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Copyright Law Used to Shut Down Site

Posted by Hemos on from the bad-usage dept.

driptray writes "The Sydney Morning Herald reports that an Australian mining industry group has used copyright laws to close a website that parodied a coal industry ad campaign. A group known as Rising Tide created the website using the slogan "Rising sea levels: brought to you by mining" in response to the mining industry's slogan of "Life: brought to you by mining". The mining industry claimed that the "content and layout" of the parody site infringed copyright, but when Rising Tide removed the copyrighted photos and changed the layout, the mining industry still lodged a complaint. Is this a misuse of copyright law in order to stifle dissent?"

5 of 206 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Why do I always answer rhetorical question? by Russ+Nelson · · Score: 4, Funny

    I don't know. Why do you always answer rhetorical questions? Are you stupid or something?

    --
    Don't piss off The Angry Economist
  2. Re:A little OT... by Minwee · · Score: 4, Funny

    Yeah, as everyone knows, Mining brings you Masonry and Bronze Working, which in turn gets you Metal Casting, Iron Working, Compass and Machinery. There's nothing about 'Life' in there at all.

  3. Re:well.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny
    Yes, in the US, nobody would complain if someone was imitating their slogan, as US laws are fair and balanced.

    </straight face>
  4. Re:Australia is not a part of the US by hansamurai · · Score: 4, Funny

    Yeah... it's more of a British prison island, right?

    --
    Reviewing just the first hour of video games.
  5. Re:Walk the Walk. by Petersko · · Score: 3, Funny

    Computer aren't built of coal, dumbass.

    Perhaps not... but I believe in Australia they are, in fact, powered by coal.