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Are SOPA Sponsors Violating SOPA Rules? Not So Fast, Says Ars Technica

TheNextCorner writes "Remember how the Stop Online Piracy Act would make streaming of copyrighted material a felony? Many of these lawmakers actually stream copyrighted videos on their websites." However, that's not the whole story. according to a followup at Ars Technica to the tweeted claims about streaming and SOPA. From which: "The Electronic Frontier Foundation tweeted the post, and it was re-tweeted more than 100 times. So are the sponsors of SOPA hypocrites? We're not fans of SOPA, so we'd love to have this story check out. But we're also a news site, so we contacted James Grimmelmann, a copyright scholar at New York Law School, (and judging from his tweets, not a SOPA supporter) to get his expert opinion."

36 of 115 comments (clear)

  1. Not really the point by Weezul · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The core issue is how SOPA changes the liability structure to permit endless copyright troll lawsuits. It doesn't matter if your users are or aren't infringing if copyright holders can sue you endlessly regardless.

    --
    The Christian religion has been and still is the principal enemy of moral progress in the world. -- Bertrand Russell
    1. Re:Not really the point by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The same people who sued to stop the Camp Fire Girls from singing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" in the woods around a fire as a "public performance" will be making accusations and shutting down web sites en mass. Because all it takes is for a site to be a suspected offender.

    2. Re:Not really the point by zero.kalvin · · Score: 4, Informative

      With a quick search, there is this : http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/communications/ASCAP.html I think it is ridiculous...

    3. Re:Not really the point by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

      The same people who sued to stop the Camp Fire Girls from singing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" in the woods around a fire as a "public performance" will be making accusations and shutting down web sites en mass. Because all it takes is for a site to be a suspected offender.

      Citation please. That song was written in it's modern form in 1881.

      In reference to the Girl Scouts, a source is here: http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/communications/ASCAP.html

      They cite ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) as the perpetrators. A different source describes the particulars of how they decide who and what infringes: http://woodpecker.com/writing/essays/royalty-politics.html, which specifically says ASCAP has more than 80 arrangements of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" under copyright. So the song is public domain, but if you infringe upon their arrangement, they are going to get you.

      Note on sources: more reliable sources may be available, this is all I had time to find.

    4. Re:Not really the point by JoeMerchant · · Score: 5, Informative

      Ever notice that major restaurant chains don't sing the traditional "Happy Birthday to You!"?

      AOL Time Warner currently collects about $2M per year in royalties on "Happy Birthday to You", originally popularized more than 80 years ago.

      and, won't the world be such a better place when these rights are more vigorously protected? cough, gag

    5. Re:Not really the point by Culture20 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Did you never wonder why restaurant staff sing their own made up birthday songs?

    6. Re:Not really the point by hairyfeet · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Bimbo Newton Crosby, what this does is gives the big boys a really nice weapon to shut down the indies. If you'll remember one of the big corps (I think it was Sony, not sure as its early here) finally admitted all the stinks they've been throwing wasn't over IP but over control and as more and more people spend more and more time on the net they are feeling their grip on what the masses see and hear slipping away.

      For the first time in history we are seeing artists bypass the gatekeepers completely, going from 'viral sensation' to nationally known artist and this scares the living fuck out of them. They know in the age of YouTube and Twitter and a bazillion other non controlled communication circuits their ability to force artists into assraping contracts where they are basically nothing but cogs and "all your IP belong to us" is becoming a thing of the past.

      So all this will do is exactly what you have surmised and allow them to bury anyone who doesn't "play ball" to be crushed by endless trolling. While the big boys have their own law firms the little guys simply won't be able to survive endless lawsuits and will either cave in or go under.

      Sadly the only way we have to fight back anymore is massive piracy, there simply is nothing else. Any drops in their revenue they will blame on piracy anyway so boycotts do nothing, as the petitions which have gotten to the point there is actually a petition that says "Please quit ignoring us" prove if you don't have the money to bribe your congressman he sure as fuck isn't going to listen to you, so all that is left is the geeks.

