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Leaked ACTA Treaty to Outlaw P2P?

miowpurr writes to tell us that a draft of the ACTA (Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement) has been posted on Wikileaks. Among others, Boing Boing's Cory Doctorow has weighed in on the possible ramifications of this treaty. "Among other things, ACTA will outlaw P2P (even when used to share works that are legally available, like my books), and crack down on things like region-free DVD players. All of this is taking place out of the public eye, presumably with the intention of presenting it as a fait accompli just as the ink is drying on the treaty."

22 of 387 comments (clear)

  1. technologically feasible? by circletimessquare · · Score: 3, Interesting

    can someone come along and say "you can serve", and "you can request", and keep and monitor that separation? seems rather daunting

    otherwise, if the status quo is two way traffic flow, p2p traffic can be obfuscated in such a way that it is hard to detect and hard to isolate from "acceptable" traffic

    so i think all these laws do is breed stronger p2p apps

    --
    intellectual property law is philosophically incoherent. it is your moral duty to ignore it or sabotage it
  2. Time to get some people on record by grizdog · · Score: 3, Interesting
    This would be a good question for the candidates (I apologize for my US-centric point of view, but the idea applies everywhere), and not just the presidential ones.


    Can we gather a list like this and ask candidates to comment on it, like the groups interested in abortion or taxes or the environment do? Or is that outside the scope of /.?

  3. Who is really behind ACTA? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

    "Who is really behind ACTA? Follow the money:

    Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA)[4]

            Top four campaign contributions for 2006:

                    Time Warner $21,000
                    News Corp $15,000
                    Sony Corp of America $14,000
                    Walt Disney Co $13,550

            Top two Industries:

                    TV/Movies/Music $181,050
                    Lawyers/Law Firms $114,200
    "
    Can we outlaw these groups from the internet? kthx

  4. Re:Typical by nurb432 · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Its not about P2P as much as it is about the beginning of restriction of speech and information.

    It may not be some grand scheme, but it is the end result

    --
    ---- Booth was a patriot ----
  5. Re:If your congress critter is on this list by NiceGeek · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Bono. Gee no surprise there. The dammed tree should have gotten them both.

  6. Re:Guess they don't play WoW... by spun · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Fundamentally, the problem is dealing with sociopaths without reducing the freedoms of the majority of decent folks. How do you let decent folks participate in self governance, and give them freedoms, without ceding control to the sociopaths?

    --
    - None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license. -- John Milton
  7. Re:The First Amendment to the Constitution by Astro+Dr+Dave · · Score: 2, Interesting

    What is speech, if not the transmission of information from one person to another?

    This is a first amendment issue, and I am pretty sure a court would see it as such. Interfering with the distribution of "works that are legally available, like... books" is interference with the press.

  8. Welcome back mainframes by metoc · · Score: 2, Interesting

    ACTA also has the effect of requiring that all traffic (and transactions) be routed through central points so that infringing content can be tracked back to the source. Pretty much a puts us back in the old Mainframe & PBX days. This not only impacts P2P traffic, but anything that is decentralized, which means the internet as a whole, along with email, IM, IRC, Skype, etc.

  9. Re:Typical by digitrev · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Nah. HTTP has too many legitimate uses and has been around for too long. It's much easier to attack the fringe first. After all, most people will agree that the majority of P2P sharing infringes on someone's copyright. Whether or not this is fair use is another argument. So by taking out the things with the most illegal use, they get people accustomed to having protocols be made illegal. So when the big media companies create a new protocol, call it "Guaranteed Information Delivery Protocol", or something equally fuzzy, all other protocols will be slowly phased out, as "illegal things" could happen on them. Of course, with GIDP, you'll never have to deal with something scary and illegal like child pornography. Only our nice and safe news/entertainment will be available to you. And how I wish that someone could prove to me that these are just the paranoid ramblings of a /.er.

    --
    Cynical Idealist
  10. When I was in school by gerf · · Score: 5, Interesting

    When I was in school, we were taught about Francis Cabot Lowell, who heroically copied machine plans in England to use in the US for textile mills.

    England was so worried that their monopoly on their mill technology would be taken that they would search ships, cargo and passenger for hidden plans.

    Fortunately for the US, Lowell memorized the plans and was able to build his own plants in the New World. His business was the beginning of the industrialization of the New World. Without which, the United States would have continued to be merely agrarian in nature. Does anyone know if they still teach this lesson in gradeschools, or was it killed when they started teaching kids to respect copyrights more?

    1. Re:When I was in school by Grimbleton · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Class of '04 here. No such thing ever came up in school about anything on the topic. (However, as a history nerd, I had read about it already)

  11. alcohol by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Outlawing something that millions of people do....hrm...That worked really well for alcohol now didn't it?

  12. Re:I'm a terrorist by DigiShaman · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Guns my friend. Guns an violence are the only tools the oppressors listen too (sadly). I speak historically of course.

    I fear that if not us, our children will be fighting the next American revolution.

    --
    Life is not for the lazy.
  13. Re:Canada by Beardo+the+Bearded · · Score: 2, Interesting

    As with most treaties, they don't usually bother enforcing some of the more arcane provisions until some nit complains that you're violating them. Which is the best thing that can happen to us.

    If a law isn't enforced in Canada, it becomes void. I don't know the exact term for it, but it's true. (I studied this about 2 months ago) You can't get caught on a minor, obscure technicality here.

    Also, SCC = 7 figures. Good luck with that.

    It's best to call the NDP and Liberals to tell them what's going on. With the current scandal, this might be enough to topple to Conservatives.

