Slashdot Mirror
Spanish Copyright Society Raided For Embezzlement
esocid writes "Senior officials in Spain's Society of Authors and Publishers (SGAE), the country's leading collection society for songwriters and composers, face embezzlement charges in the wake of a Friday raid on the organization's offices. Investigators say Jose Luis Rodriguez Neri, the head of an SGAE subsidiary called the Digital Society of Spanish Authors (SDAE), made payments for non-existent services to a contractor that then paid kickbacks to Neri and his associates. SGAE, the Spanish counterpart to American collecting societies like ASCAP and BMI, is known for its high fees and aggressive enforcement tactics. According to El País, 'the society has been often accused of exceeding its remit by going as far as to infiltrate private weddings to check whether fees had been paid for the music being played at the banquet.'"
Spain loves to imitate the US, but generally half-asses it
Do you actually know anything about Spain?, because that statement makes no sense.
Beyond the obvious (Eating better, living longer, having clearly different political, institutional, educational and health systems). Spain's message against Piracy is not "don't steal or else", but rather "protect your culture".
The SGAE's "business practices" are indeed comparable to those of the ASCAP, only difference being, the justice system over there can actually do something about it.