Media Industry Wants Mandated Spyware and More

An anonymous reader writes "The joint comment filed by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) and the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) requests anti-infringement software on all home computers, pervasive copyright filtering, border searches, forced US intellectual property policies on foreign nations and a joint departmental agency to combat infringement during major releases." The MPAA would also like to have its rent paid a bit by Congress, with a ban on what seems to me like a useful tool (for those in as well as outside the film industry), the recently-discussed futures market for box-office receipts.

Comments

Sounds like mad men

[Anonymous Coward]

Indeed.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Pikoro]

Actually, it sounds like a great idea. No wait, here me out:

People who want peace of mind to not be sued for something they're not sure they did or not could install and run it on their system since they aren't going to actively download infringing content anyways.

The rest of us, will simply download a cracked version of this watchdog software which, when it runs, never finds anything. Hence, "the pirates" enjoy the same protection from the xxAA that the ignorant get.

"But your honor, my client downloaded and ran the program provided by the prosecution and it never found any infringing content. Clearly any content found on my client's hard drive is legal or it would have been automatically deleted."

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Noxn]

Actually, you got a point.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[netsharc]

Makes me think of the movie Brazil... in the xxAA future you'll go to jail or not based on a boolean return value.

Of a closed source program.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[rtfa-troll]

There is method in their madness. They ask for the moon and then, whilst you are arguing about how outrageous that is, they slip 100 dollars out of your pocket. Even if you catch them, the police just shrug their shoulders "100 dollars sounds like a pretty good price for the moon sir; what are you complaining about? Now please move along and let's not have any funny business".

Sometimes the position of the pirate party looks more and more sensible.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[flyneye]

I think they can "want" in one hand and sh*t in the other hand and see which hand fills up first.
How about what I want for a change?
I "want" everyone involved with the *IAA to be gelded so their genetics are not passed on to further generations.
I "want" constant IRS scrutiny of all their books.
I "want" constant webcam surveillance of every room in their houses, their cars, their offices and GPS bitch collars so their whereabouts can always be known.
I "want" those who would invade my privacy to have their skin peeled off and used for lampshades in my house.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Sulphur]

I call prior art.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Aldenissin]

There was a guy in another article who stated that he believes that piracy is as much of an enemy to open source as it is to proprietary software companies. His theory was that Adobe for example turns a blind eye to college kids pirating Photoshop so they will be hooked and pay for it later when they work for or start their own business. Also, Microsoft would rather you pirate Windows and keep the mind-share as he called it instead of downloading Linux. I agree, and hope this idea backfires, similarly to Apple backtracking on the political cartoonist and Opera browser.

Imagine, everyone (average Joes) starts to see just how invasive these snobs are and say, NO we don't want your spyware watching me (I like porn, or whatever, I just want a little privacy and not to wonder if my webcam is on while I get dressed), I don't want to be searched at the border for a DVD that (I feel) looks clearly legit. I want to be able to freely trade and invest in movie futures and just because you don't like it, tough titty. I do it with everything else that involves money. One day, perhaps they will cross that line. All it takes is the media seeing green and watching everyone else make money and they will fall like dominoes not wanting to miss the story.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[TheRaven64]

As Jeff Raikes (Microsoft buisness group president) said on the subject of piracy:

If you're going to be a software counterfeiter, then please copy and illegally use Microsoft products.

It's not just open source that suffers, it's smaller competitors. In the '90s, MS Office was probably the best office suite around, but there were lots of ones that were good enough for most people and cost a tenth of the amount. Given the choice between MS Office for $200 and SmallCo Office for $20, it was a trivial decision; MS Office was not worth $200 to a typical home user, or even a lot of small businesses. If you're pirating though, it's a choice between MS Office for $0 and SmallCo Office for $0. You pick MS Office, because it has more features.

The product that you're pirating comes from MS, but the company that lost a sale is SmallCo. This seems to be something that the RIAA and friends miss when they equate one download to one lost sale. Even if the person would have bought if they couldn't pirate, they often would not have bought the same thing that they downloaded.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Anonymous Brave Guy]

OK, how many **AA souls do you need as a licensing fee?

Re:Sounds like mad men

[tsm_sf]

"But your honor, my client downloaded and ran the program provided by the prosecution and it never found any infringing content. Clearly any content found on my client's hard drive is legal or it would have been automatically deleted."

"We don't care, you're fucked if we say so."

Re:Sounds like mad men

[mpe]

I "want" constant IRS scrutiny of all their books.

Especially given that these industries use all sorts of dodgy accounting to avoid paying people such as screenwriters. Thus, any of their claims for losses due to "piracy" should be taken with a large pinch of sylvite.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[tsm_sf]

Sorry to threadjack, but I wanted people to see the actual article the brief blog post links to.

Hang your head in shame, Timothy.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Aldenissin]

The wages of sin is death, and I think that applies figuratively as well. We kill off the good when we do bad. (Still literal I guess..) A small part of me wonders is pirating just the market screaming out, sort of like gangs are screaming their is a problem with society. I think it indeed is, and that we should have hit Microsoft with monopoly lawsuits and actually forced competition and not just fines as a part of doing business. I guess we just didn't have or listen to critical thinkers early on enough.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Surt]

I'm afraid that they'll insist this software runs on the TCM only, and that every personal computer has a properly operational TCM. Then if you've cracked your TCM, you'll be in much bigger trouble.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[suomynonAyletamitlU]

Or we could just leave any nation stupid enough to pass laws like that.

It's not like those countries need us for taxes or anything, right? I mean, they have all those rich people. Rich people have to pay the greatest share of the taxes anyway, right? Right? Because that's the only sane way to do it. So all the decent human beings who are tired of being treated like they are somehow lower class leaving shouldn't have any effect at all. And since those rich people have so much money, I'm sure they can just pay people in other nations to do all the work anyway without those workers living under the stupid laws they don't accept but never had agency to change.

Seriously, now.

I've said this before. RIAA == ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY. E-N-T-E-R-T-A-I-N. You do not have the authority as an entertainment organization to fuck up millions of peoples lives. The government is tasked with law enforcement, military defense, et al, and they STILL don't have the authority to be tyrannical dickheads. They try, lord do they try sometimes, and hell, sometimes they manage, but they do not have the authority.

xxAA should not be thinking they've found a loophole in that system. If they are thinking they have a loophole, they should be shot, along with anyone in the government who is enabling them to do so.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Mikkeles]

Actually, if it were like the film Brazil, you would go to jail based on a bug.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Anonymous Coward]

It's ok if it finds "illegal" software/data, as long as it doesn't report it. They will start to rely on the software to do their policing for them, so their "statistics" concerning "illegal files and software" will finally be "accurate", disproving all they ever claimed before.
And then we can all go about our business of downloading and sharing and being a worldwide community thingamajig. Lovely, get this crap installed NOW!

Re:Sounds like mad men

[thetoadwarrior]

Even Darth Vader was screwed over by shady movie industry tactics. http://g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/694518/darth-vader-actor--david-prowse-asks-wheres-my-money.html

It's disgusting they can claim Star Wars never made a profit.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[NotBornYesterday]

Ha! I know a trick question when I see one. They don't have souls.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Anonymous Coward]

What's so funny about parent? Sounds both informative and insightful to me.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Hurricane78]

Do you understand the difference between wanting something, buying something, and stealing something?

wanting = you don’t have it, the other person does
stealing = you have it, the other person doesn’t, there is no contract about it
buying = you have it, the other person doesn’t, there is a contract about it

Your example is stealing. Not buying.
And it does not matter if the price is good. It’s not the price but the contract that makes it buying.

Sometimes the position of the pirate party looks more and more sensible.

Sometimes? You speak as if it were not sensible in the first place. Sounds like you live too much inside the MAFIAA delusion. Get out while you still can! :)

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Hurricane78]

I "want" everyone involved with the *IAA to be gelded so their genetics are not passed on to further generations.

Doesn’t matter. There is a second way of reproduction. Because we are really life-forms of two realms. The realm of matter and the realm of ideas. Ideas can just as much reproduce, even when the humans that created them are long dead.
What you want, is to kill of the ideas.

With professional social engineering, rhethorics and mass psychology (or in one term: mind hacking) you actually got a pretty good chance at that. Wanna join us? We’re already doing it.

Your Pirate Party supporters.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Nyder]

As Jeff Raikes (Microsoft buisness group president) said on the subject of piracy:

If you're going to be a software counterfeiter, then please copy and illegally use Microsoft products.

It's not just open source that suffers, it's smaller competitors. In the '90s, MS Office was probably the best office suite around, but there were lots of ones that were good enough for most people and cost a tenth of the amount. Given the choice between MS Office for $200 and SmallCo Office for $20, it was a trivial decision; MS Office was not worth $200 to a typical home user, or even a lot of small businesses. If you're pirating though, it's a choice between MS Office for $0 and SmallCo Office for $0. You pick MS Office, because it has more features.

The product that you're pirating comes from MS, but the company that lost a sale is SmallCo. This seems to be something that the RIAA and friends miss when they equate one download to one lost sale. Even if the person would have bought if they couldn't pirate, they often would not have bought the same thing that they downloaded.

What does that happen to do with music?

When I want to listen to some good rock, like Led Zepplin, I get Led Zepplin. I don't go and buy Ratt because it might be cheaper and have less good songs.

When your talking software, yes, you got choices, but music? No.

If you like The Legendary Pink Dots, your not going to be happy getting Tiny Tim Cd's instead.

Well, you might be, but I know I won't be.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[rtfa-troll]

I don't think you read my posting carefully enough, but since you ask why I used the analogy of theft in my comment, I'll answer.

The entertainment industry is free riding on an agreement (copyright) designed to encourage literature and quality writing. They are allowed to restrict other's freedom of speech in return for (supposedly) increasing the amount of speech. However, not only are they turning in completely vapid useless and sometimes even damaging speech; now they are actively trying to interfere with all sorts of other free speech.

At the point where they start to knowingly interfere with free speech (by encouraging censorware) and deliberately failing to keep up their own end of the bargain (by ensuring that their copyright products will not be available after the term of copyright) anything more that they try to take is theft. They have broken their contract with society and lost the right to any of the royalties which they take. I used an analogy to theft deliberately and with meaning.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[hitmark]

another thing is that every computer in the neighborhood came with the install media for ms windows and ms office.

that and a note with the serial on and you where up and running that day, rather then next week when you had the time to stop by and grab a copy of smallco office.

convenience is what started the ball rolling, and why microsoft looked the other way until BSA and others started crying foul.

heck, every workplace probably had multiple copies made for ease of upgrading when the time came, and talking a serial out of the admin meant home training, at no corp expense, so the management probably shrugged. Unlikely to show up on any audit even.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Anonymous Coward]

If they are thinking they have a loophole, they should be shot, along with anyone in the government who is enabling them to do so.

I agree. And I do not mean figuratively.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[cheezegeezer]

requests anti-infringement software on all home computers, pervasive copyright filtering, border searches, forced US intellectual property policies on foreign nations

Just who the hell do these over excited tossers think they are you wanna filter fine keep you filters WITHIN your OWN borders and get the F*** out of the rest of the world .

You know one of these fine days you are going to wake up with such a jolt there you wont know WTF has hit you and yes before you even think about whittering on about us here yes we got our problems but at least we do NOT assume to rule the freakin world which let me assure you YOU DO NOT

Karma : HUMAN

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Golddess]

If you already know of the band Tiny Tim, and already know you like The Legendary Pink Dots more, then yes, Tiny Tim will not do as a replacement. But this isn't about going after a different band that you already know about. This is about saying "fuck it, The Legendary Pink Dots isn't worth the price. Lets see what new bands are on iTunes that I haven't heard of."

Re:Sounds like mad men

[rockNme2349]

I have altered the deal. Pray I don't alter it further.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[pspahn]

I used to have an emusic.com subscription. They were DRM free before it was cool, and had a catalog consisting of mostly independent labels. The songs cost a fraction of what you would have found on iTunes at the time, and you didn't have to worry about what computers or devices you could put them on.

Clearly, I wanted to pay for a good service, and I did. As a result I found dozens and dozens of artists I would have never found otherwise because they are small-time. I could have spent more money on artists signed to big labels and been sold a restrictive product, but I spent less for more instead.

Had I pirated, I would have probably just found the same crappy recycled stuff that everyone else thought I should listen to. The software analogy shared by TheRaven holds true.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[pspahn]

Shot? If you think it would help to take photos and film of them for future use, so be it. They'll just have more IP to claim you're infringing.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[pspahn]

GPS Bitch collars. It's all in the delivery. George Carlin was insightful and interesting. He was also pretty damn funny doing it.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[roguetrick]

You live in a basement don't you.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[TangoMargarine]

TCM only

Do you mean TPM? Trusted Platform Module?

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Surt]

Trusted computing module.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[w0mprat]

You can bet that there will be a clause that running the software isn't a get out of jail free card. Running a cracked version will also be made a crime.

This kind thing has never been shown to work. The choices they have with this:

1. It won't perform very well. False positives, false negatives and generally slowing down your machine
2. It'll cost an enormous ammount of money that the taxpayer will pick up part of.
3. It'll be easily cicumvented,as you described, with the inevitable cracked version.

Pick two... at best

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Kvasio]

It also made me think of Brazil - but a country, not a movie.

If border searches are imposed, US citizens will have their arses probed when entering Brazil.
(if only my country dared to behave the same was as Brazil)

Re:Sounds like mad men

[laughingcoyote]

The same held true for me with Magnatune. They aren't just "whatever you want to throw in" and do filter for quality, but license under CC-BY-SA-NC. And despite the fact that it's entirely legal to share it (so long as you don't do so commercially, anyway), they've been around for several years now, and put out some very good music where the artists actually get paid a significant share.

I've also run across the independent band Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers, and quite like them. They do amazing live shows (and most of the time you can sit down and have a beer with the band afterward), and I've been to several. They highly encourage fans to share their stuff-if my sister hadn't sent me a copy of Americano, I'd probably have never heard of them. That sharing sure didn't hurt them a bit.

Filesharing is in no way bad for the artist. Now the media cartels, those are horrible for the artist-and distribution channels existing outside their control is in turn disastrous for the cartels. The "artists", aside from a few very big names, get very little to nothing out of record/box office/etc. sales, and then the cartels deliberately fudge the numbers to avoid paying even that small amount.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[lgw]

TPM is the correct term. The TPM is what "trusted" computing is built on. And it's not a bad thing: like any tool, it's moral value lies in how it's used. For the TPM, whoever owns the keys owns the computer. If you have the keys, all is good; if the vendor does you're just sort of leasing the right to use the computer in approved ways. Which, again, is fine if you know that's what you're getting and you like it (e.g., XBox360).

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Mista2]

And yet all they have to do is make everything available world wide for a couple of bucks with no DRM and piracy of their movies would die overnight. Why does cracked cersions of iPhone exist - to remove the DRM so you can run what you want. This means an unoficial undergrond set up to distribute the pirated software too. However, I dont mind paying a couple of dollars for a game or some other software. If there was no restriction on having to get software through the app store, and wthe phones were sold unlocked, there is almost no reason for the jailbreakers to exist. They do so to liberate teh expensive computer the user paid for.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Illogical Spock]

I am from Brazil, and right now you would be fine here, as we don't have this type of corporate lunacy (or shameles political influency) *yet*.

But believe me, this type of news worries me a lot, just like Internet filtering proposals, mandated DRM and such, as our politicians tend to wave away the good things your (and other's) country do, but promptly import and adopt the stupid ideas - specially when the proponents are filthy rich companies.

Unfortunately, there's people that thinks it's ok when these things happens in another countries (and specially in the most influential ones). But they are the same people that in the future will say: "At first they came for the USA consumers, but I did not complain as I am from Brazil"...

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Runaway1956]

Obviously, you have no comprehension of "fair use". Of course RIAA doesn't force anyone to purchase and/or to pirate entertainment. But, they are actively seeking to extend copyright law far beyond anything that is reasonable.

Much of the music being downloaded today is properly in the public domain. Much more is being downloaded to circumvent overly restrictive DRM.