    Oh, don't forget the Bloc. I'm sure they'd love to have their content controlled by the Americans.
    --

    ---
    ECHELON is a government program to find words like bomb, jihad, plutonium, assassinate, and anarchy.
  14. yup. excellent point by circletimessquare · · Score: 2, Interesting

    legitimacy

    a very important concept

    the law must hew closely to an actual concept of fairness. the law must not just serve a few well-placed economic interests. otherwise, it undermines the entire relationship between the law and its citizenry should it be understood that the law serves a special economic interest group at the detriment of the rights and freedoms of the people at large

    if the people begin to see the law as illegitimate, as serving a special class of people rather than the public at large, this undermines society in subtle ways, large and small

    --
    intellectual property law is philosophically incoherent. it is your moral duty to ignore it or sabotage it
  15. Re:The First Amendment to the Constitution by Ungrounded+Lightning · · Score: 3, Interesting

    It's clearer if you quote the whole thing:

    This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.

    It doesn't say treaties trump the constitution, or even are peers of it. It says that the hierarchy is Constitution -> Federal law -> Treaties -> state law.

    It's even clearer in article III section 2:

    The judicial Power shall extend to all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitution, the Laws of the United States, and Treaties made, or which shall be made, under their Authority;

    Treaties themselves have no power internally without enabling legislation. Congress is not obligated to pass enabling legislation, to make it conform to the actual treaty language if they do pass it, or to refrain from repealing it. Courts can strike the enabling legislation (or any attempt at direct application of treaty language to the international activity of US citizens or entities) for unconstitutionality, interpret it into impotence, or set up impossible enforcement roadblocks, as easily as they do the same to federal law.

    --
    Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
  16. Re:Bad summary. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    "For example page three, paragraph one is a "Pirate Bay killer" clause designed to criminalize the non-profit facilitation of unauthorized information exchange on the internet. This clause would also negatively affect transparency and primary source journalism sites such as Wikileaks. "


    That's not just a wikileaks killer - that is a blog-killer and forum-killer clause rolled into one, Just about every political blog or consumer website could be categorized as a "non-profit facilitation of unauthorized information exchange"
    .

    Just about every tech corporation, service company, high school and city council could use this to silence unfavourable discussions about their products or services. If that act got passed, every discussion board would have to moderate every comment they received.

  17. Re:Guess they don't play WoW... by cdrudge · · Score: 2, Interesting

    While it's funny picturing that, those gamers in wizard robes, facepaint, wearing viking helmets on horseback storming the Capital will soon also be storming voting booths. It may not be this year, or next year, but soon the "internet generation" or whatever todays teens are called soon will be able to express their opinions at the poles.

  18. Re:Guess they don't play WoW... by Eravnrekaree · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I think you hit the nail on the head. That is exactly what they want to do. The elites have for so long controlled the media and have been in the exclusive position to be able to propogandise the public and control inforation flow. Since the development of the internet, we have seen for the first time true freedom of speech for the masses, where we dont only have it on paper, but people are actually able to use it without having a lot of money and resources. Previously, media was easy control , and it by definition had to be large corporations in order to reach large numbers of people. Now anyone can publish information that can be accessed by anyone else. This terrifies them, since their goal, being power hungry and really seeing the planet as something to be controlled rather than a place where people can control themselves and live in freedom. They have for years trying to find ways to shut down the internet and control it.

  19. Re:Guess they don't play WoW... by hairyfeet · · Score: 4, Interesting
    Yeah,not too mention WTH is the point of voting if your choice is "rich old money corporate ass kisser A" or "rich old money corporate ass kisser B"? Lets face it,when it comes to kissing the corporate booty the dems and repubs are pretty much the same. Basically anything that can boost profits or screw us out of fair use WILL be passed,no matter whether the guy you vote for has a D or a R in front of his name.What are the copyrights up to now,100 years?


    And while I would be happy to vote for an Independent that had even the tiniest of snowballs chance in hell,I just don't see us getting a real third party anytime soon. Not unless we can get someone like Ron Paul or Jessie Ventura to run and build up a buzz. But that is my 02c,YMMV

    --
    ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
  20. Re:Bad summary. by drew30319 · · Score: 3, Interesting
    That's not the way I read it:

    "... designed to criminalize the non-profit facilitation of unauthorized information exchange (emphasis mine) on the internet. This clause would also negatively affect transparency and primary source journalism sites such as Wikileaks.

    The document reveals a proposal for a multi-lateral trade agreement of strict enforcement of intellectual property rights (emphasis mine) related to Internet activity and trade in information-based goods hiding behind the issue of false trademarks."
    It appears to be focused on IP issues and s/w updates and the like w/should not be affected. This next part is of more concern to me:

    "... new cooperation requirements upon internet service providers, including perfunctionary disclosure of customer information (emphasis mine). The proposal also bans 'anti-circumvention' measures which may affect online anonymity systems ..."
    --
    JAGga.me ----> Producing video games addressing emotional health and wellness issues affecting teens.
  21. Re:Gotta say it... by jlarocco · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The government only represents the people when the people vote. Guess which age group is least likely to vote? It's exactly the same age group that's most likely to use P2P and play WoW.

    99.999% of politicians aren't politicians because they love helping people and doing the right thing. They're in it for the money and the power. As far as politicians are concerned, people who don't vote don't exist. Non-voters have no say in whether the politicians keep their cushy jobs, so why cater to them when they can cater to actual voters and keep their jobs? If you ignore politicians, the politicians will ignore you.

    Even if the corporations are buying off politicians left and right, the voters are still ultimately responsible for continually re-electing the corrupt politicians.

    It's really hard to feel bad about all of this political bitching when the people most upset are also the ones least like to vote.