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US ISPs Become 'Copyright Cops' July 12th

An anonymous reader writes "Comcast, Time Warner and Verizon are among the ISPs preparing to implement a graduated response to piracy by July, says the music industry's chief lobbyist. ISPs, including Comcast, Cablevision, Verizon, and Time Warner Cable, have officially agreed to step up efforts to protect the rights of copyright owners. From the article: 'Supporters say this could become the most effective antipiracy program ever. Since ISPs are the Internet's gatekeepers, the theory is that network providers are in the best position to fight illegal file sharing. CNET broke the news last June that the RIAA and counterparts at the trade group for the big film studios had managed to get the deal through — with the help of the White House.'"

409 comments

  1. The excuse I needed... by Midnight_Falcon · · Score: 5, Insightful

    To finally drop Comcast and replace them with Sonic.Net DSL! I hope others follow suit and migrate to more ethical ISPs.

    1. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The excuse I need to drop Verizon and... wait, my only other option is Comcast? Damnit...

    2. Re:The excuse I needed... by IB4Student · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Which ISP's are ethical? Is there a list of ISP's doing the bad stuff?

    3. Re:The excuse I needed... by cpu6502 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Same here. Verizon DSL has sent me 3 emails (about 2 years ago) where they caught me downloading movies or tv shows. I'm curious what they will do to me next time I'm caught. One thing's for sure:

      I'm not going to go out and buy Hollywood's crap, unless it's something I've already seen and liked -- such as Battlestar Galactica. This past year I downloaded about 200 movies and liked almost none of them. TV shows were a little better percentage but not by much.

      Instead I'll just read science fiction in books and magazines. Or watch free TV (the 45 channels I get over the antenna). Or free hulu. Or cheap games ($20 for 40+ hours is a good bargain). It makes no sense to buy movie/show DVDs when they have no return policy for the crap, and there are so many other options.

      --
      My AC stalker: " I personally agree with your posts most of the time, but that won't keep me from modding you troll"
    4. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      No shit.

      This is the biggest problem right now. I have a choice of AT&T DSL, Comcrap, or... nothing. A mile down the road they could get FiOS, but then that's Verizon.

      Consumers don't get a fucking choice of carriers in most of the USA.

    5. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's what we need. Are there any ethical ISPs we can turn to?!

    6. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

      Same here. Verizon DSL has sent me 3 emails (about 2 years ago) where they caught me downloading movies or tv shows. I'm curious what they will do to me next time I'm caught.

      How about using a P2P friendly VPN such as BTGuard or Mullvad? (Mullvad accepts payment in Bitcoins, btw)

    7. Re:The excuse I needed... by Fluffeh · · Score: 1

      Consumers don't get a fucking choice of carriers in most of the USA.

      I hear this all the time. How come there is so little choice in the US? Is there some legal reason that stops a company opening shop and selling bandwidth? I mean even in Australia there is a LOT of choice when it comes to who you get your internet from. Here, I can have my phone with one company, but have DSL on the line with another company - is that not the case in the US?

      Having said that, Cable is very limited, due to the low quantity of physical cable connections, most pay TV here is sold via a satellite service.

      --
      Moved to http://soylentnews.org/. You are invited to join us too!
    8. Re:The excuse I needed... by cpu6502 · · Score: 4, Informative

      Another alternative is dialup. Folks like napisypl distribute nice small 70 or 150 megabyte rips. You can download 6 episodes per day (like I'm doing right now in my hotel) (Tudors season 1). AOL/Netscape's never sent me any warnings.

      --
      My AC stalker: " I personally agree with your posts most of the time, but that won't keep me from modding you troll"
    9. Re:The excuse I needed... by ZeroSumHappiness · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Cable is limited because the providers hoodwinked municipalities into giving them limited monopolies under the assumption that running multiple sets of lines would cause problems for the consumers including increased costs passed on as high prices. This is a lie, of course, but that's what we have at the point.

    10. Re:The excuse I needed... by reve_etrange · · Score: 1

      Sonic.net is the only ethical ISP I've ever even heard of. You'll have to move to Northern California though.

      --
      .: Semper Absurda :.
    11. Re:The excuse I needed... by murphtall · · Score: 1

      Consumers don't get a fucking choice of carriers in most of the USA.

