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Telcos Stand Against RIAA
john82 writes "In an interesting and insightful article, NetworkWorld Fusion discusses how lawyers for SBC and Verizon are fighting the RIAA's attempts to monitor their customers. As we've heard before, RIAA wants the telcos to report when users download any copyrighted material. Lawyers for SBC and Verizon are fighting back. They also claim that the RIAA is trying to grant themselves powers that are outside of even the Patriot Act. Now where have heard that before? NWFusion also points out that RIAAs handwaving, threats, tantrums have less to do with protecting the rights of musicians, than with protecting the revenue stream created by an out-of-date distribution system." In other RIAA news, taped2thedesk writes "According to the Washington Post and Ars Technica, the RIAA will now contact P2P users before suing them." The RIAA's not so bad, they'll settle out of court over the phone, if you don't mind paying up instead of getting a lawyer.
So does this mean that we *don't* hate telcos this week ?
Is this also the week that eggs are bad for us ?
Um, I'd like to see the shell script that runs on networking equipment that determines which packets are copyrighted, which are legitimate, and which are porn.
According to the Washington Post and Ars Technica, the RIAA will now contact P2P users before suing them.
"Hello, SBC Customer Service? Yes, I'd like to order Call Screening for my -- why, yes, that is the number I'd like to block. How did you know? Hmm, three days? Fine. Thank you very much." *click*
The coolest voice ever.
I usually don't say nice things about telcos.
I, for one, will start welcoming our telco overlords.
- Call people, telling them the RIAA is going to sue them back to the bronze age unless they fork over an arbitrary amount of cash.
- Make it an automated message, calling out with caller ID info blocked, so people can't respond except to the address provided in the message.
- Checks roll in.
- Angry rants also roll in; these may be safely discarded.
- Profit!
Voila: no reliance on the old revenue stream. Just keeping up with the times by switching to an IPL[1] business model. It's the new wave -- catch it!(tm)[1] Intellectual Property Litigation.
"A great democracy must be progressive or it will soon cease to be a great democracy." --Theodore Roosevelt
Microsoft is the most successful company in the world. You think the record companies and SCO are really worried about being hated?
Don't blame me; I'm never given mod points.
The RIAA's not so bad, they'll settle out of court over the phone, if you don't mind paying up instead of getting a lawyer.
... Just call this 1-900 number and your settlement fee will appear on your next phone bill. Paying the RIAA can be that easy!
Arr Ie Aye Aye Suing Department, please do not hang up as our collect call to your phone is very important to our revenue. This call may be monitored for further financially benefiting lawsuits.
To check your penalties amount, press 1.
To pay your penalties by credit card, press 2.
To pay your penalties by check, press 3.
To pay your penalties by organs, press 4.
To answer in court, translate "YOUAREDEAD" on your touch tone phone.
To speak with a suing lawyer, press 666.
To repeat the options again, say "I confess, I am guilty".
Otherwise, stay on the line and wait for an even bigger lawsuit