      So please geeks, please keep working on anonymous distributed P2P and continue to work to make it so damned simple that Limewire looks like compiling your own kernel. The ONLY way we are gonna get rid of these bastards is to bleed them to death, there is simply no other choices left now. If all your IP laws are unjust and the people no longer have a say at the table the only just thing to do is completely ignore those unjust laws. Does anyone truly believe that if We, The People had any say anymore we would have crap like SOPA or "forever minus a single day" copyright laws?

      --
      ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
    7. Re:Not really the point by jd2112 · · Score: 5, Funny

      So we are safe if we sing it like Shatner?

      Not until he's been dead for 70 years...

      Not until i've been dead for 70 years.

      --
      Any insufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from technology.
    8. Re:Not really the point by SuricouRaven · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I, however, *am* encouraging outright piracy. Mostly out of spite. Unfortunatly I don't believe it'll actually harm labels or studios in any significant way. Remember that the highest grossing film of all time is still Avatar, a science-fiction film aimed at the teen-to-twentyfive mostly-male demographic that also happens to be the most inclined towards piracy. If piracy couldn't sink Fern Gully in Space, well... recruit more pirates.

    9. Re:Not really the point by thomst · · Score: 4, Insightful

      hairyfeet opined:

      Bimbo Newton Crosby, what this does is gives the big boys a really nice weapon to shut down the indies.

      For the first time in history we are seeing artists bypass the gatekeepers completely, going from 'viral sensation' to nationally known artist and this scares the living fuck out of them. They know in the age of YouTube and Twitter and a bazillion other non controlled communication circuits their ability to force artists into assraping contracts where they are basically nothing but cogs and "all your IP belong to us" is becoming a thing of the past.

      Sadly the only way we have to fight back anymore is massive piracy, there simply is nothing else.

      The ONLY way we are gonna get rid of these bastards is to bleed them to death, there is simply no other choices left now.

      Here's the problem I have with your exhortation: indiscriminate "massive piracy" will not only harm the IP plutocrats of the RIAA, it will also adversely impact the very independent artists you claim to support - and it is them, and not the Sonys of the industry, who will be harmed the most. That's because the warez kiddies who do the vast majority of unauthorized downloading are unlikely to make any distinction whatsoever between music the rights to which the RIAA members control, and those recordings which are directly owned and controlled by independent artists themselves. Instead, in their enthusiasm to embrace "stick it to The Man" as a valid excuse to download every popular tune they see, they will gleefully end up harming the innocent along with the guilty.

      It's very difficult to make a living in the music industry as an independent artist. And I mean VERY difficult. Every dollar in income you have to sacrifice puts you a dollar closer to being forced to hang up your guitar for good. And, while that's especially true for independents early in their careers, it is, to some extent, true of all independent musical artists. Downloading their music without their permission, and refusing to pay them for it is NOT "sticking it to The Man". It's sticking it to the artist him/herself ... and that's Not A Good Thing, especially if that artist is one whose music you like and would like to hear more of.

      I know it's popular here on /. to maintain that artists "should" regard recorded tracks as pure loss leaders, and be content to make their money strictly from live performances. And that's fine, if you're Lady Gaga, or some other top-tier artist. But independent musicians - and, again, especially those who are just starting their careers, or who have, after struggling for years, finally released a hit record - don't pull in the big bucks for performances. Touring is expensive: transportation for you, and your band and crew, lodging for all of you, food for all of you, concert promotional costs (You didn't think those posters advertising that concert you think will be so profitable printed themselves, did you? Or posted themselves on all those walls, windows, and telephone poles?), liability and property insurance (On Pink Floyd's first U.S. tour, their van was stolen in Texas, and they lost all of their instruments, including Rick Wright's heavily-customized Hammond organ, their giant - and very expensive - gong, and all their guitars and amplifiers - and, as a result, they had to return to England, because they couldn't afford both to replace their gear and continue to pay for a tour that had been only marginally profitable for a band that, at that point, wasn't at all well-known here in the States.), merchandise (tee shirts aren't free - and neither is having your band's name and touring information printed on them), and so on. By the time you finish paying for all that - and much of it has to be paid for in advance - even a show in a decent-sized venue, at a relatively high per-ticket price (which you have to split with the concert promoter/venue owner, btw), to a sold-out audience is likely to make you exactly enou

      --
      Check out my novel.
    10. Re:Not really the point by HiThere · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I'll encourage outright piracy when you show that it actually hurts the RIAA, the MPAA, or their member companies.

