Record Labels Release Software To Combat Piracy

mrsalty writes "CNET reports that IFPI representatives are pushing a new piece of software to delete filesharing programs. It will also 'search computers for music and movies and remove any illegal copies'." From the article: "Digital File Check is easy to use and can help people prevent their employees, children and others from illegally downloading and swapping movies ... It could be especially useful for parents who want to encourage their children to enjoy music responsibly on the Internet ... It is free, voluntary and for private use only and does not tip off any antipiracy organizations."

Comments

It must use magic!

[Inkieminstrel]

How, pray tell, does it tell the difference between bits that come from my CDs that I own versus those which come from CDs that others own? I believe one of those copies is perfectly legal.

Re:It must use magic!

[techstar25]

It doesn't try to determine which is legal and which isn't. It only compiles a list of ALL the media files on your computer, and then compiles a list of all the media file in your "shared" folder. Any deleting has to be done by the user.

Re:It must use magic!

[interiot]

The EULA is short and scary. In summary, his tool is designed to rid yourself of illegal files, but please back the illegal files up first (oh, and we blame the "unpredictable file sharing programs" for any damage).

1. IFPI's suppliers have developed the Software solely to perform the limited functions described in this license under these terms of use. IFPI, its national groups and its suppliers do not make any other warranties or guaranties about the Software, its operation or results, and the Software is thus provided 'AS IS' and 'WITH ALL FAULTS'.

2. ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR OTHER TERMS (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR PARTICULAR PURPOSE) ARE EXCLUDED.

3. Given that the Software is provided at no charge, the downloading, installation and use of the Software is done at your own discretion and risk. Given the unpredictable behavior of some file-sharing programs, you should always retain a back up of important programs and files on your computer when installing or using software like this.

4. In no event shall IFPI, its national groups, its Software or other suppliers, or endorsing parties be liable to you or any third party for any damages, whether direct, indirect, incidental, special, punitive, consequential or other damages of any kind. Consumers' statutory rights are unaffected.

5. It is your responsibility to comply with the law and the terms of this license. The user will indemnify and hold IFPI, its national groups, suppliers and endorsing parties harmless from any claim or demand, and damages and costs arising thereof, made by any third party due to or arising out of the user's violation of the law or this license.

Remove illegal copies???

[jarich]

And how do they know what an illegal copy looks like? Are they deleting every song on my computer that doesn't have DRM on it?

So the kid with 20 gigs of music he copied off of his CD collection is going to be ~really~ upset when he finds out his Mom ran this program on his computer and wiped out his ~legal~ music collection.

Yeah right...

[Spy der Mann]

"It is free, voluntary and for private use only and does not tip off any antipiracy organizations."

When you release the source code, I might believe you.

Re:OH MY GOSH!

[chrismcdirty]

I'd like to know how it differentiates between a legal file and an illegal file. Would it delete my podcasts of a local radio show that are perfectly legal, but distributed in mp3 format? Would it delete a ripped copy of a DVD that I created from a DVD recorder. Would it delete any movie files (mpeg, wmv, avi, mov) I have stored, regardless of their content? Or will it actually perform hashes on every single file stored on the computer that has an extension that could deem it illegal?