RIAA sucks, as do all the other **AA's that work to deny freedom and liberty.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[timmarhy]

go on leave, i'm betting you won't.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[suomynonAyletamitlU]

"Should be shot?"
Over that, dude you guys need to get some bigger priorities if you want to shoot them over not getting your movies/music. Get over it, move on and stop trying to push your 'open source/free' agenda.

Actually, I'm specifically suggesting that people who try to create tyranny be shot.

You know, people like those who want to bankrupt random citizens using the legal system, because they were--willingly or not, or knowingly or not--sharing entertainment without paying for it. You remember the legal system, right? The one that's supposed to make sure nobody can do bad things? Yeah, that one.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[suomynonAyletamitlU]

I'm already considering it. I don't know where to go or what to do elsewhere around the world, but a lot of things happening in the first world really do seem like they're building up towards some kind of poorly thought out (IE, tyrannical) government/business scheme that could just really wreck life for those who live here, at least in certain ways.

Whether or not I can actually do this depends on what kind of opportunities I have, among other things--I'm not desperate to leave, so yeah, you could win that bet. But I'm not babbling about it in a "pay attention to meeeee" gambit either.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Surt]

TCM is the term for the TPM that is coming in ACTA that no one wants you to know about. And no, you don't get the keys.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Anonymous Coward]

I already have.. but only cuz the weather sux up there.. olé!

Re:Sounds like mad men

[WCLPeter]

It's disgusting they can claim Star Wars never made a profit.

Which is why someone needs to haul their ass before a court and bring them up on charges.

According to the law, I can't seem to find the specific one right now, a corporation has the sole duty of legally providing increased profits for their shareholders. In fact, outside of illegal activities, they are legally obligated to maximize profits to exclusion of all other considerations. If Star Wars has never made a profit then it is a failed product. As they have continued to grossly mismanage the shareholder's investment by continuing to invest in a failed product over the past thrity some years, LucasFilm and 20th Century Fox are in violation of the law and they need to be taken to task for it.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[blackest_k]

I like Led Zeppelin and they have produced a lot of good songs but I think I probably have them all , (ok there will be different recordings of the same songs I don't have).

Thing is there is no new recordings by Led Zeppelin and besides you can't listen to one band all the time or even just a few. So maybe Ratt did make a few banging tunes or not I don't know I never listened to them but its feasible they might have produced something I might enjoy.

Truth is most bands make a few great songs at best and an awful lot of filler.
I like great music and that isn't just Led Zeppelin so if you want Led Zeppelin get Led Zeppelin.

If you want great rock music then there are other bands who are not Led Zeppelin with songs you will like (and some that suck)

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Opportunist]

You expect them to play by their own rules? 'scuse me, have you been away for a decade or two?

Of course this software will be installed on your computer AND you will be assumed to steal content. What gives you the idea that they'll even consider an "OR" here?

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Opportunist]

Dunno, but it sounds like a plan to start harvesting and see how many we need. If we find out it's all of them, well, no loss to humanity.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[lmnfrs]

I'm afraid that they'll insist this software runs on the TCM only, and that every personal computer has a properly operational TCM. Then if you've cracked your TCM, you'll be in much bigger trouble.

If that's what happens, there will be two types of people: those who don't understand or care so they decide to risk it, and those who do care so they just download copies that have been disguised to evade the ??AA software.

Like they're smart enough to create or have created software that would properly detect pirated files.
I think this is an interesting new level of anti-piracy measures they want to take, but I doubt it'll progress too far.

Re:Sounds like mad men

[Surt]

With good watermarks + TCM, piracy becomes immediately detectable or preventable, depending on which is more profitable.

That's nice.

[arcelios]

People in hell want ice water, too.

Re:That's nice.

[Anonymous Coward]

People in hell want ice water, too.

No people in hell want out. They will settle for ice water.

Re:That's nice.

[Jeremy Erwin]

Silly theist. But if you believe Dante, there's an icemaker on level nine.

Re:That's nice.

[arcelios]

I was using a common expression, not expressing my religious views.

Re:That's nice.

[RugidChild]

I agree with you on that one. They just sound like they are throwing darts at a dart board hoping that an idea will sound good and work. No way the government will allow them to create spyware and install it on everyone's computer just because they are worried about a few movies.

Oh Yeah?

[WrongSizeGlass]

Well, fat chance. The government is not going to mandate big media sponsored spyware on everyone's computers. It would conflict with the DoJ & NSA software already installed ;-)

Re:Oh Yeah?

[cpghost]

Nope, the already installed NSA or DoJ spyware will simply be "upgraded." ;-)

Re:Oh yeah?

[lgw]

Untrue! The C64 was specifically built to accept a cartridge with it's own processor, and for that processor to take over for the main processor at will.

Just you watch: when the RIAA gets its way, it will be illegal to use you C64 without the PoliceWare cartridge installed.

Re:Oh yeah?

[rjames13]

cartridge with it's own processor

Not processor ROM.

WHAT?

[Noxn]

WHAT ARE THEY SMOKING?

Re:WHAT?

[Anonymous Coward]

meta-amphetamines is my best bet

Re:WHAT?

[deniable]

Just wait, they'll 'compromise' on a 'reasonable' solution that's probably better than they wanted in the first place.

Re:WHAT?

[hrvatska]

WHAT ARE THEY SMOKING?

Better dope than most of us can afford.

Re:WHAT?

[prefec2]

They are not smoking anything. They snort. And even more they want all your money.

Re:WHAT?

[Anonymous Coward]

Mods, moderate moderator of parent (+1, Funny).

Re:WHAT?

[Anonymous Coward]

Not come November (in Cali)! Woo-doggy, getting my hydro set up right now!

Re:WHAT?

[ufikus]

I have more and more nagging thought. With all those absurdities about copyright and latest changes, It would be nice to give some insight to unaware people, how stupid it is by launching really stupid case. Find some author and with help of some good lawyer launch suit against some public library. Reason - they are thieves by sharing my book without paying me for every use. I have similar rights to my book as in case of music and movies. Its my property. How they dare to share it? :) Ufikus from czech republic (means I am not sure, if your libraries dont have some exception from copyright law.

Re:WHAT?

[Opportunist]

So it's true, coke gives you fits of megalomania.

When is it going to happen dammit!

[Cheerio Boy]

When are these bastards going to be prosecuted for racketeering?

When are people going to finally be fed up with being treated like criminals for the sake of a greedy cartel of Suits that have no morals to speak of?

When are people going to finally wise up and put these assholes in their place?

Yeah...I know. I'm delusional because they hold almost all the cards and have the gooberment in their pockets.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[j0hnyquest]

Yeah...I know. I'm delusional because they hold almost all the cards and have the gooberment in their pockets.

That's the sad part :( This makes me want to not pay for next album or movie just that much more...

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Anonymous Coward]

When are these bastards going to be prosecuted for racketeering?

I don't have a problem with what they're doing 'cuz all my "digital stuff" seems to fall of a "virtual truck" right onto my hard drive. Go figure.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[ScrewMaster]

Really? It's entertainment. Go find something that's actually important to get your panties in a wad over.

Damn, people, are we all that spoiled and unaware of the world around us?

The problem is, it's not just entertainment. Or are you going to claim that the DMCA and the Sonny Bono Copyright Extension Act (among others) only affect entertainment??? The ramifications to this are far-reaching and very dangerous, if for no other reason than that they set a very bad precedent for other industries to follow. I'm very disappointed in my own country for even entertaining these ideas: they're morally and ethically defective and should be discarded out of hand.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[cranberryhiker]

Are you speaking of the media industry, ISP's, investment bankers, airlines, big pharma, or phone companies? Be clear, man! :-)

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Cheerio Boy]

Are you speaking of the media industry, ISP's, investment bankers, airlines, big pharma, or phone companies? Be clear, man! :-)

Heh. Good point. :-)

Here's a thought... Corporations have some of the rights of human beings so why not require that to have those rights they must be embodied by at least a single person within the company who has the ability to order anyone in the company to follow his instructions.

Then require that the embodied person(s) is/are held accountable for the actions of the corporation.

Not likely to get passed mind you but it would certainly motivate CEOs to clean up their company ethics. (Or install them if they aren't already installed.)

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Anonymous Coward]

If only it were JUST entertainment, as you suggest. Unfortunately, the truth is far worse. It is a symptom of the creeping hand of Big Brother. This is just one more front in the battle for corporations in bed with politicians to control every aspect of our lives. They're also attacking on the health care, energy access, jobs, and tax fronts. Be prepared to hear our leaders tell us that a 10% unemployment rate is the new norm. Total dependency on the government is the end goal of these clowns. The subtle hand of Big Brother creeps steadily up our collective assholes, and all the while the government keeps trying to convince us that a fisting is really a blow job. Consciously resisting this fisting from Big Brother is what the Tea Party movement is about. Do not let career politicians of either party corrupt it. It's time for normal, sane, everyday folks to run for political office at the local level, with the platform of stopping the erosion of individual liberties dead in it's tracks wherever they see it happening.

I've heard enough. I will be installing Linux on my computer today, and running the occasional Windows app via a VirtualBox VM. If a CD or DVD won't play in Linux, then fuck it. I don't need to hear/watch it.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Surt]

I should roll over for private surveillance of my computer because its entertainment?

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Anonymous Brave Guy]

Corporations have some of the rights of human beings so why not require that to have those rights they must be embodied by at least a single person within the company who has the ability to order anyone in the company to follow his instructions.

Then require that the embodied person(s) is/are held accountable for the actions of the corporation.

Those people already exist. Typically, they are called "directors".

The problem is that those responsible for holding them accountable have been asleep at the wheel for a while, and then sold the keys to their henhouse to the foxes to buy their way out. IIRC, the US recently passed a law that basically says commercial organisations can contribute unlimited funds to election campaigns, which means in practice that they can buy representatives legally and openly at this point.

The only thing that is going to fix that is a grassroots rebellion, because the one thing the corps don't have yet is the vote, and money only translates into votes and therefore winning elections if the people who do get votes buy into the campaign propaganda. But you'd need a hell of a rebellion to overturn the US situation as it stands today.

I suspect that in the long run, what is really going to sink the US megacorps is the rest of the world. For example, while our government here in the UK has played along more than I'd like with ACTA and public consultations talk about limited change due to international agreements, even government ministers and the senior civil servants in the relevant departments are now admitting in the lower profile stuff that copyright is no longer fit for purpose and much greater changes are going to be necessary. Reassuringly, they also seem to be reasonably clued up about the idea of alternative business models and not propping up the dinosaurs, too, but for now they still speak in guarded tones when they have a large audience.

Similar comments apply in other fields, and at European level too there is quite a strong sentiment against letting big business steamroller democracy in the way certain other places seem to have allowed in the past. When it becomes clear that the rest of the world are bored of doing what the bought-and-paid-for US government says just to be nice, the US government will have to remember who it's there to serve, and the dinosaur megacorps will die out, while those who continue to do useful things that people in the US and elsewhere actually like will survive.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Cederic]

ven government ministers and the senior civil servants in the relevant departments are now admitting in the lower profile stuff that copyright is no longer fit for purpose and much greater changes are going to be necessary. Reassuringly, they also seem to be reasonably clued up about the idea of alternative business models and not propping up the dinosaurs, too, but for now they still speak in guarded tones when they have a large audience.

I'm sorry, but the Digital Economy Bill pretty much proves that ministers (and the rest of parliament) have no fucking clue at all.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[NotBornYesterday]

IIRC, the US recently passed a law that basically says commercial organisations can contribute unlimited funds to election campaigns

Not exactly. The Supreme Court found that campaign finance laws that limited corporate contributions were unconstitutional. What we need is a law that states that political speech is reserved for those who are allowed to vote in the election in question. That would prevent outside influences of all sorts in elections.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Anonymous Coward]

Be prepared to hear our leaders tell us that a 10% unemployment rate is the new norm.

If the economy reaches equilibrium with the world economy, and 10% unemployment is the consequence, there is very little our leaders can do. Short of MANDATING full employment. Whine if they do, whine if they don't.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Anonymous Brave Guy]

Not exactly. The Supreme Court found that campaign finance laws that limited corporate contributions were unconstitutional.

Fair enough, but isn't that likely to have much the same effect in practice?

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Anonymous Brave Guy]

I'm two minds about the DEB. On the one hand, it's obviously bad law to anyone with a clue. On the other hand, there was widespread and cross-party opposition to both parts of the bill itself and the idea forcing it through, even some of the ministers concerned have said things that wouldn't really support it in the past, and it only made it during the wash-up with about 40 MPs out of 600+ in the room for the few minutes of final debate. It has the stink of Mandelson's meddling all over it, and if I were a betting man, I would bet that campaign contributions played a part somewhere.

On the bright side, the ministers in the current administration who forced it through, including Mandy, are almost certainly all going to be gone in a month, but the senior civil servants who advise their successors will still be the same ones who are increasingly suggesting that copyright as implemented today is fundamentally broken; look at the reports coming out of the IPO in recent months.

Also, if the election does wind up with no party having an outright majority, or even one side with a majority but only a modest one, then individual MPs are going to wield much more power in the next Parliament. Many rank-and-file Members from all parties have been far more clued about about the DEB than one or two "usual suspects" from the New Labour administration.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm very disappointed in my own country for even entertaining these ideas:

Pun intended?

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[John Hasler]

> ...it only made it during the wash-up with about 40 MPs out of 600+ in the
> room for the few minutes of final debate.

Parliament has no quorum?

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[John Hasler]

> Here's a thought... Corporations have some of the rights of human beings...

In the USA they have property rights. That's all.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[John Hasler]

> Then require that the embodied person(s) is/are held accountable for the
> actions of the corporation.

Each employees, officer, or director is individually responsible for all of his actions. The fact that he may have been acting as the agent of a corporation is irrelevant and not a defense in any criminal and some civil cases.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[John Hasler]

> I'm delusional because they hold almost all the cards and have the
> gooberment in their pockets.

No, you are delusional because you greatly exaggerate their power and importance. They only get their way in Washington when it doesn't conflict with the wishes of anyone really powerful (such as the telecommunicatins industry) and they don't have much money by Washington standards. I'll give you that they are loud, but then being loud is what they _do_. As for their importance, it's only entertainment, and crap at that. You can make your own.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Anonymous Brave Guy]

Apparently not, at least not for the debating part. That's rather the objection to shoving things through during "washing up": it's more about backroom deals between the leaders where the opposition let the government have their bills but only with their pet concessions than it is about allowing the elected MPs do their jobs and legislate, because the number of MPs available is tiny (they all just learned they're about to lose their jobs and have to reapply...) and the time allowed it absurd ("debating" dozens of pages and hundreds of provisions in an hour or two).

The actual vote had much higher turn-out, though it was still only 189 votes to 47 out of more than 600 MPs, but any such votes during washing up appear to be formalities, given that anyone who goes against their party whip in an embarrassing way at the start of a general election campaign is probably ending their careers by inviting deselection.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Cheerio Boy]

> Then require that the embodied person(s) is/are held accountable for the > actions of the corporation.

Each employees, officer, or director is individually responsible for all of his actions. The fact that he may have been acting as the agent of a corporation is irrelevant and not a defense in any criminal and some civil cases.

This is true however it does nothing to get the "population" of the corporation to act in an ethical manner. The only thing that I can think would solve this is what I've already stated.

There needs to be a way to do two things:

1 - Make the employees of the corporation stand up to bad management at all levels and call people on the carpet for bad/evil decisions.

2 - Suitably punish corporations that behave badly with no appeals and no loopholes.

Unfortunately we're going to get neither while large corporations hold sway over the government.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Cheerio Boy]

> Here's a thought... Corporations have some of the rights of human beings...

In the USA they have property rights. That's all.

They sure as hell at like they have more than that.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[cgenman]

I'm kind of surprised that the would want software that deletes suspicious files. Doesn't this:

A: Open them up to large potential liabilities if the software deletes things incorrectly?
B: Delete evidence of a crime?

Even as a proposition this seems a bit stupid. "Let's open ourselves up to a degree of liability for every computer in America. That's a *good* idea!"