      As it is I think of it as free advertizing for despicable entities. Not actually immoral, but dangerous and stupid.

      --

      I think we've pushed this "anyone can grow up to be president" thing too far.
    11. Re:Not really the point by tragedy · · Score: 4, Interesting

      The really awful thing about that is that the actual music to "Happy Birthday to You" isn't copyrighted, or at least shouldn't be under copyright. The melody is from "Good Morning to All", which was written in 1893. According to Wikipedia, the combination of the "Happy Birthday to You" lyrics and the "Good Morning to All" melody first appeared in print in 1912 and was copyrighted by people who clearly weren't the true originators in 1935 and, due to the various copyright extensions, won't fall out of copyright until 2030.

      Now, the lyrics consist of 4 lines, only one of which is unique, and only barely, since it differs from the other three only by replacing "to you" with "dear ____". And there are only 5 actual words (aside from the person's name, which is clearly not a copyrightable part of the song). So, "Happy Birthday to You" is a clear example of a song that doesn't deserve to fall under copyright. If it ever went to court, the defendant would probably win, but very few people would ever fight it because the expense and effort involved wouldn't be worth it versus caving and handing over the protection money.

    12. Re:Not really the point by hairyfeet · · Score: 4, Informative

      Actually I've toured the south a few times myself and known several indie bands and most of us put our stuff on P2P, thanks anyway. you know why? Because fans will STILL happily buy your CDs at the shows, along with the T-Shirts, caps, mugs, keyrings, mousepads (those were my idea BTW) and anything else to help out the band because guess what? they are FANS and want to see you get ahead.

      BTW I probably shouldn't share this trick, as we were raking in the cash with it, but what the fuck, sharing is caring right? Indie guys, want to make a fuckton of money and sell out your swag? The magic word is "raffle". We would go to a local pawnshop in whatever town we were at, but a cool cheap guitar or bass, me or the guitarist would play it for 3 or 4 songs and at the end of the show we would all sign it and anybody who bought a piece of swag had their name in the drawing for the instrument.

      Not only did audiences eat it up but we ended up with several hardcore fans that showed up at nearly every gig simply because they won something that made them feel closer to the band. We'd always let them sit with the wives and GFs and they were happy to hang up posters or post on FB or anything else that got out the word, simply because it made them feel like a winner.

      It works, its cheap, makes you a hell of a lot more than the guitar costs, and creates really loyal long lasting fans. Last gig I played even though i wasn't with that band anymore and hadn't been in 5 years i had a guy show up and bring nearly 30 friends, all of whom bought swag, simply because 'hey man I still have that bass i won in Memphis, remember me?" so he and his buds got to hang out with the wives and GFs while we played and we had a beer afterward. Its a great way to get long term fans

      . I hereby release this to the world as GPL, if you use the idea just give the old hairyfeet a little credit now and then, kay? Who knows one day i might be your opening act, or you may be mine. peace fellow bass players and never forget to show the ladies we bass players are ALWAYS good with our fingers!

      --
      ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
  2. USA is going nuts for Hollywood by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Go on america; keep on going, keep listening to the 1 % to try to get the rest of the world to do your bidding..

    This is one of many steps that have been taken to make the USA look silly & this will only be one more step towards the downfall of the usa..

    I used to be a big fan of the country; but i'm getting more & more convinced that the usa is nuts... & getting more & more so :)

    in 10 years the usa will be disconnected from the internet.. at least; the free internet the rest of the world will enjoy.

