Slashdot Mirror
EFF Warns Against RIAA Amnesty Program
kpogoda writes "Check out the latest warnings from the Electronic Frontier Foundation regarding the recent actions from the RIAA. If you or anyone you know was contemplating handing over information to the RIAA, you may think twice."
How's that song go? What have you done for me lately?
So once again, I need to say, visit my site and get Star Trek punk rock songs for free. Recorded live to 2 track but hey, they're free and they're about Star Trek. Man oh man, I'm a geek. I wanted a slashdot sticker for my bass for when we were filmed for Trekkies 2, but I never got one.
riding round the world on an old motorcycle
U.S. privacy group the Electronic Frontier Foundation is warning individuals not to admit to illegally trading copyright music online, even if the music industry offers a reprieve from its anti-piracy campaign, saying that users could still be subject to legal action.
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The EFF issued a statement Friday in response to several published reports that the Recording Industry Association of America was set to launch an "amnesty" program this week, in which it would excuse users who swapped copyright music online if they erased the music from their computers, destroyed all hard copies, sent in a picture of themselves in a goatse-like pose and promised not to engage in future online piracy.
"Stepping into the spotlight to admit your guilt is probably not a sensible course for most people sharing music files online, especially since the RIAA doesn't control many potential sources of lawsuits," EFF Staff Attorney Wendy Seltzer said in the statement.
Change In Tactics
The RIAA, which had been targeting peer-to-peer file trading networks in its efforts to battle online piracy, has recently set its sights on individual file traders. The association has filed over 1,000 information subpoenas, asking Internet service providers and universities to hand over data on users thought to be illegally trading music online.
The stepped-up campaign has sparked concern among some privacy groups, individuals, and ISPs that are reluctant to hand over private customer data. Verizon Services, for example, fought for a year to protect the identities of four of its customers but lost its appeal in June.
In August an anonymous Californian woman filed a motion challenging a subpoena asking her ISP to hand over her identity. The case, refered to as the "Jane Doe" motion, was the first time an individual has struck back against the subpoena campaign.
New Plan
With criticism of the music industry's latest legal tactics increasing, reports surfaced last week that the RIAA would be offering an amnesty program for individual file traders.
An RIAA representative refused to comment on the reports Monday. The group has scheduled a press conference call to announce "anti-piracy initiatives" at 12 p.m. Eastern time Monday, however.
In addition to RIAA officials, "leaders from throughout the music community" will be participating in the call, an RIAA press advisory said.
The RIAA announcement comes in the wake of news that the U.S. Congress will be holding hearings on the subpoena provision of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which has been the legal backbone of the RIAA's subpoena campaign.
According to the EFF, 95 organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union and major ISPs, sent letters to congressional leaders applauding the hearings because of their concerns with the provision, which they say invade the privacy of Internet users without due process of law.
The RIAA, for its part, has held that the 1998 DMCA clearly lays out the right of copyright holders to file subpoenas seeking the identity of alleged infringers.
Addressing the issue recently, Matt Oppenheim, senior vice president of business and legal affairs at the RIAA, said that courts have already ruled that individuals are not anonymous when they publicly distribute music online.
Insightful? Come on...how about troll
You do realise that the RIAA will win this war, don't you? :-)
So by win do you mean never having a large majority of people listen to any of their prepackaged crap? This time I cant help but feed the troll...I share PLENTY of files online, and the plain fact is all of it is LEGAL. There is not ONE single piece of music I own, or listen to that will support that trade group or their member labels. Sure its a hard line position, but Im thankful that my standard for what is good music has gone up by orders of magnitudes since that time. What am I missing again? when I turned off the crap it was all brittney spears and eminem.
Although your rephrasing another party on their own viewpoints is a little presumptious, its not all that suprising. FACT is, the statement is not to ADMIT to illegally sharing files. Its a strongarm tactic, nothing new. If you are arrested and cave into the threats of cops on the beat and admit to a crime just to get them to leave you alone even though you are innocent, you can still be tried and found guilty based on that confession. The legal ignorance in this country is frightening.