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Cheerio Boy]

To the average person the fact that they are among the groups that are smaller than others in Washington matters very little if at all.

To the mouse the building is still infinitely tall regardless if it's 25 stories or 100.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[NotBornYesterday]

In practice, yeah, I expect so. We'll see in the next major election.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Travelsonic]

downloading media without paying for it (it is illegal).

Really, I am breaking the law when I share the song I made myself? (hint: downloading without permission of the copyright holder, not downloading for free in general, is what is illegal. You have your head up your ass too far to be able to take a moral high ground.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[Anonymous Coward]

Very little they can do? Are you dull? How about starting with repealing 2-year unemployment benefits? After a while, even the laziest man will get hungry, get off his ass, and find SOMETHING to do so he can feed himself.

Re:When is it going to happen dammit!

[ScrewMaster]

I'm very disappointed in my own country for even entertaining these ideas:

Pun intended?

Very much. I even highlighted it so you would be sure not to miss it.

Hmm ...

[daveime]

A joint comment by me and my dog Boog has just been filed on Slashdot.

"RIAA and MPAA, go fuck yourselves".

Thank you for your time.

Re:Hmm ...

[Noxn]

In the name of me and the internet, we too would like to file a comment here.

"RIAA and MPAA, go fuck yourselves".

Thanks.

Re:Hmm ...

[daveime]

I'm sure glad EULA's aren't enforceable, or I'd owe you 3 dollars already.

Re:Hmm ...

[Sponge Bath]

A joint comment by me and my dog Boog has just been filed on Slashdot.

Be honest. Your dog wrote the whole thing, didn't he?

RIAA v Boog : Illegal download of "How much is that doggy in the window?"
RIAA: Your honor, since defendant can't pay the 100 billion dollar value of this single download, we request Boog be put down.

There you have it: RIAA wants to kill your pets.

Re:Hmm ...

[Noxn]

They arent? Then why does everyone have them?

Re:Hmm ...

[st0rmshad0w]

Actually, MD and VA passed UCITA, which supposedly makes licenses enforceable even if agreeing to it is dubious at best, i.e. by reading this you agree to give me a puppy.

Re:Hmm ...

[Surt]

To intimidate you into compliance. EULAs work great because they never have to be enforced. They just have to be threatened to be enforced.

Re:Hmm ...

[icannotthinkofaname]

Because they look enforceable. As long as people think they need to do something, they will do it.

Re:Hmm ...

[Anonymous Coward]

Because most companies who use EULAs also have a lot of money to spend on lawyers just to scare you.

Re:Hmm ...

[daveime]

In defense of Dave and Boog the Dog vs RIAA:

Your honour, at the time of the alleged infringement by IP number 1.2.3.4, both Dave and Boog were present in the computer room.

Boog was in fact chewing a particularly tasty bone obtained from the TGI Fridays Jack Daniels Glazed Ribs consumed earlier than evening by Dave. Therefore the presence of Jack Daniels sauce (exhibit A) found on the keyboard is inadmissible as it cannot be demonstrated who had sauce on their fingers/paws.

Therefore we ask the case be dismissed, as it has been proven yet again that Jack Daniels Rib Glaze does not conclusively identify a person/animal, only a sticky keyboard.

Judge: Case dismissed !!!

Forget "Chewbacca", I'm going with the "TGI Fridays Jack Daniels Glazed Ribs Defense" every time.

Ludicrous

[Anarki2004]

**AA=association of America...How is this even vaguely American?

Re:Ludicrous

[Shadow of Eternity]

Simple, they bought it.

Re:Ludicrous

[sznupi]

They want to be free doing what they want, operating from "land of opportunity"?

Re:Ludicrous

[boarder8925]

It's the American way to pay shittons of cash for the laws you want.

Eh, the typical

[Megaweapon]

1. Propose something to Congress so wacked out it would never ever pass
2. "Negotiate" it down to "semi-reasonable"
3. Pass legislation, GOTO 1

They won't get what they want this time, but something bad will still likely get whittled out from this.

Re:Eh, the typical

[MasterPatricko]

Yup, they're just using the old tactic of pushing the comfort boundaries. This is what really worries me ... they'll "water this down" so that its "fair in comparison to the original proposal" after much debate, but in absolute terms it will still be ridiculous.

Re:Eh, the typical

[nurb432]

That's how we got the DMCA.. and most all other invasive laws.

Re:Eh, the typical

[Anonymous Coward]

Hey, maybe those Tea party people could help. Couldn't you frame this as one more branch of the evil Obama administration's efforts to take our rights away? ...

Psshshshthahahahahahaha...heh... ...

*cry*

Re:Eh, the typical

[Anonymous Coward]

Congress should be furious for 'being played' with such an obvious un-american proposal. They should reinstate the House Un-American Activities Committee as a response. Whatever bad reputation it had, it seems very appropriate here.

Re:Eh, the typical

[Anonymous Coward]

Congrats. You've given the algorithm used for the last century to turn copyright into what it is today.

Re:Eh, the typical

[CrazyDuke]

Actually, I read a book on how to influence people that cited a study done on Watergate. And, it is a well known sales tactic, and is confirmed in social psychology texts. The implied conclusion of which is that the result does not even have to be "semi-reasonable" itself. The sales pitch (negotiation as you put it) just has to appear somewhat reasonable, not what is actually being sold. It just has to be less audacious, hence your quotes.

It seems people are hard coded to negotiate in good faith under the assumption that the other player is also acting similarly, even if evidence indicates otherwise. Thus, people will often reflexively entertain and agree to ridiculous arrangements based on the need to alleviate this external dissonance of sorts. Thus, a street peddler can sell you the $1 trinket necklace he just bought at a dollar store for $5 by asking for $8 first and then "compromising" to $5, despite the fact you wouldn't even have bought it for a buck otherwise. (FYI: That also includes an example of assumed high value for high cost and inadequately compensating for an initial impression.)

Re:Eh, the typical

[ScrewMaster]

Yup, they're just using the old tactic of pushing the comfort boundaries. This is what really worries me ... they'll "water this down" so that its "fair in comparison to the original proposal" after much debate, but in absolute terms it will still be ridiculous.

It will be interesting to see what happens if and when Congress attempts to mandate spyware on every single operating personal computer in the United States. And, I might add, not a program that reports to a legitimate law-enforcement agency (if any such Federal organizations exist in the present time), but to the private sector. If that does happen, the next question will be what penalties would be applied to an individual who attempts to circumvent, disable or uninstall said spyware. You know, like most of us on Slashdot. This puts a bad taste in my mouth, it really does, and anyone who claims, "hey, it's just entertainment" isn't seeing the bigger picture.

Besides, given the RIAA's demonstrated inability to reliably sue the right people, unwillingness to admit mistakes and offer redress (and absolute willingness to write off the collateral damage with out a second's thought) I have zero doubt that this would also be highly destructive, only more so. Remember folks, the MPAA is composed of people just as amoral and fundamentally dangerous as the RIAA crowd: hell, they're cut from precisely the same mold. Don't forget Jack "The VCR will DESTROY the industry!" Valenti ... there are plenty more where he came from.

Not the America I grew up in, let me tell you.

Re:Eh, the typical

[Diantre]

Just like when you bargain for a car and ask a ridiculously low price so you can settle on on the price you really wanted in the first place!

Re:Eh, the typical

[aaronaskew]

Heh, that's basically how filmmakers have to negotiate for ratings. See here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzSQ0YALYXg

Re:Eh, the typical

[shentino]

Not to mention Microsoft would be tickled pink.

I would not be surprised if such a spyware program didn't have linux or osx versions.

Re:Eh, the typical

[mpe]

It will be interesting to see what happens if and when Congress attempts to mandate spyware on every single operating personal computer in the United States. And, I might add, not a program that reports to a legitimate law-enforcement agency (if any such Federal organizations exist in the present time), but to the private sector.

Who would the computers of Congressmen report to, what about those of RIAA and MPAA members...

Re:Eh, the typical

[Rogerborg]

Oh, please, there will be exemptions for "sensitive Government and Commercial systems". The pee never flows uphill.

Re:Eh, the typical

[theskipper]

My guess is you're thinking of "Influence" by Robert Cialdini. Great book. Lots of studies about marketing tricks and human nature in general. http://amzn.com/006124189X

Re:Eh, the typical

[Anonymous Coward]

Are they really asking us for a revolution that bad? Is "entertainment" worth that? It's one thing to sell out the citizenry to the interests of corporations (been going on too long as it is now), but sooner or later they're going to find the proverbial straw that breaks the camel's back. Not to mention some people in the gov't are already worried about some of the teabaggers as it is now. Now imagine the situation when you piss off a large portion of geeks and people with technical knowhow. So essentially you're adding them and their skills to those already in the further fringes of the 2nd Amendment club. Let's just say they may end up seeing some things DARPA would wish for, but not really working in the establishment's favor.

I could also see where such software could be said to violate my 3rd, 4th, 5th, 9th Amendment rights as a citizen under the U.S. Constitution. So if laws are enacted and enforced in violation of those amendments, lots of people will have grievances. And without a proper redress of such grievances, it's not going to bode well for those involved.

Re:Eh, the typical

[ScrewMaster]

It will be interesting to see what happens if and when Congress attempts to mandate spyware on every single operating personal computer in the United States. And, I might add, not a program that reports to a legitimate law-enforcement agency (if any such Federal organizations exist in the present time), but to the private sector. Who would the computers of Congressmen report to, what about those of RIAA and MPAA members...

My guess? J. Edgar Hoover's ghost.

Dupe?

[Bearhouse]

Pretty much the same as:

http://yro.slashdot.org/story/10/04/15/1559208/Entertainment-Industrys-Dystopia-of-the-Future

Re:Dupe?

[Lord Lode]

No, the difference is that this time it's for real!

A sensible approach.

[Anonymous Coward]

They know it's not going to fly.

But, by asking for way too much, they're attempting to shift the frame of reference - anything they do manage to push through is going to seem reasonable by comparison.

Careful

[Anonymous Coward]

You cant just make up batshit insane stuff that no human being would ever say and claim it came from MPAA and RIAA. I'm pretty sure there's a law about that.

Re:Careful

[Anonymous Coward]

You cant just make up batshit insane stuff that no human being would ever say and claim it came from MPAA and RIAA. I'm pretty sure there's a law about that.

Corporations aren't human.

Re:Careful

[Anarki2004]

Correct. Corporations aren't human. But somebody thought it would be a great idea to give them the same rights as individuals.

Re:Careful

[Surt]

And if there were a corporate death penalty, all the issues that came with individuality would be resolved.

Re:Careful

[Bigjeff5]

Corporations aren't human. But somebody thought it would be a great idea to give them the same rights as individuals.

Actually there are a hell of a lot of corporations that are entirely composed of a single individual. It's often the first step you take when you realize that personal taxes are significantly higher (in raw dollars) than corporate taxes, because a corporation is taxed on profits, not gross income. Combine that with the significant number of potential business expenses and the personal liability reduction, and there is a great incentive for people making a moderate amount of money to incorporate. It's not too hard to take a $100k income (taxed at 28% for individuals) and get that below $50k for the corporate tax calculation (15%). It means you get to keep a lot more of your own money, and a lot of your liabilities are deferred and don't reflect on you personally.

In that sense, there are a lot of corporations that actually are individuals. I don't mind that we treat corporations as individuals, I just think individuals in the corporation should be responsible for their actions as well - like fining the corporation 10 million dollars and sending the officer who broke the law to jail for a few years. I don't see why the individuals and the corporations can't both be held responsible in a lot of cases.

Re:Careful

[Minimalist360]

There are certain things officers aren't shielded from. An example is a 401k program, an individual at the corporation is liable if that money isn't contributed like the company said it was. Unfortunately that doesn't stop them from pushing a plan that's all company stock, then bankrupting the company. Though if that happens through fraud the individuals can be sued, witness the individuals from Enron etc.

Spend more time on your own problems!

[adosch]

Yet another lost cause for MPAA and RIAA with failing to provide a legit and legal way on their own to produce and distribute digital content to the masses, so now you're going to hit up the government like every other 'Big Corporation' or 'Big Industry' has to help some failed quest.

Never once have I seen these two organizations do anything more than indictments, court battles and really lame 4 minute short films on why 'piracy of copyrighted material is bad'. Come up with a real solution. Software implementation will not even put a dent in this and it'll be worked around in 24 hours or less at best. More tax dollars at waste!

Re:Spend more time on your own problems!

[Bigjeff5]

Yet another lost cause for MPAA and RIAA with failing to provide a legit and legal way on their own to produce and distribute digital content to the masses

Well, not legit and legal yet, why do you think they are trying so hard to push this shit through? Why play nice by the definition of everyone else when you can change the definition of nice to mean whatever the hell you want it to? ;)

Never once have I seen these two organizations do anything more than indictments, court battles and really lame 4 minute short films on why 'piracy of copyrighted material is bad'.

They don't do anything else because that is exactly what their stated purpose is. They are a group of lawyers from each of the major studios who's expressed goal is pretty much exactly what you said they are doing. That they have not been brought up for racketeering or anything similar is just absolutely amazing to me. It's exactly like the mafia, except somehow they get away with it because instead of operating individually, the mafia bosses have all pooled their thugs to work together. It also seems to help that they bludgeon you financially instead of figuratively.

Why not just charge less?

[mfnickster]

RIAA, MPAA - why don't you just sell your product for a reasonable price so that more people will buy it? Make it easily downloadable and hassle-free (standard formats with no DRM).

Wouldn't that be easier than the technical and legislative shenanigans you seem so enamored of??

Re:Why not just charge less?

[east coast]

RIAA, MPAA - why don't you just sell your product for a reasonable price so that more people will buy it?

What price beats free?

Re:Why not just charge less?

[sznupi]

They don't want people buying more movies or music; they dream for return of times when people were buying only from them.

Re:Why not just charge less?

[shadowbearer]

  Because charging *less* would cut into their hooker and blow money. Duh.

SB

Re:Why not just charge less?

[Rockoon]

They can offer free low quality (say 64kbps) audio on demand for free, and then charge a small amount for 128kbps and a premium for 196+kbps.

oh wait.. they already offer 128kbps for free in the form of Pandora/etc, 'cept that its not on demand.

Re:Why not just charge less?

[mfnickster]

> What price beats free?

People will buy something if they get a perceived value, and the convenience saves them the trouble of going out and finding it. Witness iTunes Music Store.

If they feel they're being ripped off, they'll go out of their way to pirate it.

Re:Why not just charge less?

[Culture20]

RIAA, MPAA - why don't you just sell your product for a reasonable price so that more people will buy it? Make it easily downloadable and hassle-free (standard formats with no DRM). Wouldn't that be easier than the technical and legislative shenanigans you seem so enamored of??

You seem to think they're after money. I think they have loftier aspirations. Who needs gold when you can order your subjects to do anything at sword-point?

Re:Why not just charge less?

[lostros]

quite a few people buy books. libraries have been available for quite some time.

Re:Why not just charge less?

[JohnBailey]

What price beats free?

Fair.

Re:Why not just charge less?

[tsm_sf]

What price beats free?

My Netflix subscription is like ten bucks a month. That's about right. Their streaming system works really well, and I just torrent everything they won't let me pay for.

Re:Why not just charge less?

[Anonymous Coward]

What price beats free?

It's not only about price. A huge part is ease of use.

For example I regularly bought video games from sites like Impulse, Direct2Drive and Gamersgate. They were awesome. Hand them money - preferably for a discounted game - via some easy payment processor and instantly download at max speed. No searching pirated versions, no crappy download speeds, no second thought because of malware, etc.

Then about half a year ago, they started to HEAVILY lock down their stores, mostly country-locking. As a non-US resident I couldn't buy most of their offers anymore, even when I wanted to. Now, pirating would actually be easier than freaking buying games.

Leave it to the content industry to screw up their own business.

Re:Why not just charge less?

[Anonymous Coward]

They're too fat to be doing blow.

Re:Why not just charge less?

[hitmark]

in other words, they batter damn well keep expanding their selection of content in a geometric fashion ;)

Re:Why not just charge less?

