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DVD Jon to work for Michael Robertson
GuNgA-DiN writes "Jon Lech Johansen, the 21-year-old Norwegian media hacker nicknamed DVD Jon, is moving to San Diego to work for maverick tech entrepreneur Michael Robertson in what can only be described as the most portentous team-up since Butch met Sundance. "I have no idea what I'll be doing, but I know it will be reverse engineering, and I'm sure it will be interesting," Johansen told Wired News during a Friday stopover in San Francisco. Robertson's website reveals that they are working on a new project and all he said was: "Oboe is the code name for a significant new project we have underway that will launch before the end of the year. It's as momentous as anything I've ever done in my technical career, but I won't say more since I despise vaporware. I know this project will be even better with Jon on board.""
Hulk'in Halloween Display/Webcam is up
He should stay out of the US. We don't need him becoming another Dmitry Sklyarov.
Cyric Zndovzny at your service.
Moving to the US...
Officer: Welcome to America, sir
Jon: It's a trap!
[Brief pause] Officer: You are under arrest for crimes against the DMCA.
now he won't be able to reverse engineer anynthing that circumvents the copy protection on Blu-Ray.
If you don't know what AltaVista is (was), get off my lawn.
"All I know is it will involve reverse engineering"
Despite the fact that reverse engineering is legal for plenty of abstract instances, there's only a few cases where it's legal (in the US) to reverse engineer to compete/modify/upgrade (with) a product.
I'm guessing this 'Oboe' thing is doomed to fail, regardless of how 'legit' it is, it's going to be blockaded by legal barrierers and appeals and whatnot.
That's assuming they're using the reverse engineering to enter a market and compete with another services, if it's something completely new and doesn't compete with other services (at least directly), I'll change my tune.
I'll subscribe to Slashdot when I see a month without a dupe, a typo, or an article the "editors" didn't read.
Doesn't that just give the big boys someone to sue that has more money?
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Being able to play DVDs on Linux seems pretty productive and useful to me.
The Farewell Tour II
The WIRED story is here. It is more indepth then the WSJ article.
He's just going to get arrested isn't he? He's clearly comitted crimes under the DMCA; more so than Dmitry Skylarov, and look what happened to him. I think this is a really bad idea.
But there is already something called an Oboe.
A doublereed, soprano range instrument with a conical bore (slightly expanding diameter from reed to bell). It has a nasal, but mellow and poignant, tone.
Honestly though I don't see how Lindows + DVD + reverse engineering = profit?!
~jennifer.k~
Dmitry was the first person I thought of too - seriously Jon, stay out! I'm not kidding. You'll wind up in jail. Doesn't matter if what you did was legal in your own country or not. The Media Mafia does NOT care. They'll have you locked up. These guys own Senators and they make the rules.
No offer they've made could possibly be worth the risk. Don't do it.
Weaselmancer
rediculous.
If he's going to be doing "reverse engineering", why on earth would he come to the place on planet Earth where he is most likely to wind up in jail for doing so?
Why not hook him up with a VPN and have him work out of his current home? You know, some place far far away where he can't wind up in jail for DCMA violations?
You don't need your physical body to be in the US to work for a US company, you know. Keep your body somewhere where it can't get thrown in jail.
Weaselmancer
rediculous.
Ah yes, a code word.
Prosecuting counsel: "Moreover he is, Your Honor, a player of the pink oboe."
(Judge faints, courtroom erupts in uproar)
Las qué passoun
tournoun pas maï
Why don't we just set up the "Free Jon Lech Johansen" fund now? Will save time later.
For the love of God, please learn to spell "ridiculous"!!!
Is that it will blow.
C17H21NO4
"In Norway, you have the same laws (as in the United States) now," he says, "so it makes no difference if I'm doing my work here or there."
A post a day keeps productivity at bay.
The Wired article makes a few things much more clear then the original article. It would stop this constant posting of "oh no Jon, don't move to the land of the DMCA" because it tells how Norway has adopted the EU's version of the DMCA. The original article only mentions this in passing at the end.
Also it tells more about Robertson and his previous battles with the content industry.
If Johansen goes on now to help make legitimate programs that will help change the face of content distribution and digital media, then I think this is better then waging guerrila warfare on content producers. I think DVD Jon made a good choice for himself, and probably for the good of digital entertainment.
"how can they call it a MINE if everything here is THEIRS?!?!" -Straight Jacket
From what I have read of the various affairs where he was implicated, he never was found guilty of anything in his homeland. So his record should be blank. I don't think he can be prosecuted in US if he is cautious. I believe the same was true for Skylarov and that they only could charge him when he made a presentation about circumvention techniques on US soil. I hope Jon checked his status and the US regulation with a lawyer before immigrating anyway.
The Wise adapts himself to the world. The Fool adapts the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the Fool.
