel some resentment towards israel and the usa
Or perhaps you can better relate to:
You are an american who has seen the horror of hijacked aircraft reigning down on one of your major cities, naturally you'd feel some resentment to the militant side of islam
Personally i find both situations horrific and unacceptable. Yet one is an act of terrorism and the other is an act of war - just depends which side of the coin you are on.
The US and the Ukraine reached an agreement in June 2000 for the Ukraine to take steps to end the production of unauthorized CDs. In a year and a half, the Ukraine govt hasn't done anything, so in retaliation for not abiding by the agreement, the US slaps a tarrif that makes certain Ukrainian goods. This will directly hurt those in the US that were importing Ukrainian products. They will have to find new suppliers or eat a big price increase. Unless there's a glut of the product they are selling and/or another producer steps up their supply to replace what US buyers aren't getting from Ukraine, I would think the Ukraine would find other markets for their goods (ie Germany). Other countries do this sort of thing all the time, so why the uproar? Because the RIAA is involved?
Isn't _this_ the sort of piracy that the RIAA & compatriots should be gunning for instead of restricting normal citizens' fair use rights? Money lost by individuals copying CDs is probably a drop in the bucket compared to the mass commercial duplicating outfits that may or may not be backed by organized crime. I want to be able to create duplicates or archives of the stuff that I've paid for. However, I don't think it's in the same ethical ballpark as an outfit that's creating thousands of duplicates and selling them as the real product. Actually, I'd like the pirating of music and commercial software to be curtailed if it would make individuals and companies look at the price that they are paying for the 'real thing' and support Free Software and/or locally developed software and music to avoid the high costs. Microsoft got the market it does in several areas of the world by ignoring piracy until they had the lion's share wrapped up in legal and illegal installations. Piracy helped wipe out or limit the acceptance of local/free offerings (ie why bother with free linux if Win* is available on the corner for practically nothing?).
the good ground has been paved over by suicidal maniacs
In case someone feels like telling the USTR what they think about this:
l
http://www.ustr.gov/about-ustr/contactustr.shtm
By Telephone:
USTR Individual Offices
USTR Public Information Line (TOLL-FREE)
1-888-473-USTR (8787)
By Mail:
United States Trade Representative
600 17th Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20508
United States of America
By E-Mail:
questions regarding information on our site can be directed to contactustr@ustr.gov. (Your e-mail will be directed to the appropriate office.)
If J.K.R wrote Windows: Puteulanus fenestra mortalis!
When a University professor makes $700 a year, do they really expect anyone to pay $200 for a copy of Windows? A single legitimate DVD is roughly equivilent to a month's salary for most people. I'm not sure how you can get $300 million dollars in lost revenue when most people can't even afford a computer.
I was going to put a sig here, but I had already submitted the message.
This is the second step towards the time where developing countries have equal footing with those who depend on the notion of imaginary property. The first step was countries like Brazil legislating mandatory patent licenses for certain drugs so they could produce their own at a far lower cost than the prices American drug companies demanded.
You can also see it in games like the one China's playing where Linux gets preloaded on PC's and buyers stop at the next shop to pick up a pirated copy of Windows anyway. I'd rather see them keeping Linux, but either way, they're not stuck paying a huge American company a tribute on every locally built PC.
If the Ukraine gives in, then it'll take a little longer. But I bet we see more of this as high tech moves into Africa and the other former Soviet states. There's not so much of a difference between bleeding edge and last year's gear anymore, except in price.
How long before the US bombs someone for pirating Windows? How long 'til the major producers of our clothes and VCR's start openly ignoring American patents and copyrights, knowing we're not set up for manufacturing anymore and are screwed without them?
It's a dangerous game, basing your whole economy on the idea that other countries are too afraid of you to copy your stuff for pennies on the dollar. It only works until they're not afraid of you anymore...
Being a hypocrite is not a bad thing, as you appear to imply. Different situations require different resolutions. Only the young and naive would fail to comprehend that.
The problems with trade in the Ukraine are very different than with China. China has also been called on intellectual property issues as well.
When you'll master the concept of paragraphs, I'll bother reading your prose. But not tonight, dear, I have a headache.