[phantomfive]

Wow dude, you know you can get pretty near any song in MP3 format for 89 cents, right? If you can't afford that, then you're probably not going to be able to afford it at any price except free. Your argument is really outdated, at least as far as songs go.

Re:Why not just charge less?

[mfnickster]

Yeah, that's true about downloadable songs - but there are still lots of songs that are unavailable, and the labels were pretty much dragged kicking and screaming to the table after Napster and IMS showed them how outdated their business model was. They still overcharge for CDs, though.

Mostly I was thinking of the MPAA and TV producers. The time is LONG overdue when I should be able to pull up a movie or TV episode on demand and not have to pay an arm and a leg for it. I have Netflix streaming, which is a big step in the right direction - but again, not everything is available for download and if I really want to watch that particular episode of M*A*S*H right now, I'm not going to go chasing around town to buy the whole-season box for $80.

Re:Why not just charge less?

[magus_melchior]

Many would suggest profit, as though the execs and bean counters are Ferengi. I think that's too naive.

If they open up their creative works even a crack, there is a small probability that it would be exploited for amateurs who would then create variations on the legally-purchased works. They cannot tolerate the idea that their own fans would think up new and creative ways to enjoy what they sell, so they force every signing artist to hand over all of the rights to the creative works.

That's the entire reason-- they want complete control of the entire market and of every creative person. It is much bigger than money, although money plays a significant role. There is a reason why corporations offshore jobs, and why Chinese factories essentially enslave their workers, and it's not just because those in charge are assholes.

Re:Why not just charge less?

[Tokerat]

Because charging *less* would cut into their hooker and blow money. Duh.

I've been saying it for years, but legalizing hookers and blow would solve all our problems.

Re:Why not just charge less?

[Anonymous Coward]

There is a difference between ownership and being lent something. Not to mention a limited titles and limited copies at the library.

box-office receipts futures market

[M. Baranczak]

I'm really torn about this one. The movie industry hates it, but the finance industry likes it; which one is more evil?

Re:box-office receipts futures market

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm really torn about this one. The movie industry hates it, but the finance industry likes it; which one is more evil?

Agree. Its a very close call. However, Im going to have to go with the Financial Services Industry being more evil. Although both Industries are designed with but one purpose in mind: redistributing resources (“money”) from the many to the few, the entertainment Industry at least gives the consumer a little value, movies & music, while it reaches into their pocket for money. The financial services industry is wholly parasitic and provides no value whatsoever to anyone who is not a member of the club. As to the futures, its really irrelevant and somewhat like two old time cartoon politicians fighting over which one gets to rip the lollipop out of the baby’s hand.

Also agree with the above poster as to the software, this is entirely a matter of framing. The entertainment industry knows it will not get this one through, but they want the end result to seem reasonable by comparison. Then they can appear at press conferences to explain that although the software that they do get approved for installation is draconian, they gave up so much from the position that would have been what was best for the industry.

Its been said so many times, the most recent I remember is from Gladiator: “they are the masses, show them magic and wonderment with one hand and you can do pretty much whatever you want to them with the other.” (paraphrased badly) As long as the masses continue to let the few who are inclined to manipulate them get away with doing it, they will continue to get bent over the barrel til the end of time.

Re:box-office receipts futures market

[prefec2]

Well it is about the money. And IMHO think the money should not go to the content corporations nor to the money corporations. It shall go back to the people.

Re:box-office receipts futures market

[Anonymous Coward]

which one took away your job last year?

Re:box-office receipts futures market

[Anonymous Coward]

Blasphemy! To the torches! There is a communism prophet to burn

Re:box-office receipts futures market

[Anonymous Coward]

hehe...fortunately for me no one, I remain employed because I dont work in that industry. I do however have the 'benefit' of living in the heart of the financial industry (ie near nyc, in hedge fund central) and I get to watch them live, love, operate, disregard, and generally laugh at those they feel are beneath them (pretty much everyone who isnt in the club). Although it was extremely fun to watch many of them toppled from their lofty positions last year, the biggest offenders remain untouched (I know because I happen to live next door to some; they lost more money than I will ever have in my lifetime, but they still have enough to buy several medium sized cities).

What about Linux?

[javacowboy]

Well, if this happens, people who never before even considered running Linux will start installing it en masse on their PCs or Macs. People who never before would have made the effort to learn how to install it will become quite proficient at doing so.

I'm guessing nobody will bother writing such software for Linux. Even then, how do you ensure it's installed with every single distro? What are they going to do? Ban Linux? They'd have to either shut down or block every single site that offers a Linux ISO.

One way or another, this isn't going to fly.

Re:What about Linux?

[Zumbs]

If it is illegal to have a home computer without the "anti-infringement" software, and such software does not exist for Linux, it will in practice become illegal to run Linux. A gray shade will be if the software will need to run, that is, will it be legal to dualboot with Windows/Mac (with the software) and Linux (without the software)? Either way, the requested law is a draconian invasion of privacy, as well as a backdoor into your system for anyone from malicious hackers, spies or blackmailers to use.

Re:What about Linux?

[WrongSizeGlass]

Well, if this happens, people who never before even considered running Linux will start installing it en masse on their PCs or Macs. People who never before would have made the effort to learn how to install it will become quite proficient at doing so.

Um, would these be the same people who call me for help when their "e-mail is broken" because they accidentally sorted it by something other than 'Date'?

What are they going to do? Ban Linux? They'd have to either shut down or block every single site that offers a Linux ISO.

Let's not give them any more bad ideas, m'kay?

Re:What about Linux?

[Anonymous Coward]

Wow, douchbaggery rears it's head.

Re:What about Linux?

[Anonymous Coward]

These people are elitist kooks who still view the public purely as consumers -- they just don't get it. As if those members of the public who staff VFX houses (running linux) are a different class of social actor than any other member of the public running linux.

This isn't so much a pro-linux thing, merely that the public have access to OSX and final cut or to DAW software. Some members of the public even work in those industries which the MPAA/RIAA claim to represent. Nobody doing A/V work has CPU time to spare for spyware, so that is simply a non-starter.

The real issue here is that of approaching-zero marginal cost for digital goods. The old distribution monopolies and the cartels that maintained them are finished and regardless of bought legislation, market forces will win.

Re:What about Linux?

[Anonymous Coward]

Careful, now, they just might, indeed, ban Linux. After all, it's used by such "subversive rogue states" like North Korea, France, and the NSA.....oh, wait.....

but seriously, this kind of arrogant asshattery needs to be dealt with ASAFP.

I wonder if this kinda thing would fall under the auspices of the R.I.C.O. Act? Is there a lawyer in the house?

Re:What about Linux?

[Anonymous Coward]

I think the more scary thing is that most people just wouldn't care and wouldn't educate themselves enough to know what was in the MS monthly push.

"I'm not doing anything wrong, I have nothing to fear".

Re:What about Linux?

[Mornedhel]

We're supposed to get one of those spywares any day now, over here in France, thanks to the HADOPI legislation.

When confronted with the problem of making people voluntarily run spyware on FOSS systems, Christine Albanel (ministry of Culture and Communication, proponent of HADOPI), said (my translation):

About software... about free software, of course free software, when you buy, of course, software, for instance the Microsoft pack (this is not free software): Word, Excel, Powerpoint, there are of course firewalls, I just said that, there is security software. But on free software there are also firewalls, which by the way, of course. For instance, we in the ministry, we have a piece of free software, called Open Office and there is indeed security software that prevents the Ministry of Culture to have access, obviously, and the free software editors release firewalls, and even release free [gratis] firewalls. So that argument has no grounds. That is what I wanted to say.

And that is basically the last we heard of it, and they moved on with the project. She said that in front of the entire Assemblée Nationale to the representative who had asked her if she had considered the problem of FOSS systems, including the half-dozen "évidemment" and the unfinished sentences.

Now what happens is that when accused of infringing copyrights, it's the HADOPI authority's word against yours, and despite this being -- supposedly -- a country where you are innocent until proved otherwise, for some reason the burden of proof rests with the infringer here. So your *only* way of demonstrating that you are not guilty is to be running the government-approved spyware, which you can't, because it's HADOPI-style multiplatform, which probably means you can run it on Windows Vista *and* Windows Seven.

Before anyone storms in declaring that's what France gets for being a socialist country and that socialism inevitably leads to governments spying on their citizens: our current government is right wing (on our spectrum), and the Parti Socialiste is against HADOPI.

To conclude, the most likely answer to your question ("What are they going to do? Ban Linux?") is "no, they're just going to pretend it does not exist, and when the time comes to explain why you are not running the spyware, good luck trying to convince them it's related to ethical questions".

Re:What about Linux?

[jollyrgr3]

It will be embedded into the hardware, just like the Intel processor serial number. Remember that? Or the yellow dots that are printed on every color printer to identify the printer by serial number, date and time of printout etc. Try scanning currency with a scanner, just see what happens. Intel Serial Number http://www.geek.com/glossary/P/psn-processor-serial-number/ Yellow Dots http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/18/AR2005101801663.html Scanning Currency http://www.wired.com/politics/security/news/2004/01/61877

Re:What about Linux?

[Anonymous Coward]

Here(Holland) It also appears to be the right wing and centrum parties that care least for our privacy. There was a election on it a while ago, cant remember the website that kept track of what organizations and political parties did against privacy though.

Re:What about Linux?

[javacowboy]

How would you enforce the law banning Linux? I'm sure somebody would build a utility to "spoof" the OS as Windows or Mac on the web, and you'd have to search every single Linux user's house to find what's installed on their computer. You'd also have to block every single site that offers Linux ISOs, because I doubt every single country that has internet would pass such laws. Besides, almost every Fortune 500 company runs Linux servers. They wouldn't dare enforce the ban on them, and how would distinguish easily between home and office use?

Re:What about Linux?

[joe_frisch]

They could enforce it by requiring ISPs to check that the computer has a working copy of the spyware. There would the usual hacking war against this, but with regular updates to the spyware it would be too much effort for the majority of users to fight. Add criminal penalties if you are found to have a computer without the spyware and the the MPAA wins.

Companies could get exemptions. (You can pay a $100K "licensing" fee for your organization to not need the scanning software.

I'm worried that this could be sold on some sort of "protect the children" / "stop child porn" / "prevent terrorism" argument.

Would they dare? I've seen a lot of things recently that are beyond the limit of what I thought people would dare.

Re:What about Linux?

[Nyder]

Um, would these be the same people who call me for help when their "e-mail is broken" because they accidentally sorted it by something other than 'Date'?

oh, you get those calls to?

Re:What about Linux?

[Culture20]

Well, if this happens, people who never before even considered running Linux will start installing it en masse on their PCs or Macs. People who never before would have made the effort to learn how to install it will become quite proficient at doing so.

Um, would these be the same people who call me for help when their "e-mail is broken" because they accidentally sorted it by something other than 'Date'?

Expect a lot of calls about this spyware if it happens. DRM/Spyware schemes from the **AA seem to be very bug-riddled.

Re:What about Linux?

[TangoMargarine]

Quickly, to the torrents! ...Oh wait, I'm living on campus and they block bittorrent.

No prob, no prob...then to IRC! ...Oh wait, that's blocked too.

Hmmm...maybe I could host FTP...Oh wait, we're not allowed to host servers of any kind.

Well...um...er...I still support FOSS! Down with oppression!

Re:What about Linux?

[Anonymous Coward]

There has to at least one computer behind your NAT-router, that says it's really a Windows computer, and that it contains no illegal files.
(To keep life simple, the NAT-router can make up the existence of this computer, the fact that it runs Windows, and the whole report as well.)

Re:What about Linux?

[John Hasler]

> Oh wait, I'm living on campus...

Move. You can do that.

Re:What about Linux?

[Bigjeff5]

Before anyone storms in declaring that's what France gets for being a socialist country and that socialism inevitably leads to governments spying on their citizens: our current government is right wing (on our spectrum), and the Parti Socialiste is against HADOPI.

Right/Left Wing any more has little to nothing to do with socialism/individualism in the parties. And often one party is against a socialist idea because it doesn't go far enough, and they'd rather have all or nothing. I doubt your right-wing party is further right than the Republicans in the US, and they are basically just a little less socialist than the Democrats. They may feel that national health-care is a step too far, but they are more than happy to spend everybody's money on their state's pet projects. That's still socialism, and the right is just as good at it as the left. The only real difference is the right feels a little guilty about it, and so pretends they aren't socialist and fight the "Really Big Things" on the platform checklist, while spending trillions on smaller social programs via earmarks and the like. The left does not feel guilty about it, and so they tend to push it further.

In recent history "The Right" has tended to ward a fascist style of socialism (aka "corporatism"), while "The Left" has tended toward a communist style. Either way, it's still socialism. The only difference is exactly how it is structured. Who benefits doesn't even change that much between the two.

Re:What about Linux?

[Anonymous Coward]

They'll get my computer when they pry it from my cold dead hands.

Re:What about Linux?

[starfishsystems]

Wow! Épouvantable.

Did Christine Albanel take special courses in stupidity, or is it just a natural talent?

Re:What about Linux?

[Mista2]

Doesn't Bluray phone home now when ever you play something you think you bought? How do youknow it doesnt? The codecs are private, sealed and encrypted.
If you want to protest, stop consuming their product.

"The Right to Read"

[Mr. Slippery]

Of course, if they want spyware on every computer, then you can no longer have control of your computer. Software development will have to be heavily regulated.

RMS saw it coming over a decade ago; go read his little parable The Right to Read , if you don't know it already.

Re:"The Right to Read"

[weicco]

Of course, if they want spyware on every computer, then you can no longer have control of your computer

I would think that if they get spyware on computers then they need to fully control that computer. I mean, nothing prevents one from writing and installing a sandbox system which tells the spyware app that there's no music files on the computer whatsoever. Just like rootkits does.

Re:"The Right to Read"

[TangoMargarine]

Hey, this may be the perfect time to force entry into the cloud! No local applications allowed. :-)

Re:"The Right to Read"

[Mr. Slippery]

I would think that if they get spyware on computers then they need to fully control that computer.

Exactly. These bastards do not want you to have general-purpose computers; they want you to only have locked-down information appliances.

And, judging from all the cooing and fawning over the latest shiny piece of crap from Apple, most people will be quite happy accept infopliances.

Futures market for b-o receipts: a derivative?

[John Hasler]

Surely this is one of those evil, nasty derivatives that will soon be banned by financial regulation anyway. After all, everyone knows that speculators and derivatives caused the recession, right?

Re:Futures market for b-o receipts: a derivative?

[russotto]

After all, everyone knows that speculators and derivatives caused the recession, right?

Right. Just like building a house of cards causes the foundation to shake.

Stallman predicted it.

[Stormwatch]

The MAFIAA read this and thought it was a good idea.

Insurance Broker's Association demands policeman

[Anonymous Coward]

Insurance Broker's Association demands politicians to station a policeman in every home to make sure, that the household is not involved in theft or other crimes, causing gazillion dollars of demage each year for the insurance industry.

I would urge IATSE to strike against this

[ev1lcanuck]

Should these asinine ideas come closer to fruition I would urge the union of which I am a member: IATSE Local 700 Motion Picture Editors Guild to go on strike and encourage other IATSE unions to do the same. The ideas being proposed can and will harm our industry and our livelihood by creating distrust and distaste of the media in the general public. It is unacceptable to treat our customers as criminals.

If entertainment industry workers took a stand for the country as a whole then public opinion would be on our side. The producers would have to take us seriously.

Re:I would urge IATSE to strike against this

[WiseWeasel]

Clearly, you're a lot more intelligent than the lobbyists your employers are hiring, who are busy guaranteeing the destruction of your entire industry rather than adapting to the present situation. They are apparently far enough up their own asses to think that declaring a war on their customers, using the cash they gave them to buy consumer-hostile laws, would be a good idea. I hope they like the taste of backlash.

Re:I would urge IATSE to strike against this

[jez9999]

If you're going to use an obscure acronym, you should give its meaning at the same time.