    1. Re:USA is going nuts for Hollywood by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Indeed. The new media companies (Google, Facebook, etc.) will leave the country completely and move the USA operations bases to other countries.

    2. Re:USA is going nuts for Hollywood by CrackedButter · · Score: 3, Interesting

      If it's designed to survive a holocaust, the Internet can survive without America.

    3. Re:USA is going nuts for Hollywood by Coeurderoy · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Well it's true that the US owes us much more cash to europe than europe owes to the US, what the heck does europe needs the USA for ?
      Natural resources ? no it comes from other countries and what the US has it keeps...
      Agricultural produces ? well we do import coca cola, but we could buy clones from other countries, OGM's well no thanks, ...
      Manufactured products ? you mean those who are made in china ?
      Hollywood products, well we are kind of addicted to, but we can move over to bollywood :-) and watch UK series instead of US remakes... (We might make an exception for future seasons of Episodes just be drive the point home...

      So good by and thanks for all the fish, but ... it's not quite too late, just please fix your country.
      a) do not not vote for any incumbent (we should follow this advice also)
      b) make and execute a plan to divide by 10 your natural resource per capita intake.
      c) stop accepting a society that thinks it's "ok" to have about 3% of your population in prison, or under some sort of judiciary control.
      d) put a cap on salaries of professionals involved in sports (let's say 50% of an university professor or GP doctor whichever is lower)
      (this might actually make sport a game again)...
      e) put cap copyright protection period to 5 years, and patent protections to 6 month
      (and give artist some lessons on "saving for old age" so that the various mafiaa's cannot argue that poor old artists need "extended protections" because they are now so old .... and only have 75 year old records to feed them..

    4. Re:USA is going nuts for Hollywood by SuricouRaven · · Score: 2

      That's most of the point of SOPA/PROTECT-IP. The US government and the lobbyists of various copyright industries are really annoyed that companies that would be illegal in the US are doing business merely by operating in another country - they want to be able to enforce US law globally, at least where copyright is concerned. This is an effort to do that, by using a combination of internet filtering and payment embargos.

    5. Re:USA is going nuts for Hollywood by TheRaven64 · · Score: 2

      What do you mean? Internet backbones? Not much is routed through America that doesn't either originate or terminate there. I think Canada is connected to Europe via Iceland. South America and Mexico might depend on the USA for access? DNS? Nope, the root servers are geographically distributed, and would keep functioning if the USA dropped off the net.

      --
      I am TheRaven on Soylent News
  3. Re:Ah, Slashdot. by hedwards · · Score: 2

    No, it is a valid argument in this case. If they're arguing for more protection of their IP, then they have to explain why it is that they should get protection and other people shouldn't get protection. That sort of logical inconsistency is definitely fair game considering that the industry is trading on its "integrity" and harm being done to it to try to push SOPA through.

  4. Those who oppose this in congress.. by skr95062 · · Score: 5, Informative

    I have been so opposed to SOPA due to the shift in who has to scan and check.
    The content companies got what they wanted with the DMCA.
    They then found out it was to much of a problem for them to check.
    Bad enough they did not know what others inside the same content holder were doing. (VIACOM v GOOGLE)
    Now they want to shift the responsibility over to the internet operators, eliminate safe harbor.
    In addition this gives the government even broader powers to shut down "infringing" internet sites, remove or change DNS.
    Some of these are legal in the country that the sites operate in.
    The US/Content companies are yet again trying impose there will on the rest of the world.
    Now several prominent members of congress have come out against it.
    This includes the former speaker of the house, Nancy Pelosi.
    Hopefully enough of them will realize this is bullshit and come to there senses.

    I doubt it, but there is always hope.

    1. Re:Those who oppose this in congress.. by hairyfeet · · Score: 3, Insightful

      It has nothing to do with sense I'm afraid and everything to do with big fat checks. Anybody who thought it would be different when Obama chose Biden as VP was sadly deluded. The reps suck the military defense contractor cock, the dems suck off big media, and all because of big fat checks.