Hmm, are you saying that Amnesty International is evil or something?
It has come to my attention that you completely inhale the shit out of goatse's ass. Read on for more about this fascinating topic.
The world went into shock a few weeks ago when goatse.info reported the results of a study which concluded that inhaling shit is a very dangerous pastime, one that no one is advised to take up. Eventually, everyone adapted to the new state of affairs and began inhaling other things. Almost everyone, that is. But not you! According to my records, you still inhale shit!
Why?! What the fuck is wrong with you?!
You moron, you idiot, you imbecile, you gay nigger ! Arg! You make me so fucking sick! FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU.
The EFF is a group whose aim is to deprive people from the rights they hold over their property. They often come up with concepts such as 'fair use' but, hey, at the end one is clear: EFF used to be about free speech -now they represent what's better for their pockets. Is lesser rights for you better for their pockets? then you're their enemy.
Please answer me this: If you plan to digitalise your work and try to make a profit out of it, would the EFF be happy about that?
Not going to work. The people who support record companies don't have a brain in their heads.
It's the truth, don't get mad at me. Case in point, Brittany Spears opens her mouth saying we should just support the president in whatever he decides to do. And not a single soul under the age of 18 tells that moron to shut her pie-hole.
Translation: Don't Dixie-Chick me, be a sheep and buy my records.
Whatever happened to rebellion and youth? Music fans are now a bunch of fucking sheep. Shut the fuck up and take your soma. And listen to my Muuzaak. Bleat!
The truth hurts.
every company that "dares" to shut down bootleggers that sell their illegal goods on the streets as well?
Kazaa is one icarnation of the digital black market. I think it's disgusting how Slashdot rallies around people who steal (copyright infringment is a form of theft) other people's creations and then distribute them over the black market as though it's some nobel thing.
Yes, right. I expect you all to urge the EFF to pay the legal fees for all those people selling bootleg DVDs and everything else on street corners as well.
Wake UP! Complaining that they're trying to stop LEGAL trading is one thing. But they're not doing that. If you make your own music and distribute it, the RIAA isn't going to bat an eye. They're rightfully cracking down on the digital black market just as they and every other company has been cracking down on the nondigital black market that's prevelant over in the east and available everywhere else as well.
Nintendo has been busting people for decades for distributing illegal ROMs and cartridges in all forms. Sites that distribute ROMs get shut down almost as fast as they pop up. Sony and every other digital content creator has been doing the same thing.
Putting up illegal MP3s on Kazaa is exactly no different than hosting them on a web-site except it's slightly less difficult to be tracked and prosecuted for your crime.
If they can fool the stupid into giving themselves up for prosecution, good for them. If you're dumb enough to commit a crime and then dumb enough to fall for a ploy and end up getting arrested, too bad. The sympathy line is back that away. Cops have been doing this sort of thing for years.
"You've won a prize!"
Criminal shows up.
"JAIL TIME! YAY!"
The EFF is perfectly fine giving people money to ensure those who are accused due process, a fair trial and just punishment if they are convicted but it should in no way shape or form reimburse the conviced for their losses incured for participating in the black market.
Ben
Work Safe Porn
Things are not as valuable as a person, no matter how much of a scumbag the person is.
Ah, now there, you have it wrong.
Humans have no value. We have made it as the single most populous species on Earth, by a a factor of 3 over the second most populous (rats, who only made it that high because they do well in the shadow of human settlements).
We have no value. Any one of us can dissapear, with no real loss to the rest of the universe. You could even wipe out four or five billion of us (as long as that didn't include all of one gender), with no real loss to the world - That would still leave more people alive than existed at any time prior to the 17th century (you know, one of those major times of unrest when people realize that if they didn't find a way to increase food production, most of them would starve, leading to such Modest Proposals as Swift's to deal with overpopulation?)
So no, your fundamental premise does not hold true. We have no reason to allow someone to threaten our safety by inquiring why they've entered our house without our permission, because the loss of that person means absolutely nothing. One more walking bag of pondscum placed a safe distance underground, and a thousand other walking bags of pondscum get the message not to break into my house.