IATSE is the 'International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employes' (apparently also an advocacy group for abuse of the English language, having dropped one of the 'e's in 'employee'). Valid US spelling? Pah. Fuck that.

Re:I would urge IATSE to strike against this

[Tacvek]

For the English comment, even as an American I find the dropping of the second 'e' very odd.

It turns out that this is arguably a more correct spelling. Employee comes from employé, which is the past participle of the French verb Employer meaning, of course, "to employ". Being the past participle, according to french linguistic tradition it can also be used as a noun, having the expected meaning. For females, the word gets an extra unaccented 'e', becoming employée a feminine past participle, which if I remember correctly, is a form only ever used in noun form.

Go figure.

Re:I would urge IATSE to strike against this

[jez9999]

Not really. -ee does indeed come from the French -é, but the standard way that English has translated this is simply by ending with a double e. This is a standard pattern (eg. from the dictionary: addressee; employee; grantee), so it seems by far the more 'correct' way to do it.

Makes Me Think About Pirating

[MacroSlopp]

I think that artists should be rewarded for their efforts and as such I buy all of my music; however, I now realize that this means I am ALSO supporting these thugs? Maybe i should reconsider my activities, because I DO NOT WANT TO SUPPORT THESE GUYS. What should I do?

Re:Makes Me Think About Pirating

[sznupi]

Just don't listen to the music under the umbrella of RIAA members, simple.

Re:Makes Me Think About Pirating

[my $anity 0]

Try and find musicians that you like that don't make albums with RIAA labels.

If you want a place to look,Jamendo has some pretty awesome music, and it's all free, but you can buy extra stuff, and also send donations.

Re:Makes Me Think About Pirating

[uffe_nordholm]

In your position I would pirate everything, and send a couple of bucks straight to the artist I like. And for the artists, it might very well mean _more_ money, since they only get peanuts per sold CD anyway... For the record companies, though, it will mean _less_ money. I am not sure that is a bad thing though ;-)

Re:Makes Me Think About Pirating

[innocent_white_lamb]

In your position I would pirate everything, and send a couple of bucks straight to the artist I like.
 
Exactly how could you do something like that? Say, for example, if I wanted to send $5 to Brittany Speers, where would I get her address and payment information? "Send it to the record company that's listed on her latest CD" somehow doesn't seem like the right answer...

Re:Makes Me Think About Pirating

[uffe_nordholm]

I have not claimed it would be easy to send a few bucks to your favourite artist. And if you want to do it avoiding the record company altogether it's harder still. But I think the degree of difficulty varies with the country you live in: in my country I can find out a persons street address (the address I would send snail mail to) from the comfort of my desk chair. All I need to know is the artist real name, which often appears in the Wikipedia article.

I am assuming the artist in question does not have their information protected. And getting such protection is possible only if there is a clear threat to a persons life: simply being famous is not enough for the authorities to deny the public access to your basic information. Some of my country's most famous artists have their information (full name, street address, birth date, and partner) accessible by anyone with the will to know it and an internet connection.

Re:Makes Me Think About Pirating

[sowth]

How about make your own music? Some people consider it fun.

Re:Makes Me Think About Pirating

[tibit]

Look up on wikipedia or elsewhere as to what county she lives in. Go to that county's auditor's website, look up her property by name. That's about it.

Re:Makes Me Think About Pirating

[innocent_white_lamb]

In many cases that won't work. Lots of people (especially people with above-average incomes) live in homes and whatnot that are in the name of one of their corporations or holding companies. Or they live in high-end apartment buildings that are in the name of their landlord.
 
My point is that in many cases, "sending a few bucks directly to the artist" simply isn't a practical thing to do.

Don't be TOO sure

[Runaway1956]

Who remembers stoppoliceware.org ? (don't bother clicking - the site has been abandoned, and it's for sale now)

Word was, some years ago, that "Da gubbermint wants to install spyware on your computer to track what you do, and it will report if you have any pirated software, among other things"

Stoppoliceware was one part of a multipronged attack on that idea, and those politicians who were considering it seemed to have abandoned their idea. So, the site was neglected, and finally ceased to exist.

We see that whole thing coming back, around the world today. RIAA and their ilk are looking for antipiracy, but da gubbermint is willing to go along with that program, so that they can install monitoring software of their own.

Unless, of course, there is enough of an outcry against the concept. Australia and New Zealand have been pretty effective in blocking this kind of crap - but I have little faith in the US. So precious few people have the least clue regarding the issues, and those who have a clue often buy into the "Think of the children" nonsense.

Thank God (and Torvalds) for Linux. There won't be any spyware on my machine. The bastards can spy from my internet gateway, but that's as close as they get, unless they come in with a warrant. At that point, I'll most certainly be joining the revolution!

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[Runaway1956]

http://74.125.45.132/search?q=cache:7AOx1mO30NoJ:www.erollisimarr.com/forum/showthread.php%3Ft%3D18794+stoppoliceware&cd=2&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&client=firefox-a

It's a forum, where a member copy/pasted some of the old site's mission, and asked about them. There is probably more interesting stuff available on the web, regarding stoppoliceware, if anyone is interested. Or, google for any of these terms:

"The CBDTPA is a bill (S. 2048) proposed in Congress by Senators Fritz Hollings (D-SC) and Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), along with Senators Daniel Inouye (D-HI), John Breaux (D-LA), Bill Nelson (D-FL), and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA). The acronym stands for "Consumer Broadband and Digital Television Promotion Act". Note that the CBDTPA was originally known as the "SSSCA" while in draft form."

Ahhhh - here's the bill:
http://www.politechbot.com/docs/cbdtpa/hollings.s2048.032102.html

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[Anonymous Coward]

There won't be any spyware on my machine. The bastards can spy from my internet gateway, but that's as close as they get, unless they come in with a warrant.

Not having spyware will be considered probable cause, allowing them to get a warrant.

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[cpghost]

Thank God (and Torvalds) for Linux. There won't be any spyware on my machine.

Only if you're not installing binary blobs, i.e. drivers (*cough* nVidia *cough*) in the kernel and closed source programs (*cough* Flashplayer *cough*). And who knows what's lurking inside your closed-source BIOS (both on the motherboard and in network adapters)? I'm not saying that those binary blogs contain spyware, but I have no way (short of reverse-engineering them) to be sure they don't... and never will on subsequent updates.

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[jonwil]

Thats why I run Gentoo and use xf86-video-nv (the box only has a GeForce 4 MX or so therefore its next-to-useless for 3D so xf86-video-nv is fine. If I wanted 3D, I would run Noveau)
I don't run any binary blobs (including Flash) on the box.
And I dont update the BIOS or any firmware (why would I need to when the box works fine, plus, its not like Intel releases BIOS updates for a motherboard that old)

All I need now is for someone to bring the Gentoo "everything is compiled yourself" philosophy to a mobile phone :) (with a minimum set of sensitive radio bits on a seperate CPU and/or DSP if that's what it takes to make it legal to use)
Maemo on the N900 is no good, too many critical parts (battery charging code, power management code, telephony code and others) are closed source.
Android is no good either, all android phones to date have (as far as I know) binary blobs for the radio part.

OpenMoko is (AFAIK) the only phone that doesn't have closed source parts running on the main CPU that are essential to the running of the phone. But the hardware sucks (it cant even do quad band GSM, let alone 3G) as does the form factor (I want a phone with physical keys, not a touchscreen)

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[Blakey Rat]

You should get that cough looked at.

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[Anonymous Coward]

There could be spyware in the open source software too. Not nearly as likely as closed source, but theoretically possible. Really, how many of us actually read the source code for the OSS we use? And even if the source is clean, the pre-compiled binary people usually download instead of compiling it themselves could have something extra added in.

I don't want to suggest that OSS is insecure, but if you think running only OSS makes you 100% immune to spyware, you're fooling yourself. If someone really wanted to get some spyware on your computer, they probably could. OSS just makes it more difficult.

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[Anonymous Coward]

Not me, I run Trisquel.

http://trisquel.info/en

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[Anonymous Coward]

At least the BIOS can be secured. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linuxbios

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[siddesu]

<5mm thick tinfoil>considering that a lot of the open source inside linux (including the kernel and compiler) is written by people who are hired by various large and small companies, and considering that you don't really know who pays the rest of the volunteers and for what, unless you're validating all source code you're compiling, and have bootstrapped and compiled your compiler yourself, you're not very much ahead of people who run binary distros, and only a little ahead of people who use binary blobs. </5mm thick tinfoil>

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[TapeCutter]

"I'm not saying that those binary blogs contain spyware, but I have no way (short of reverse-engineering them) to be sure they don't"

If your that paranoid you could inspect the traffic.

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[aurelianito]

Thank God (and Torvalds) for Linux. There won't be any spyware on my machine.

Only if you're not installing binary blobs, i.e. drivers (*cough* nVidia *cough*) in the kernel and closed source programs (*cough* Flashplayer *cough*). And who knows what's lurking inside your closed-source BIOS (both on the motherboard and in network adapters)? I'm not saying that those binary blogs contain spyware, but I have no way (short of reverse-engineering them) to be sure they don't... and never will on subsequent updates.

Lots of notebooks come with a rootkit in their BIOS that receives instructions from a website. For details check the work of Alfredo Ortega and Anibal Sacco here and here. Disclaimer: I work with them at Core Security Technologies.

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[Mista2]

And as much as you have thinking about it, Richard Stallmans way of life starts making sense. The thing I do like about stallman, is that unlike many ofther extremists, he doesnt push his ideals where they aren't wanted. If asked to speak on the topic he will, and at lenght, but he doesnt go around lobbying govertment to make sure all software development is open source and free, he just wants to make sure there is enough of it that you can create a "free" computer system if you want to.
The hardest stuff to do as open source is the hardware, becasue this does cost a lot of money to develop and reproduce, but guess what, Linux juns just fine on my Mac too, and even when using OS X, based on Unix, most of the software I do use is opensource. I dont need iWork, or MS Office, Open Office does the job, Handbrake takes care of video file transcoding and ripping my own DVDs, VLC plays nearly everything, GCC and other compilers still work in Linux and OS X. Infact lots of opensource stuff works better in OS X than windows because of a smaller number of different systems that might be running it, not like with Windows, which might be XP, Vista, Win7, Server2003, 2007, etc. Most of the intel systems would have gone 10.5 altleast, and most PPC systems will be there as the last stop before 10.6. (also PPC based Macs make good linux systems too)

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[Anonymous Coward]

It is not all on your PC Linux won't save you. The Gov't program wasn't developed by the gov't. It called for a submissions of ideas to be developed with a view to a contract.

The preliminary submissions were for ideas that would provide certain types of information tracking, data gathering, analysis and storage etc.
This was before desktop search, Facebook and Google.
Today Google fulfills (and goes further than) all the requirements of the initial request for submissions.
This may sound parranoid but the best way to gather info is when the user gives it up freely, is unaware or unconcerned with the method used to gather the info and when the mechanism for information tracking is seamlessly integrated into many aspects of the targets life.
Which group, world wide, has the most number of servers and storage hardware, enough to filter/track global communications?

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[perryizgr8]

symbian is also open source. but all the device specific drivers are closed. so you have to make your own device to actually use completely open symbian on it.

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[Opportunist]

Oh don't worry, I'll have the spyware. I mean, one of the machines could easily run some old Windows I might even have a license for in a VM.

Re:Don't be TOO sure

[Anonymous Coward]

1. Use open source video drivers
2. use gnash instead of flash (with html5 this is going to be less of an issue)
3. buy a coreboot compatible motherboard
4.?
5.profit

Exactly how?

[headkase]

Exactly how is this proverbial scanning software supposed to tell the difference between an illegal file and a legitimate one? Based on file name? Based on hash? Easily defeated and ineffective. The only way to truly tell if a file is infringing is to have a Turing complete artificial intelligence to watch it, listen to it, read it, or play it. Nothing short will do. Since websites hosting questionable content are having such difficulty separating out the files when forced to we can only conclude that Turing quality AI is not available yet. So, although the design specs call for a magic wand none are available.

Re:Exactly how?

[Anonymous Coward]

F*** that, it'll just search for all *.mp3 and *.ogg files, plus *.avi's over a gig in size, then filter for a half-dozen porn words and try to match file names.

Solution? Label all your files "19yo donkey punch gone wild bukkake shave" plus a reference number. Hey, I thought I saw that one on EMule the other day...

Re:Exactly how?

[Anonymous Coward]

You can fingerprint artifacts in a rip. Sorry that you're so behind the curve.

Re:Exactly how?

[John Hasler]

> Exactly how is this proverbial scanning software supposed to tell the
> difference between an illegal file and a legitimate one? Based on file name?

That's easy. If it looks suspicious delete it. Better safe than sorry, right?

Re:Exactly how?

[Rockoon]

Ripping isnt illegal (yet) ..

...distribution is.

Re:Exactly how?

[Anonymous Coward]

Exactly how is this proverbial scanning software supposed to tell the difference between an illegal file and a legitimate one? Based on file name? Based on hash? Easily defeated and ineffective. The only way to truly tell if a file is infringing is to have a Turing complete artificial intelligence to watch it, listen to it, read it, or play it. Nothing short will do. Since websites hosting questionable content are having such difficulty separating out the files when forced to we can only conclude that Turing quality AI is not available yet. So, although the design specs call for a magic wand none are available.

Actually, there's an app for that

Re:Exactly how?

[st0rmshad0w]

How about copying a ripped CD from your home system to a relative's in another state while you are visiting for the holidays so you can listen to it?

Re:Exactly how?

[Anonymous Coward]

What about my own CDs and movies that I ripped legally?

Re:Exactly how?

[Isao]

Mechanical Turk? Oh, are we supposed to solve their problems for them?

Re:Exactly how?

[wowbagger]

"Exactly how is this proverbial scanning software supposed to tell the difference between an illegal file and a legitimate one?"

Simple: All legal files SHALL be signed by a key issued by the MAFIAA. Any file not so signed is illegal.

And those family movies you captured and put on your PC? Unless they were created by an Approved MAFIAA program, and signed with an appropriate key saying the MAFIAA own them, they are illegal - surely you didn't think that YOU, an ordinary serf, have any RIGHTS or can OWN anything, did you?

Re:Exactly how?

[msu320]

I think I found the method of detection: C: cd \ Del /S /Q /F *.mp* Good thing my mp3 files are stored on my external harddrive with the owning user as "trustedinstaller" Vista 1 - AntivRIAA 0

Re:Exactly how?

[TheQuantumShift]

It's going to look for DRM. If it doesn't find it, it will issue a warning and delete those files that were obviously pirated. Of course you'll be given the opportunity to purchase licenses for them at extremely reasonable prices. Why, what's five cents a track but a minor inconvenience. Besides, even if you did purchase them legally, it must have been at actually reasonable prices (eMusic) and we can't have that, now can we. Once you've settled up, you'll be directed to a special area of iTunes where you can re-download most of your tracks (Top 40 only, none of this independent nonsense). Apple will re-implement DRM with gusto as they will now be the only legally sanctioned digital music distributor.

And of course, running a subversive operating system which does not interact with DRMScanner2000 or iTunes will be considered an act of terrorism and you will be penalized accordingly.

The above vision of the near future brought to you by the Palin/Hatch 2012 campaign. Or the Democrats, it doesn't really matter, they're all suffering from "I want to believe" syndrome anyway.

Re:Exactly how?

[Bigjeff5]

If it ain't registered, it ain't legal.

Apparently they are doing the same thing on government computers in France and free software like OO.org will not run, because it costs cash money to register the software.

Re:Exactly how?

[Bigjeff5]

If your CD contains any form of copy protection, ripping that CD is illegal. Ripping DVD's is always illegal, same with Blue Ray. I can't think of an instance where you'd ever be violating copyright by ripping a disc, but there are a lot more laws than just copyright.

The DMCA makes circumventing any form of copy protection illegal, even if you have a legitimate right to copy the material. The DMCA says you do not have the right to circumvent the copy protection in order to exercise your legal right to copy the material.

Re:Exactly how?