      Hell it has gotten so damned bad it is used as the punchline for jokes, like Colbert did the other day when he told OWS that they needed to "put down the wacky tobacky and give that money to a super packy" so they could just buy politicians like the corps do!

      Anybody that thinks that voting or protesting or anything other than outright bribery of our corrupt to the bone officials works anymore is sadly mistaken. just look at the petition the White house which has devolved to the point one of the fastest growing petitions basically says 'Please quit ignoring us and lying to us'. Have NO doubt they will get SOPA, hell they will probably have Nancy Grace and the other talking heads talk about how them other countries "are full of perverts!" and we'll get our own great firewall.

      To those in other countries that may be affected by America...please don't blame the American people, we no longer have any say in our own country anymore and nothing short of armed revolt will change that. When the megacorps are done bleeding this country and we get stuck with every bit of bad debt from every failed "investment" they've ever done and are looking at $20 a loaf bread and 45%+ unemployment I'm sure that day will come, but until then we really can't do anything about what is going on here, as OWS found out. sorry.

      --
      ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
    2. Re:Those who oppose this in congress.. by Intrinsic · · Score: 2

      On the day the SOPA passes is the day I stop, renting/buying dvd's, going out to see movie's, and purchasing music. This is the only thing that is going to stop the madness. I ask all of you to join me on this day.

      Secondley I hate to say it but if you want your country back you have to withdraw your support from this system. That means stop supporting anything but community driven companies

      An unjust law is itself a species of violence. Arrest for its breach is more so.
      Mohandas Gandhi

  5. I don't has list by sgt+scrub · · Score: 2

    Does anyone have a list of the tards that have come out in favor of the bill so far?

    --
    Having to work for a living is the root of all evil.
    1. Re:I don't has list by SuricouRaven · · Score: 3, Informative

      Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) and Lamar Smith (R-Texas) are the big ones - the sponsors of the two bills. There are lots of co-sponsors though, 61 in total between house and senate.

    2. Re:I don't has list by Bratmon · · Score: 5, Informative
  6. The laws are there to protect the media! by Heddahenrik · · Score: 3, Insightful
    The entire idea behind the law is to protect media, corporations and the corrupt government from their subjects. Media companies simply mostly ignore each others infringements, and focus their censorship on the ones trying to take their monopolies down. No media organization can sue another one because then they will be sued back. But taking the basic rights from new voices that aren't in the ruling class is very easy, which is the entire point.

    And while this is happening, media will be blowing up a big "fight" between Mitt and Obama, as if either of them would stop the rape on your (and the rest of the world's) basic human rights.

  7. Not a problem for Congress by BigSlowTarget · · Score: 3, Informative

    Expect Congress to exempt themselves from SOPA, just as they did with insider trading laws. In fact if they realize they could be charged for streaming those videos they may just exempt themselves from having to pay to use copy-written material for political uses at all. Certainly enough of them have been caught using material without the author's permission to make them think about it and this would solve that little issue.

  8. Unconstitutional. Period. by CanHasDIY · · Score: 4, Interesting

    According to the Fifth Amendment, no person (which includes corporations) can be deprived of "life, liberty, or property" without being convicted ina court of law.

    Oh, wait, I forgot that the Constitution, which used to be the supreme law of the land and could only be superceded by a 2/3 majority vote by the states, is just a goddamn piece of paper.

    As you were.

    --
    An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
  9. Congressmen get the benefit of the doubt; we don't by Fred+Ferrigno · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The lawyer says it's not a problem because the representatives are "unlikely to be willful infringers". They're public officials and everyone knows them. Therefore, no one is really going to take an infringement case against them seriously.

    But what about the rest of us? What about some random kid posting the same sorts of videos to YouTube? Will there be anyone to say he's unlikely to be a willful infringer as well? Or will he just get sued straight away? Maybe he could hire an attorney, go to court, and spend months or years trying to prove he had a good-faith belief his actions weren't infringing. Or maybe he'll be scared into settling by some troll looking to extort money.