Although Michael Robertson is known for things like Lindows, it seems that he's currently more excited about SIPphone and his Gizmo Project. I would guess that he's more interested in connecting that tool to the world to make a Skype killer. It's already got IP Phone, Jabber chat, and links to Google maps. Perhaps they're ready to reverse engineer some chat protocols for integration into a Jabber server? If only my crystal ball were working...
The weird part is that I can feel productive even when I'm doomed.
He is taking a well-deserved rest.
He'll be back as a higly-moderated first-post in a duplicate story near you real soon.
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
That's all well and good, except that Norway isn't part of the EU, and thus is not under any obligations whatsoever to comply with any "EU directives".
Just so you know. Not all of Europe is in the EU. Here's a link: European Member States.
It's a shame you were modded as funny instead of insightful, because you are dead right.
It's a manifestation of low self esteem really. Some people are sheep and *need* to have heros to follow.
Well, the techie in me believes that you always give a project a secret code name that represents some attribute of the nature of the project... (or is that the evil genius in me)?
I looked around for data on the Oboe (ok, I went right to Google then to the Wiki) and found this intriging entry:
"Whoever would overthrow the liberty of a nation must begin by subduing the freeness of speech."--Benjamin Franklin
From Robertsons email...
Last Saturday, the Wall Street Journal ran a front page story about Jon relocating to the United States. After that, he got plenty of job offers from some of the biggest names in the technology business. I talked to him over lunch today and asked if he wanted to work at those other companies. "Not really," he replied in a typical minimalist Scandinavian-style reply, forcing me to ask why not. "I want to work on open systems, which is why I came to you."
Sounds good to me.
Why do we keep wasting our time paying attention to Robertson's antics? He's not much of an innovator and he's a terrible businessman. He consistently makes the wrong decisions, both in business and in the legal gambits he inevitably gets himself entangled in.
mp3.com was his one true pioneering moment. The my.mp3.com site allowed you to put a CD in your drive and have mp3 versions of the music you owned instantly unlocked in their library. There was security to ensure that only one person was logged into any account, and that you had a physical copy of the disc you were unlocking. And of course, the RIAA sued them for it. And instead of sticking to his guns, Robertson settled, inviting even more lawsuits and eventually bankrupting the company and forcing him to sell it to Universal, who gutted and subsequently abandoned it.
LindowsOS had to be renamed Linspire -- again because Robertson wouldn't stand his ground after poking "the man" in the eye.
This is a man who consistently rocks the boat to garner attention, then steps down when anyone calls him on it. This is yet another move designed to make public waves without actually accomplishing anything. He's not one who makes sound business and legal decisions. I just hope he doesn't drag DVD-Jon down with him.
Intersting tibit the largest Norwegian community outside of Norway is in Guadalajara, Mexico.
This may be true but, I'd be surprised if it really were. I thought only the US had the DMCA.
And Europe has the EUCD, aka Euro-DMCA. The directive was approved in 2002 (2001?) and implemented in Norway this summer due to the EEA agreement with EU, most of EU has it as well by now. We managed to get an even odder twist in, because it made a huge media thing as "the MP3 law". The law states:
"Bestemmelsen i første ledd skal heller ikke være til hinder for privat brukers tilegnelse av lovlig anskaffet verk på det som i alminnelighet oppfattes som relevant avspillingsutstyr."
Translated:
"The first paragraph is also not to hinder private users' use of legally acquired work on what is in common recognized as relevant playback equipment."
Of course, they completely ignored that part when it comes to creation and distribution of "circumvention devices". So the current state of making any fair use is:
USA: Distributing tools illegal - Circumvention illegal - Copyright legal.
Norway: Distributing tools illegal - Circumvention legal - Copyright legal.
They did another nice end-run around consumer rights. Right now, I think that fight is not going to be heard. The legal battle for fair use is completely lost in the war between copyright holders and pirates.
Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
They are reverse engineering iTunes. I'd be willing to bet on it.
"Here Lies Philip J. Fry, named for his uncle, to carry on his spirit"
[ ] Winter in Norway
[X] Winter in San Diego
This issue is a bit more complicated than you think.
Read the article, he's not going to the U.S., guys. He's going to California.
For his paycheck, they told him he'd have to have his memory wiped at the end of each job.
Michael Robertson: What happen ?
DVD Jon: Somebody set up us the bomb.
Michael Robertson: What you say !!
Officer: You have no chance to survive make your time.
$5 / month hosted VPS on linux = awesome!
Noob.
No, our system is quite nice really compared to the US. Being a lawyer I might be biased - but I believe we have a just and fair system for our citizens. Big companies don't enjoy any special rights here - other than having the money to hire the best lawyers. Public defenders are not that bad at all. And there is significant support from the government should you need legal help - it will only cost money if you want to hire something above the level of a qualified representative. It's free if you can't afford to pay for legal assistance [when defending yourself]. If you want to take an issue to court it's another matter - then again it's your choice and your risk.