[Bigjeff5]

If they have access to it, it's distribution and illegal. The ripping loophole is for personal backup purposes only. It's also illegal if you have to circumvent any sort of copy protection to rip the CD, so you're potentially super-screwed.

Re:Exactly how?

[magus_melchior]

Given the draconian nature of media cartel execs, they will have a database of sanctioned works that are ladened with DRM. Any file other than those that requires a codec to be reproduced would be banned, even if they are not media files, and even if no RIAA or MPAA member company had anything to do with its production and distribution.

They will try to pressure Microsoft and Apple to build this into their operating systems, and they will try to pressure legislators to make "non-compliant" operating systems such as Linux illegal. That is the only way they can make this happen.

Given that this is an unprecedented amount of control to be demanded on consumers, I doubt that this will get very far; and given that the GAO has severe doubts about the loss figures the media cartel keeps giving Congress and the US Trade Representative, I think this could backfire.

Re:Exactly how?

[starfishsystems]

Ultimately, it's got to be "default deny". Nothing else will do.

And then we will have our Brave New World. Anything that isn't signed by a Certificate Authority which the software recognizes will be deemed to be a thought crime.

The reason this whole thing has any force at all behind it is because corporations are not people and don't have human interests at heart. A corporation can look at the value equation of the most draconian possible DRM and go, "Hey, cool. Summary execution for attempting to circumvent? That's sure to add a couple of percent to our user base."

Re:Exactly how?

[gmhowell]

Solution? Label all your files "19yo donkey punch gone wild bukkake shave" plus a reference number.

But that is ALREADY the name of my media files (and an accurate description).

Re:Exactly how?

[Lando]

Heh,
      Surprised you haven't been called on this yet. Turing complete is a computer that can perform as a universal computer, i.e. it can branch code and change memory. The simplest Turing complete computer and the most complicated whiz-bang computer are the same as to what they can accomplish it's just a matter of speed. Turing completeness is not related to AI.

      I think the term you are looking for here is passing the Turing test, which is basically a test where a person cannot tell whether or not they are talking to a computer or another human being over a network connection.

        The problem here is that you can fool some of the people some of the time. You don't actually have to have AI to pass the Turing test, not "real" honest to goodness AI that is where the computer actually thinks and comes up with real ideas. That's still a long way off. I don't know if a computer that's passed the Turing test would be able to actually monitor files on the system for copyright violations. Copyright violators are still going to be far smarter than a computer for many years to come.

One of the things that the computer can do if it has control of your system is to screen scrape and whatever the equivalent of doing so to your sound system in order to look for hash matches to copyrighted works. Over on Justin.tv channels are sometimes bumped offline according to the disclaimer because automated software matched a stream playing to a work under copy right. Imagine what would happen if they could run your processor at 60% of capacity all the time just looking for matches.

Remember, they don't care about false positives as long as they can sue and people just roll over and pay them off. Who cares if they phone home about granny stealing the latest issue of this old house if she can't afford to fight them in court.

Anyway, to sum up, computers are Turing complete already, it doesn't have a thing to do with AI, a computer that passes the Turing test still isn't going to be able to stop piracy, but they already have computer programs that can scan what's being transferred over a stream and occasionally catch copyright violations and all they need are a few hits percentage wise to "prove" their system works.

Re:Exactly how?

[Lando]

You can rip very, very, very few movies legally. The DMCA made sure of that. What do you think CSS was invented for if not to give MPAA members the right to protected the media forever, even though the case may be that copyright lasts forever anyway.

Although, I suppose there might be a case for ripping the video/audio stream after an authorized player has decrypted it; however, I'm pretty sure you couldn't raise enough money to fight it in court versus the criminal act of circumventing copy protection. Remember that you will likely sit in jail while any court case happens, since it is criminal not civil court. It doesn't matter what your reasons are for circumventing the copy protection are, even if the product isn't under copyright you still are in violation of the DMCA.

Re:Exactly how?

[Lando]

Yep,
      If it isn't signed by a certified source your going to be on the wrong end of the stick. Guilty until proved innocent. Hopefully it's a criminal case in which case you will get an appointed lawyer, versus a civil case where you have to pay for your own defense no matter how poor you are.

Re:Exactly how?

[KlausBreuer]

And you think this will stop them?

This whole moronic idea is only possible if you simply don't have any reality contact anyway...

Don't stop there.

[khasim]

This makes me want to not pay for next album or movie just that much more...

Instead of just not paying for it, don't watch it at all. Or don't listen to it.

If you don't like their tactics, do not provide them with an avenue to distribute their products.

Re:Don't stop there.

[future assassin]

Or just support independent/creative commons artists. I was living in and out of the box for a while until in the last week I discovered tons of free music here http://www.ektoplazm.com/section/free-music/ and here http://www.jamendo.com/en/ and metlabels http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&ei=nsrJS5TbF4jMsgOJr4XxAg&sa=X&oi=spell&resnum=0&ct=result&cd=1&ved=0CAwQBSgA&q=netlabels&spell=1

Re:Don't stop there.

[Anonymous Coward]

I always see this trotted out as a serious suggestion. The unfortunate truth is that 99.999% of these artists are awful.

Re:Don't stop there.

[Anonymous Coward]

Amen to this. In fact, I didn't like the amount of "media friendly" protections built into Vista. I didn't like it so much I am now using Linux full time on every system in my house. There is also a reason why I only listen to npr on the radio, go see local bands, and have sworn off of movies. And you know what? I find my life more enriching and rewarding without the distractions big media offers.

Re:Don't stop there.

[shentino]

They still mop up handsomely collecting settlements.

Re:Don't stop there.

[TheRaven64]

That's okay, even 0.001% adds up to quite a lot.

Re:Don't stop there.

[Anonymous Brave Guy]

Making that population statistically indistinguishable from those promoted by modern record labels, presumably?

A lot of people in any field suck at it, but in a field as big as music, even a tiny proportion of the artists being good would be enough to provide a lifetime's supply of interesting and entertaining content for people with diverse tastes. The trick is to somehow create a meritocracy where the relatively few really good performers can rise to the top and get widely noticed, without inadvertently creating Big Media all over again.

Re:Don't stop there.

[Anonymous Coward]

I always see this trotted out as a serious suggestion. The unfortunate truth is that 99.999% of these artists are awful.

Cool, it has nine less than the percentage of awful artists on major labels.

Re:Don't stop there.

[NotBornYesterday]

The fortunate truth is that different people have different tastes, and so what sucks to you might be considered a rock anthem by the next person. It's called diversity, and we might see more of it if the **AA didn't effectively dictate our choices to most of us.

Re:Don't stop there.

[Rogerborg]

They still mop up handsomely collecting settlements.

That's actually better for them, since the money goes directly to the lawyers that run them, skipping the usual retail and middlemen that parasite off of their business (making meat puppets mime in order to transfer money from teens to lawyers).

Re:Don't stop there.

[Scrameustache]

This makes me want to not pay for next album or movie just that much more...

Instead of just not paying for it, don't watch it at all. Or don't listen to it.

If you don't like their tactics, do not provide them with an avenue to distribute their products.

I'd LOVE to able to opt-out of the media cartel, but that would mean never going to a shop (where they have a radio playing), never reading or watching the news (where they plug their products with ads disguised as news content), etc.

I'd love to do that, but it's not a viable option, short of moving to the woods and trapping rats for their meat I can't avoid the media cartels: They won't let me.

Re:Don't stop there.

[Anonymous Coward]

If you don't like their tactics, do not provide them with an avenue to distribute their products.

Thank you! Please support the artists that release their works under copyleft licenses instead. Just like with software, if you disapprove of the ethics of the makers, don't pirate the programs, support open source instead.

Re:Don't stop there.

[John Hasler]

> Instead of just not paying for it, don't watch it at all. Or don't listen to
> it.

I do neither. It's easy: everything they produce is crap.

Re:Don't stop there.

[thetartanavenger]

Instead of just not paying for it, don't watch it at all. Or don't listen to it.

If you don't like their tactics, do not provide them with an avenue to distribute their products.

At which point they will blame the lack of sales on piracy, and still push through laws for their own agenda.

I completely agree with your methods and reasoning, but in reality it probably won't solve anything. Life's unfair, and then you die.

Re:Don't stop there.

[beanspud]

Instead of just not paying for it, don't watch it at all. Or don't listen to it.

Or buy it second hand.

Re:Don't stop there.

[countertrolling]

Won't work. The government will just bail them out.. and then mandate that we buy their products.

This is hilarious

[Anonymous Coward]

Seriously, this is all to be done in the name of protecting movies? Not nuclear secrets or D-Day invasion plans, but movies? I don't want whatever it is they've been smoking, as it's clearly too powerful and causes grandiose impairment of one's general reasoning abilities.

Puh-lease. They're acting like guarding the earning potential of Waterworld should rank right up there with National Security secrets.

Re:This is hilarious

[Anonymous Coward]

The National Security secrets concern the measures in place to protect the earning potential of Waterworld.

Re:This is hilarious

[shentino]

Don't laugh, they already drug that excuse out quite well to keep ACTA under wraps.

Re:This is hilarious

[bhtooefr]

Well, considering IP is the only product that the US can actually export any more... arguably, Waterworld's earning potential IS of utmost importance to national security, otherwise, China utterly pwns us.

Re:This is hilarious

[Culture20]

Well, considering IP is the only product that the US can actually export any more... arguably, Waterworld's earning potential IS of utmost importance to national security, otherwise, China utterly pwns us.

I say let China make a Waterworld knockoff. It can't be any good compared to the original.

Re:This is hilarious

[sjames]

The entire entertainment industry is a spit in the ocean. The real IP is in various design patents.

Not only NO

[shadowbearer]

  But FUCK NO.

  Who the hell do they think they are? Arrogant bastards.

  You know what we need in this country? A presidential administration with the balls to dissolve the RIAA and MPAA and put their executives in prison, where they rightly belong. Any corporate executive who would sign off on an idiot statement like this badly needs a reality check.

SB

 

Re:Not only NO

[Anonymous Coward]

Not going to happen. Change comes from the barrel of a gun, pure and simple. Remember - killing an evil man is a just act. Don't let anyone try to tell you that killing is always wrong. Sometimes it's the right thing to do.

Re:Not only NO

[John Hasler]

So you want to have people imprisoned (not even tried and convicted: just locked up) for proposing legislation that you dislike.

I don't like the MPAA and the RIAA either (and I favor drastic reductions in the scope of copyright), but I think I prefer them to you.

Re:Not only NO

[russotto]

So you want to have people imprisoned (not even tried and convicted: just locked up) for proposing legislation that you dislike.

I don't like the MPAA and the RIAA either (and I favor drastic reductions in the scope of copyright), but I think I prefer them to you.

Depends on the legislation. IMO, proposing legislation that will have me thrown in jail for activities I should have every right to engage in is tantamount to assault.

Re:Not only NO

[bzipitidoo]

Wrong venue perhaps, but the right spirit. I agree, let them say and propose what they want.

But, some ideas are so heinous they ought to provoke such a popular uprising that no one will ever dare propose them again. For instance, now that we have some understanding of the consequences, the idea of using nukes to "solve" disagreements between nations should be just such a provocation. There is a recent article out announcing that if the relatively minor nuclear powers India and Pakistan had a nuclear exchange, even the few nukes that they have is enough to cause a Nuclear Winter that could kill us all off. Generals who seriously propose using their nuclear toys without provocation deserve lynching by their own soldiers.

In other cases, time and time again special interests have proposed scrapping part or all of the Bill of Rights. They want to trash the 4th Amendment, or the 1st, or some other, to accomplish what they claim is some benefit to society, but which is patently, obviously the opposite. If they are lucky, no one takes them seriously, and we can afford to deal with them gently.

But in this case, these jokers have been pushing their anti-social agenda for decades, and have actually made some "progress". In some places, 3 strikes provisions, in which a mere unproven accusation is enough to cut access to a service steadily becoming more vital, have actually become the law. It's about the same as taking away driver's licenses or cars for littering. Real shame that the victims will be unable to drive to work and will lose their jobs, but they should have thought of the consequences before they broke the law! Yeah, right. They don't say so, but they want to kill the Internet as we know it. They'd love it if they could outright kill it, but they'll settle for strangling it with monitoring, restriction, and payment requirements. And for what? To protect us? No. Some other equally noble goal? No. It's so they can better monetize a non-essential thing the way they want, and what they want is to be lazy and not have to try or learn any newfangled business models. They ought to be mercilessly boycotted. Their reputation for business acumen should sink so low that no one will ever hire them for management work again. The opprobrium should be so severe that no sane businessperson will ever again dare suggest these sorts of drastic measures for this trivial thing.

The public understanding of the Internet today is somewhat like the understanding of nukes in the 1950s. Then, a nuclear war was not unthinkable, the dangers of radiation were not broadly known, and the possibility of Nuclear Winter was completely unknown.

Re:Not only NO

[John Hasler]

> The public understanding of the Internet today is somewhat like the
> understanding of nukes in the 1950s. Then, a nuclear war was not
> unthinkable...

It was assumed (by the public) that it would end civilization and possibly the human race. The military were more realistic: they knew that it would probably be catastrophic but they did not labor under the delusion that they could predict the course or outcome of such a war. Thus they did their best to plan for all possibilities.

> ...the dangers of radiation were not broadly known...

They were misunderstood and grossly exaggerated.

> ...and the possibility of Nuclear Winter was completely unknown.

That you've got right.

Re:Not only NO

[Anonymous Coward]

Sounds like you are a Christian/Muslim fundamentalist who actually beliefs that shit, or maybe you are just a big media schill trying to make everyone who disagrees with you look crazy.

Re:Not only NO

[shadowbearer]

So you want to have people imprisoned (not even tried and convicted: just locked up) for proposing legislation that you dislike.

  Odd, I don't remember saying anything about there not being a trial for racketeering, price fixing, and anti-trust violations.

  I didn't even hint such a thing. So take your strawman and stuff it.

SB

by over sea coders that will just mess it up or ma

[Joe The Dragon]

by over sea coders that will just mess it up or make only work on system with the hardware / drivers that they have to test on.

Just don't play the game

[Anonymous Coward]

Everyone could just stop buying the goods they represent. I haven't seen a Hollywood film in over a year (although honestly, its because they all suck), my tastes in music are stuck in the 80s, so I also don't my CDs anymore.

Re:Just don't play the game

[Stormwatch]

so I also don't my CDs anymore.

It seems you have accidentally a verb.

When you tell someone...

[John Hasler]

..."If you could have anything you want, what would you ask for?", what do you expect?

BTW if they want a pony too I have several for sale. That they might actually get.

Re:When you tell someone...

[TangoMargarine]

Joke's on you---you actually licensed those ponies. They want them back, and they're going to charge you $45,000 in back charges.

They can request anything really.

[Anonymous Coward]

They can request anything they want, but will we, and our governments be stupid enough to listen to them?

Will we stop them?

They will probably request that every household be patrolled by a RIAA/MPAA policeman 24-7, as a live in form of copy protection / police.

It doesnt mean it will happen. But that means we should also stand up for ourselves or else we will not be represented in our governments decisions. Hammer the crap out of your representatives until they listen. Their children use torrents too.

On a side note: I've heard millionaires who work in entertainment openly admit they torrent DVD and Bluray and watch them in their $50,000 home theaters.

OK, but..

[hom3chuk]

We want, on our side, "FBI notice"-cutting software, trailer-skipping software, "region-lock"-disabling software, "simple whistlersless menu and episode list" software to be installed on every single computer involved in movie industry and every DVD-player. OK?

What if their spyware won't run on my OS?

[schwit1]

Will we all have to run Windows? Wasn't their a court case a while back where the defendant's computer was required to be monitored as part of the sentence and he didn't use Windows.

Re:What if their spyware won't run on my OS?

[sowth]

You should check out the discussions on the SSSCA around 2000. They not only wanted spyware on your computer, they wanted every computer manufacturer to install chips which wouldn't allow any OS unless it was "secure." "Secure" in media cartel terms means it "Manages Rights" (as in DRM). You wouldn't even be able to copy an email unless the person who wrote it gave explicit permission. Would make it easy to cover up crimes.