  10. Re:Ah, Slashdot. by hedwards · · Score: 2

    Bullshit. The observation that the speaker is being hypocritical is completely germane to the argument as the speaker in this case is trading on his position in order to advance his line of reasoning. Not all Ad Hominem Tu Quoque attacks constitute a logical fallacy and this would be one of those times. It is very much relevant to the process of debunking his argument to point out that there's an apparent logical inconsistency being presented. The speaker has the burden of proof in this case and would have to demonstrate that the apparent inconsistency isn't inconsistent.

    Now, had the hypocrisy not involved such an important facet of the argument I would tend to agree, but as is it deeply undermines the view that they should be allowed to enforce as they see fit as they can't even agree upon a definition

  11. Re:They're getting it wrong! by SuricouRaven · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I know of youtube's copyright enforcement. I recently had one of my own videos pulled at the request of Shopro. It was clear fair use - 48 seconds of a 20-minute episode, for parody purposes, noncommercially, with no possibility of confusing it for something they endorsed. But that doesn't matter - the only way that video can go back up is if I expose myself to legal action, which would mean a company in Japan suing someone in the UK using a law in the US... the lawyers would have my savings emptied three times over before they even decided where the case should be heard, and the amount of time I'd have to take off work to attend court would likely result in unemployment.

    If SOPA had been in place when youtube was a small startup company, they'd have been blocked and killed. That would still happen to many startups. Today, though, youtube passes the bigness test - it won't be blocked. That would produce too much of an outrage.

  12. Re:Won't work on Firefox by hairyfeet · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Its not just Ubuntu friend, I've had the same problems with Windows XP and 7 with Dragon, Firefox, and Opera. I don't allow IE on my systems (you look at every patch Tuesday and more than half of it is IE) and I'm certainly not gonna compromise the security of systems i use to make money to sign a petition. As another pointed out the EFF and several other have made it as easy as fill in your info, one even has a FB login so you don't have to fill out anything if you already have a FB account.

    To me this extra hoop jumping is just a way for them to laugh before they tear up your petition and throw it away, just look at the responses from the other petitions which was the most flowery "Fuck off you peasant you have no monies LOL!" troll I've ever seen. frankly I would have had more respect for the man if he simply would have wadded them up on camera and threw them away, because the thick bullshit he spewed was clearly designed to tell you "I don't give a FUCK what you think!" while not giving the other team a nice soundbyte, that's all.

    So as my late grandma put it, who voted in every election from the roaring 20s only to quit in the late 80s and refused up to her death last year to participate anymore, "Why bother, they are only gonna ignore you anyway" and sadly grandma was right. Nothing will change until Goldman Sachs and their friends have dumped all their toxic debt on the fed, we are looking at triple what our current debt is and the fed cranks the presses so hard that bread is $30 a loaf and unemployment is at 45%+. Then we shall have what the rest of the world is having, our very own Arab spring. but until then you are just shouting in a closet while the rich rob and scam.

    --
    ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
  13. So clueless even hypocrisy is impossible by tbg58 · · Score: 2

    The authors of SOPA are not hypocrites. Hypocrisy connotes understanding of the issue and the representatives who allowed this piece of legislation to be crafted for them lack even the terminology to enter into meaningful conversation about issues such as DNS Security, Website Poisoning, and other salient factors affected by the law. To use Wolfgang Pauli's aphorism as a metaphor, this piece of legislation is so bad it's not only not right, it's "not even wrong".

  14. Doesn't check out. by nilbog · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Claiming that they are infringing unknowingly is a nice idea, except for the fact that these guys ARE SPONSORING THE VERY LAW WHICH THEY ARE BREAKING. To claim that they are breaking the law unknowingly is claiming that they don't understand the law they are passing. This is a far more frightening prospect.

    Also, what sort of law includes ignorance as an excuse for breaking it?

    --
    or else!