Though, in those discussions I mentioned how I saw in some of the big media's material, they also wanted a censorship system which would seek out "offending" material and delete it. Most people insisted I was making it up. Clearly I was not.

Just imagine the implications of this. They would be able to delete any file on your hard drive they don't like. No program would be able to tell if there request was against a file they created, or something they want silenced. It is totalitarian to the extreme. It just shows how Hollywood is full of communist assholes and why California is screwed up.

What the big guys forgot

[prefec2]

We do not have the money to buy all these products, tools, licenses, objects, and services. We make them. We sell them. We provide them. But we do not have the money to buy them all. And that's why some things like music or movies or books or programs are used without paying. It is quite simple. We (as in the people in the world) have in percentage less money than the upper 10% or 5%. Most money is owned buy the big guys. And with most I mean around 80% (depends on the study can be up to 85%) of the money and resources belong to those guys. And in recent years (the last 2 decades) this difference got bigger. So in relation we have less, while they have more. This has nothing to do with envy. Not a bit. It is foremost a fact. As these are all official figures (use google if you do not believe me). And it is not a wonder that their share increases, because they got an average return of 6% while the economy growth is only 3% (worldwide). So there is a slight discrepancy and therefore they get richer and we become less and less of the share, but shall buy all the products and services. So in the end some of us, think copying music and movies and books and programs is not so bad.

Possble reason for dismissal?

[knarf]

Reading the proposals by the MAFIAA I can not help but notice that they keep on referring to the act of copyright infringement as 'copyright theft'. As far as I know copyright law does not deal with theft, it deals with infringement on the limited rights given to the copyright holder. Copyright theft sounds more like someone breaks into some fictional 'copyright register' and steals the actual copyrights, denying the original copyright holder of those rights in the future.

I can only assume that the actual laws which they buy are worded more correctly but if ever someone were to be sued for 'copyright theft' I assume this would be grounds for dismissal. After all, the copyrights can not be stolen if the copyright holder still has them and copyright law does not deal with stolen property.

Re:Possble reason for dismissal?

[John Hasler]

> I can only assume that the actual laws which they buy are worded more
> correctly but if ever someone were to be sued for 'copyright theft' I assume
> this would be grounds for dismissal. After all, the copyrights can not be
> stolen if the copyright holder still has them and copyright law does not
> deal with stolen property.

There is case law (both civil and criminal) establishing that copyright infringement is not theft. In fact, someone once lost a libel case after he referred to someone against whom he had won a copyright infringement case as a thief.

I thought US was against gambling.

[Anonymous Coward]

So calling it a 'futures market' makes it all right. What could possibly go wrong?

And this is

[Dunbal]

exactly why I don't go to the movies anymore. Blame piracy if you will (despite the fact that some movies keep breaking records). A lot of us are fed up with being ripped off at the box office, raped at the confection stand, and then accused of being pirates (talk about preaching to the choir) before the movie starts, only to be ripped off again by movies that fail to deliver.

Back in the day, there were basically two forms of entertainment - staying home and watching tv, or going to the movies. Nowadays there are many more things to do that entertain, from playing multi-player games, to playing with consoles, to watching people ignite their farts on youtube. Your market share will drop accordingly.

Boycott day

[future assassin]

We need to start a movement and get people around the world to boycott new movie release. Get it organized and when a "Big" summer action flick comes out boycott it. Hit them where it hurts, their pockets and crappy $100mil movies. But most people wouldn't dare to do it and miss out on the stimulation the movie would give them so it a stupid idea. I'll just go back and crawl under a rock.

Re:Boycott day

[FrozenGeek]

Not a bad idea. Also aim to have people not buy CDs or DVDs or watch TV on that day. May I suggest September 5? If you wonder why, it's Jack Valenti's birthday.

Will likely be implemented

[andydread]

Unfortunately this is MORE LIKELY to happen than not. The Vice President is fully influencing the President on this matter and it's not in a way we like. Joe Biden's pro RIAA history will almost guarantee it.

As Senator, Senator Biden had sponsored five pro-copyright bills and co-sponsored three. Among these bills includes the Family Entertainment and Copyright Act of 2004, of which the similar yet brutal 2005 edition became law. Another was the Perform Act of 2006, which intended to restrict the recording and playing back songs off satellite and internet radio (this died in committee).

Re:Will likely be implemented

[magus_melchior]

Then again, Mr. Biden appears not to have much influence with the Government Accountability Office, as they're calling bullshit on the "WE'RE LOSING BILLIONS TO DEM PIRATS!!1!" argument so often touted by record labels and movie studios. Without the "OMG MASSIVE LOSSES!" argument, I don't know if Congress will be inclined to act.

The XXAA needs to be reminded who pays them

[erroneus]

Wouldn't it be nice if a significant portion of the movie-going/music-buying public were to stage a protest where for one week, we just stop going to the movies and stop buying music. Just one week. That would be a significant and noticeable change that shows the power of the consumer and where their money is coming from.

Potentially useful

[Anonymous Coward]

Trying to contact these loons in an online manner is evidently very difficult. However, if any of you are truly interested, Here's a valid email (until they take it down) for the RIAA:

antipiracy@riaa.com

The MPAA can be possibly be reached here:

webhost@mpaa.org

I just sent them a link to an online copy of the 4th ammendment to the US Constitution. (Yeah, I know, a lost cause, but WTH)
Feel free to exercise your rights before you lose them

Re:Not very soon.

[Cheerio Boy]

Let me answer your questions:

1. It is not called racketeering it is called capitalism. The same things are happening in other places as well.

2. As long as people are frightened by terrorists, various diseases, house prices, jobs and each other, they will not have enough time or capacity to do that. Even more the TV is keeping their brains off. So they will not rise until we run out of oil.

3. When the oil runs out (same as 2)

I agree with number 2 and 3 but not number 1.

When what a corporation does would be called criminal under laws not within their control then they are criminals in everything but name. Sorry but calling it capitalism when the corporations are running the government just doesn't cut it with me.

As far as I'm concerned real capitalist make money within the system NOT change the system so they can keep making money.

In Soviet USA...

[Anonymous Coward]

movies watch you

Easiest way of reducing piracy using the Law!

[qazwsx]

Easy:
Make a law prohibiting advertisement about any kind of music or movie.

Wrong target

[gmuslera]

As usual, the ones that will be "punished" will be the normal consumers, the ones that actually pays for most or all the media, while the real pirates will not have this at all, or in the case is badly required, in a sandbox at most.

"Innocent till proven guilty" was thing of the past. Now is "Guilty, unless you are really a criminal". And they will punish any stupidity as capital crime, and leave any malice unnoticed.

Somewhat, i want that it gets approved. Is the kind of outrageous attack from above that ends demolishing all the building.

Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[Pascal Sartoretti]

I am always surprised that people associate the MPAA and RIAA together. To me, there are huge differences between them.

RIAA - Music

• Music is a natural human activity.
• Music existed many centuries before the RIAA, which may one day be seen as a small blip in the history of music.
• Technology has become so cheap that great records can be made at very small costs.
• Music belongs to the artist who wrote or played it.
  
  MPAA - Movies
• A movie is always the work of tens, hundreds or thousands of people.
• Even a low budget movie costs millions.
• A movie is nearly always the product of an industry (save for a few documentaries).
• Movies could not exist without the movie industry, which is nearly as old as movies themselves.
• A movie belongs to those who financed it.
  
  I don't want to excuse all of what the MPAA is doing, but I understand that an industry defends itself against its ennemies. For the RIAA, however, "racket" is the only word that comes to my mind.

Re:Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[cyber-vandal]

Movies are a more convenient form of theatre which has existed for a very long time too.

Re:Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[Anonymous Coward]

I understand that an industry defends itself against its ennemies.

Fine, but industries are not supposed to defend themselves by influencing legislation. Legislation is supposed to be for the good of the people, and industries are supposed to prove themselves useful within that framework in order to survive.

Re:Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[phantomfive]

I am always surprised that people associate the MPAA and RIAA together.

It shouldn't. Most people who complain about them are just upset that someone wants to prevent them from getting free stuff. Any moral arguments they have built up around the topic are later justifications for what they want to do. For an example, see the guy above who says you can't get music without DRM at a good price. He completely ignores the fact that you *can*.

Re:Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[SakuraDreams]

You should watch some films shot in Eastern Europe eg. the Decalogue series. Shot with a handful of people with no fancy pyrotechnics and expensive sets and written, edited and directed by probably the most accomplished film director of all time, Krzysztof Kieslowski. Without him there would be no Decalogue. So film, like music often belongs to the artist who wrote and/or directed it. There are other great directors who shot films on small budgets with a few actors and who created masterpieces greater than the multi-million Dollar garbage Hollywood churns out. Ingmar Bergman is another great director who shot some of his films on small budgets. This does not exclude bigger budget films either - take Kurosawa. Without Bergman, Kieslowski, Kurosawa etc many ground breaking films would have never been made.

Then there are anime directors like Makoto Shinkai who directed and produced an entire anime feature film by himself. There are many shorter animated films which were produced by small studios with a handful of people.

A good film is usually the vision of one individual. There are very few such great directors and without them we'd not have these unique gems. On the other hand Spielberg and Cameron produce assembly line entertainment pieces for the lowest common denominator and these dime a dozen films would have been made without them irrespective of the director employed, eg Titanic would have been a sentimental soap opera no matter what and even if there had never been a Titanic, someone else would have made a big budget romantic tragedy.

Re:Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[laughingcoyote]

Theater existed quite some time ago. There are of course well known plays from ancient Greece, and it probably goes back even farther than that. Movies are just a recording of theater with a videocamera. Even many of the same terms are used-actors, set design, script, what have you.

There still certainly is a difference between theater and music. But the movie industry did not invent the idea of theater, they just mass marketed it using the then-new technology of recording video.

Re:Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[Pascal Sartoretti]

Movies are a more convenient form of theatre which has existed for a very long time too.

Have you seen Avatar ?

Re:Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[Pascal Sartoretti]

You should watch some films shot in Eastern Europe eg. the Decalogue series. (...) Ingmar Bergman is another great director who shot some of his films on small budgets.

Yes, there are a few exceptions, but you can't deny the fact that there is a positive correlation between the price of a movie and its quality (just ask any director if his movie would have been better with less money). On the other hand, fantastic records have been made with a minimal budget.

You don't need an industry to produce music, you need one to produce (most) films.

Re:Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[Pascal Sartoretti]

Theater existed quite some time ago. There are of course well known plays from ancient Greece, and it probably goes back even farther than that.

Agreed...

Movies are just a recording of theater with a videocamera.

But this is ridiculous. A movie can include dimensions which are simply not possible on a stage. I don't mean Avatar or Titanic, but just think of what Stanley Kubrick did with a camera... And when a movie is just a recorded theater performance, it is usually a bad film (see many french films of the 40's-50's).

Re:Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[bit01]

And people like you completely ignore the fact that artificial scarcity is just that. Artificial. Blocking billions of people from using an idea or text, giving massive cultural enrichment, so that one (1) person can have additional profit.

People have been sharing since the dawn of time and will continue to do so. It's only human and no amount of hand waving by people like you is going to change that simple fact.

---

"I know that most men, including those at ease with problems of the greatest complexity, can seldom accept even the simplest and most obvious truth if it be such as would oblige them to admit the falsity of conclusions which they have delighted in explaining to colleagues, which they have proudly taught to others, and which they have woven, thread by thread, into the fabric of their lives." --Leo Tolstoy

Re:Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[laughingcoyote]

I suppose that wasn't very clear, so thanks for calling me on it.

What I mean is not that it's just the same as setting up a video camera and recording a play on stage, as it is of course not. However, it is still theater in a new medium. Music played on an electric guitar and distributed on a CD sounds much different than music played on a bone flute around a campfire, but both are music. While movies do use a new medium, and often certainly use it to their advantage (CGI, camera tricks, etc.), a movie is still at its core a theatrical performance.

Re:Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[phantomfive]

If people are so cheap that they won't spend 89 cents on their own cultural enrichment, then they are (regards to Ms. Palin) retards. If all you want to do is use the work of someone else for your own enjoyment without giving them something back in return, then you are a leach on society, and deserve nothing in return.

Re:Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[Anonymous Coward]

No, and I have no plan to ever watch it. It looks like standard hollywood drivel.

Re:Please don't mix RIAA and MPAA

[cyber-vandal]

Yes I have. I guess your point is that you wouldn't be able to do it in the theatre. But you could still perform the script which is the point I was making.

SPYWARE equals COMMUNISM

[Anonymous Coward]

Least movie industry forget their great communist purge in the 20th century. Spying on each other in the movie industry certainly didnt help the country.
What gets me is all this effort to keep people from watching a movie or TV show and that equals to them the highest form of crime. The reality is that most products of the industry have the shelf life of day old sushi in the sun.

What if their efforts was put to good use like finding Osama bin Laden rather than Joe/Jane college kid?

I want the open source version ...

[Skapare]

.. to run on Gentoo Linux.

Important message

[Anonymous Coward]

Best wishes to **AA

Easily done

[Anonymous Coward]

Government jobs program. Nothing quite like adding the words "full employment" to legislation to guarantee passage.

Things to do to lose me as a customer

[Da w00t]

Disable all analog outputs on my high definition devices (such as blu-ray players) - this is coming up in a couple years.

• This makes a feature I paid for on my $1000 USD receiver for "multiple zones" absolutely useless. That very same feature is also crippled by default by Sony such that *only analog* video and audio can be piped to the other zones.

Charging extra for "digital download" for content I have already purchased a license for

• I've intentionally not purchased many blu-ray discs because of the absurd crypto on them preventing me from watching that content on something besides a severely locked down combination of HDCP compliant players and display sets. When blu-ray's crypto is 100% broken like CSS for DVDs, then I'll start purchasing all my favorite shows in high definition on blu-ray. Until then, I'm downloading shows that I watch on TV in the US via BitTorrent.

Cable Companies that set the CCI bytes such that TV shows can't be transferred from one DVR to another

• http://www.zatznotfunny.com/2009-09/tivo-and-the-cci-byte/ Cox Communications (my cable TV and cablemodem internet provider until I get Verizon FiOS) sets the CCI bit to prevent me from moving content off my TiVo. FiOS doesn't set these CCI bytes, and permits "multi room viewing" on both TiVo DVRs and their own FiOS DVRs. I've been working approximately a 66 hour work week for the past month and a half, and I can't be sure that when I have time between work and sleep to watch a TV show that it will be present on my DVR because other programs have been recorded and replaced it. So, back to BitTorrent.

MPAA/RIAA/friends suing their consumers instead of getting with the program and adopting the new world that they find themselves in

• I stopped buying CDs entirely. I stopped buying music entirely. I now find music that I enjoy much more than the cookie cutter "formula" stuff I hear on the radio that artists put on their own website available for free. And you know what? I paypal them money as a thank you for producing the music. Direct cash to the artist. If you like ambient/chillout electronica, go to http://www.scene.org/ and look up the artist Xerxes.

Take away features with a software update

• Yep, I'm pissed that instead of Sony fixing a software problem with a patch, they remove a feature all together. When was the last time that Microsoft told you that they were retroactivly removing support for Mice and all pointing devices in Microsoft Windows because of a Click-Jacking vulnerability? Fix the hardware or software bug you made and don't negativly impact your consumers, or live with the fact that users will get what they want out of what they purchased. Licenses be damned, I'll take a soldering iron to my Sony PS3 if I damn please.

Re:Things to do to lose me as a customer

[Anonymous Coward]

If you like ambient/chillout electronica, go to http://www.scene.org/

Have you joined the scene, or do you just go to scene.org for the music? One of the things I like about the scene is that nobody sues anybody over anything, everything is shared (rather) freely (although it's preferred you make your own content).

Re:Things to do to lose me as a customer

[GrumblyStuff]

Have you heard of Magnatune? I've tooted a horn for them before but seeing as I don't have much of a music budget, I consider it good karma to toot whenever it seems apt.

You can listen to all the music on their site at 128 kbps in each song's entirety. They do add some bits to the end of songs, saying basically, "Brought to you by Magnatune," and then sometimes talking about deals they have. It's completely mellow and not at all disruptive like every fucking commercial on TV yelling at you or trying to get a damn jingle stuck in your head.

If you become a member ($15 a month, unlimited downloads), you can download the music as VBR MP3s, AAC, FLAC, OGG, or even WAV without DRM.

Overkill beyond words.

[Anonymous Coward]

If this is all in the name of entertainment, then I rather be extremely bored for the rest of my life.

The Onion

[Cameleopard]

Am I the only one who thought this was an Onion story for the first five minutes or so?

wow paranoia at another level

[Anonymous Coward]

governments don't have access to all computers in the world
and this tiny peace of crap associations want to see what iam doing on my pc

US may and i say may consider even it as a possibility
but in my country people will fuck up this MPAA crap with lawsuits over lawsuits and more lawsuits
there are some countries which do have privacy and something called freedom of speech

Pricing

[zogger]

It all boils down to pricing for non scarce products. Digital replication is disruptive technology and as such made it so copies were as close to free to "manufacture" as you can get, yet the music and movie industry insists on charging as much as an old durable goods copy from decades ago. Nuts. If they made copies insanely cheap, people wouldn't be so inclined to file share. With six going on seven billion people on this planet, that is enough of a potential market to sell a lot more copies legitimately..if the prices were low enough. And even stuff on plastic disks is way over priced, there is no credible reason to charge 15 dollars for some bits on five cents worth of plastic. Make copies impulse buying priced, you'd sell more. How about two bucks for a dvd movie and a buck for an album on disk instead of the prices they charge now? And download should be even cheaper. If I was to see disks like that at various stores, even gas station/quickee marts, I would be more inclined to pick up some. At fifteen dollars..well, I never will pay that much for a dvd. That's nuts to pay that much. I don't care what their upfront costs are or what salaries and profits "have" to be made for those folks who live in expensive areas, that's just too much.

    I hold out and get them used for a couple bucks, that's it. Or I just won't buy them, and no, I don't pirate either, I just boycott, and I started paying for my media entertainment in the 50s, but their cartel price gouging drove me away eventually. They lost a loyal customer, because I just hate being obviously price gouged. They are *nuts* with what they think copies are worth, pure nuts. Your various entertainment unions should have already been going on strike over this situation, napster and street clone disk sellers proved that the prices they wanted were out to lunch, and this is ten years ago now, and it hasn't been noticed or fixed yet, just more DRM and now they want spyware? *&&^%^ those people! It's the legit price they demand that is and has been the largest problem.

    And I bet I am not alone there either, I see people pawing through the marked down bargain bins looking for titles at like 4 dollars, and not near as many browsing the "full price" aisle whenever I am at importmart. This should be a clue to these execs, especially in this economy.

Speaking of which..these pricing decisions are made by millionaire execs to whom 10 or 20 bucks is chump change, what they leave for a tip for a bagel and coffee in some ultra expensive urban setting. They have no idea how the economy has impacted people's discretionary spending. It just hasn't sunk in yet, they "don't get it". We have people still desperately looking for a job and hoping their now extended four times unemployment checks will keep coming in. And even people working, when the decision is buy some entertainment for fifteen bucks or put fuel in the car or pay down some CC bill or a utility bill..guess what wins.

  They just *have* to stop applying LA and NYC pricing models on their products to the rest of the nation, it just isn't going to work, ever. Most of us DON'T live there, and all of us realize those are really expensive places to live, so salaries and such are much higher. That's why 15 bucks for a movie seems cheap to those execs, but to most everyone else it is expensive. Here's an analogy with something else, food, and pricing differences from one of the two big media cities and everywhere else: GF's son recently moved to NYC and works as a waiter in one of Trump's places. They charge *25 bucks* for a basic cheap spaghetti lunch. If you tried to charge that around here, you wouldn't get one single customer, ever.

    But..that's NYC pricing for ya. So...would you please impart that upstream to your union folks then on to those execs? The tech exists to make your copies for sale *much* cheaper, either on disk or download, just do that and make your loot on *much* higher volume sales. Really, it's that simple and that basic. You won't need any weird DRM or spyware/deleteware then. And BTW, will you guys stop with making watching a frakking movie illegal on Linux machines in the US? That's nuts as well. All of that crap is nuts, "regions" for viewing?? WTF?

Re:Pricing

[Anonymous Coward]

+5 Insightful If I had mod points

It Ain't Torvalds

[WryCoder]

Linus is pretty agnostic when it comes to blobs - he's "practical". So there is a lot of secret, proprietary software in the kernel, often under NDA.

If you are talking about spyware at the middleware and app level, his kernel isn't involved.

If you want to thank someone, that would be Stallman and the Free Software Foundation. They are the ones who have been fighting this fight for 25 years, won in the copyright arena, but now moving into the software patent and trusted computing arenas.

The "trusted computing" (i.e. trusted by industry, not you) initiative is still alive. OP is a part of that, and deadly dangerous to free software. They are trying to block you from the internet unless your software is signed by approved authorities, bottom to top, and immutable. Refer to the FSF for more information.

If you are looking for a totally free GNU/Linux with no kernel blobs and no non-free applications, look at gNewSense. I have it running on a Lemote Yeeloong. Even the bios is free software. The kernel is a deblobbed linux kernel derived from the linux-libre project.

Re:It Ain't Torvalds

[lgw]

Trusted computing is trusted by whoever owns the keys, which is a good thing if that person is you, and might be an acceptable thing if you're knowingly buying a locked down system and consider that a feature (as some console gamers do).

If the trusted computing folks would open the standard, instead of making everyone who works on it sing an NDA, it would be the greatest weapon in the war against root kits. Sadly, they won't, as they're all pigfuckers.

What a lousy translation

[SmallFurryCreature]

About software... about free software, of course free software, when you buy, of course, software, for instance the Microsoft pack (this is not free software): Word, Excel, Powerpoint, there are of course firewalls, I just said that, there is security software. But on free software there are also firewalls, which by the way, of course. For instance, we in the ministry, we have a piece of free software, called Open Office and there is indeed security software that prevents the Ministry of Culture to have access, obviously, and the free software editors release firewalls, and even release free [gratis] firewalls. So that argument has no grounds. That is what I wanted to say.

What a lousy translation. You make him sound like a complete ninny and tosser. Surely that can't be right. The french people couldn't have elected somebody so clearly incompetent?

Re:What a lousy translation

[Mornedhel]

The French people elect their President. Then the President names a Prime Minister; the Prime Minister proposes people for the various departments and the President says yea or nay. So the French elected Sarkozy, but did not elect Christine Albanel (minister of Culture and Communication).

About the translation, I actually had to try quite hard to make it sound close to the original, where Albanel does indeed sound like a complete ninny and tosser. I repeatedly used "of course" where she repeatedly said "évidemment", stopped my sentences short when she did, and so on.

Here's a link to a FOSS blog with the clip from the Assemblée Nationale recordings, along with a text transcript, if you wish to provide a better translation: link.

The worst part is that she seems to be reading from her notes.

Re:What a lousy translation

[Bigjeff5]

She said that in front of the entire Assemblée Nationale to the representative who had asked her if she had considered the problem of FOSS systems, including the half-dozen "évidemment" and the unfinished sentences.

Apparently, according to a person who speaks the language, she's a complete ninny and tosser.

Re:What a lousy translation

[Zumbs]

The Americans elected George W. Bush ... twice. Try to google "bushism" to find some increadible quotes.

Re:Ektoplazm

[TaoPhoenix]

Nice tip. That's a pretty good new source for my collection!

Like hitler in closing stages of world war II

[unity100]

Devoid of reality, thinks world turns on their demands, asks stuff that has no possibility of implementation in the real world.

yea they gone totally mad. not only they want spy programs on everyone's computer, but they want us. govt to force it to all of the world, (as if anyone can force anything to china, russia, india, almost half of world's population). even leave that aside, they want congress to pay their rent !!

this is madness - the very definition of which is having no relation to reality.

........

that aside, why doesnt this article have 'yro' and 'greed' tags ?

Re:Like hitler in closing stages of world war II

[sowth]

This isn't just the US. There are plenty of "rights holders" organizations in other countries. This is more of rich trying to control the poor, because the poor are supposedly "stealing" the rich guy's profits.

• When you don't buy their product, you are "stealing."
• When you buy a used product, you are "stealing."
• When you don't throw away a perfectly good product and buy the newest latest and greatest thing, you are "stealing."
• When you make your own product instead of buying one manufactured by one company, and marked up by several middlemen, you are "stealing."

At what point does violence become legitimate?

[Anonymous Coward]

So here is a philosophical question for you - a bit abstract, but an important one just the same:

At what point does it become legitimate for the NRA cold-dead-hand types to start shooting these people? This is not intended to be inflammatory, nor to suggest that that point is now, but it is a question we should have an answer to. I think most people in America (and other democracies too for that matter) would agree that violent revolution is a legitimate response to tyranny. It's pretty much what the country was founded on after all, the idea that a person's freedom is worth more than the life of a person who would take away that freedom. So how far to the *IAA have to go to cross that line? A corporatist state with mandated surveillance access to every electronic device in the nation is simply 1984 redux. Would violence be a legitimate tool to prevent that from happening? Where do you draw the line?

I don't know where I draw it, but it is very troubling that we are at a point where the question is so clearly in need of an answer.

Re:At what point does violence become legitimate?

[sowth]

I don't think the militia types would start shooting up RIAA or MPAA headquarters. Most of them probably aren't anywhere near understanding these issues.

More likely it will be like the illegal drug trade. Selling, possessing, or even using chips not certified by the SSSCA would be illegal. Being able to write your own programs or use open source would require you to have an expensive license. A license only big businesses would be able to afford.

For those of you who don't understand why Hollywood, the RIAA, software companies, and others want this--this is about restraint of trade. If they can keep out new innovators, their companies are protected from unexpected competition.

Is this capitalism?

[Anonymous Coward]

Recently, I watched a news program about alcohol sales in New York, and how it had turned into a dynamic market for drink prices. What you paid for a martini last night, wouldn't necessarily be what you pay for it tonight.

Now they're talking about a futures market for movie revenues? Is this what capitalism is? Turn every facet of money changing hands into a market to be bet on?

And as far as what the **AA's want? Your business model is dying, and what you've proposed won't fix it. Evolve, or die.

force US IP law on foreign nations

[kubitus]

Holywood has a history of leading the US to war!

Crooks

[Anonymous Coward]

fascist corporations now have the same rights as people.

Re:Crooks

[Anonymous Coward]

People have the right to spy on facist corporations?

Linksys is behind this.

[Anonymous Coward]

Think about it. Spyware becomes mandated. Methods to block it on the PC side are thwarted. Some genius appears out of "nowhere" with custom firmware for Linksys's easily modified WRT54G router to rewrite the spyware's packets to report only clean data to the spies. Sales of said router skyrocket.

Linksys banks.

There is a way..

[0ld_d0g]

There is a way to enforce this. Through ISPs. Have the spyware ping back the ISP's local server through some weird encryption mechanism ever X hours, else the connection drops. Ofcource its going to get hacked eventually, but they might still try it...

They can go fuck themselves!

[kheldan]

Enough said. Nobody is going to "mandate" any such software on any computer I own. If it comes to that, then that's the beginning of the end for many things people have taken for granted in this country (USA) for so many decades. No way in hell I'd stand for it, and anyone with more than two brain cells to rub together had better wise up now!

Re:They can go fuck themselves!

[Greyor]

Seconded, they can indeed go fuck themselves. I refuse to bow to any *AA demands -- they can't tell me what to do with my own software, on my own computer. Especially not on Linux.

Re:As soon as...

[symbolic]

...they realize that the power to fix this is right in the palm of their hand - inside their wallet, to be exact.

If they want this...

[Khyber]

I want full access to their houses and buildings to make sure they're not infringing upon any of MY copyrights, patents, or trademarks.

Sign me up

[Anonymous Coward]

Uh. I would sign up for the revolution, but can't find anyone I can trust. Just send me an email, routed through the proper government channels, and I will get back to you.

Our corporate policy

[Anonymous Coward]

We will deny execution permission to any software mandated by **AA.

We manage a substantial number of workstations used at employees' homes.

We already deny execution permission to useless antivirus and other "security" solutions.

Lol

[Anonymous Coward]

Them idiots think their movies are so addictive?

What can I say it wouldn't be the first time taxpayer money are wasted on making some dudes rich.

Oh yeah?

[hallux.sinister]

There's no spyware on my Commodore 64, it doesn't have the capability of running any.

There are alternatives

[hallux.sinister]

Such as http://www.jamendo.com/ free, Creative Commons released/protected music, and lots of it! Totally legal, much of it can even be remixed! Just check the license.

Re:Not very soon.

[Daimanta]

"As far as I'm concerned real capitalist make money within the system NOT change the system so they can keep making money."

And as far as I'm concerned, real Scotsmen don't put sugar in their porridge.

Or else what?

[PPH]

If they don't get their way, what are they going to do? Quit? That's fine with me.

We can live without Lady Gaga music videos. There ae far more important things to do with the Internet

They are clearly psychopats

[Anonymous Coward]

The people in the RIAA and MPAA are clearly psychopaths by a clinical definition. But so is a fair share of the US government and legal establishment.

The real question we should ask is: When will sanity become a requirement for becoming a decision maker?

THere are too many lunatics around in various flavoours of "leadership" these days. And they're almost impossible to get rid of short of breaking the law.

Nothing

[Anonymous Coward]

How long did it take to crack StarCraft II Beta again? Oh yeah, a week.

How long will it take to emulate a battle.net server? Looking towards a month.

How long does it take to crack some of the newest operating systems?

This is nothing.

An Ironic Choice

[Anonymous Coward]

When I want to listen to some good rock, like Led Zepplin, I get Led Zepplin. I don't go and buy Ratt because it might be cheaper and have less good songs.

Who is this Led Zepplin of whom you speak? Some Led Clone (thx Gazza) like Lez Zeppelin, Dread Zeppelin, The White, Great White or Led Zeppelin Again?

Oh, I know, you bought the Chinese remasters, made in China but printed in Engrish.

Try the 100% Genuine Original Led Zeppelin instead.

Led Zeppelin is still full of Led and it's still guaranteed that at least 33% of their songs are stolen from other artists and even Page himeself (Yardbirds) and credited to Page and Plant, who collect the royalties (making this a rather ironic choice of artists in the context of this discussion).

Re:Not very soon.

[Opportunist]

Sorry, but no. This is NOT capitalism. The capitalist system depends on the balance of power between supplier and consumer. Suppliers create and compete with each other, offering goods of different quality, price and features, and the consumer picks from the offered goods and chooses the one that fits his needs best, thus rewarding the "fittest" supplyer with money, which in turn is or at least can be used to improve the goods, while forcing the other competing supplyers to improve their goods or to perish.

NONE of these qualities can be found in the media industry today. If anything, they're as anti-capitalist as an industry has ever been.

Dude, change the name or hand out free eye bleach

[jonaskoelker]

I think anything that ends with "ATSE" is going to be displeasing to the internet savvy crowd. Please tell me you don't have people cheering "GO IATSE" :-(

Not even good enough!

[jonaskoelker]

Exactly how is this proverbial scanning software supposed to tell the difference between an illegal file and a legitimate one?

By using the meat_space_meeting_of_minds() api call ;-)

By which I mean: it can't compute the important bit (isLegal) based on what's stored on the computer, because humans can make agreements that are invisible to the computers; among others, agreements about copyrights and licenses, and those are what determine what is and isn't legal.

(that said, it can approximate the bit by assuming all copyrighted music is illegal to posses in digital form; Apple and their customers might be upset, but the MAFIAA doesn't care)

FBI and EUCC might be a problem

[Anonymous Coward]

Did not the FBI just report that their piracy 'losses' were akin to pipe dreams? Then there is the small matter of US commercial interest trying to impose its ways on the EU. Even Microsoft has learned, the hard way, that such imperial fiats don't work there. Few governments, who wish to remain in power come next election, are going to let themselves be seen as slaves to the US media 'industry'.