      I hear this all the time. How come there is so little choice in the US? Is there some legal reason that stops a company opening shop and selling bandwidth?

      to some degree its because its a huge, mostly sparsely populated land mass. IME there's many choices in metropolitan areas that are densely populated, but [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grays_Harbor_County,_Washington] link to wiki where i am there are so little people theres not much incentive or something

    12. Re:The excuse I needed... by QuasiSteve · · Score: 5, Insightful

      This past year I downloaded about 200 movies and liked almost none of them.

      Wait... somewhere after movie #150 that you didn't like you kept thinking "maybe the next one will be awesome!"?

      I guess at least you watched every single one of them yourself to form your own opinion, but surely it can't hurt to start with some reviews?
      Figure out what reviewers you usually agree with and weigh their reviews more heavily, before you download 200 movies the majority of which you could probably have guessed you wouldn't like.

      It would have saved you from bad entertainment, and freed your time for the books and magazines (presuming you don't just download the ebook versions of those, too, of course).

    13. Re:The excuse I needed... by compro01 · · Score: 5, Informative

      Here, I can have my phone with one company, but have DSL on the line with another company - is that not the case in the US?

      Nope. Phone companies are not required to lease lines to other providers.

      They were required to from 1996 til 2006 until the supreme court declares cable providers provided "information services" rather than "telecommunication services" and were exempt from such requirements and the FCC reclassified phone company's DSL services to match in the interest of "fairness"

      --
      upon the advice of my lawyer, i have no sig at this time
    14. Re:The excuse I needed... by reve_etrange · · Score: 4, Informative

      Sonic.net is probably the only ISP where first responses to technical questions commonly come from the CEO.

      If you live in Northern California, look them up. They are already providing 1 Gbps / $70 in Sonoma; let's encourage them to roll out to the Bay and see what actual competition does to the market place.

      --
      .: Semper Absurda :.
    15. Re:The excuse I needed... by Cimexus · · Score: 4, Informative

      You hit the nail on the head. In Australia:

      - The ACCC forced Telstra to allow competitor ISPs access to its copper lines and telephone exchanges/COs. This means that any ISP can come into an exchange, install its own DSLAM, connect Telstra-owned lines to it and provide internet access to customers, regardless of who that customer's phone service happens to be provided by.

      - Additionally, Telstra (and Optus) also wholesales their own DSLAM ports to competitor ISPs who don't/can't have their own DSLAMs in an exchange. They charge port fees for doing this (and thus these Telstra wholesale plans are usually more expensive than equivalent plans using a providers own DSLAMs), but it basically means that even relatively small ISPs can offer services nation-wide, even in remote areas where Telstra is the only company with equipment.

      In most areas of the US though, companies that owns the lines aren't forced (as far as I know) to grant access to competitors. So your choices are usually:

      - The local DSL monopoly (i.e. the telco that owns the lines in your area); and
      - The local cable monopoly (i.e. the company that owns the cable in your area)

      In some areas you might also be lucky enough to have FiOS or another third or fourth option here, but vast areas of the country really only have one or two choices. Even worse, most DSL providers are still ADSL1 only (whereas in Australia, ADSL2+ up to 24 Mbps is pretty much ubiquitous).

      I'm Australian but have lived in Wisconsin for an extended period, in a reasonably-sized city, and only had the choice of (very overpriced) cable, or AT&T ADSL1 (capped at 6 Mbps/768kbps). I chose the DSL as frankly, I don't want cable TV (and the provider didn't allow you to get JUST internet without TV). I much prefer the situation in Australia where I have 20+ ISPs to choose from and they all offer much faster speeds that AT&T DSL had.

    16. Re:The excuse I needed... by cpu6502 · · Score: 1

      The people who own the telephone or cable line also provide the service. For me that's either Verizon (formerly Bell Telephone) or Comcast.

      Most U.S. people can choose their own telephone company for calling (there's dozens of them), or electric company for power (ditto), but for internet you're stuck with whatever company the county politicians chose to give an exclusive contract.

      --
      My AC stalker: " I personally agree with your posts most of the time, but that won't keep me from modding you troll"
    17. Re:The excuse I needed... by andymadigan · · Score: 2

      Sonic.net is awesome, get fusion if you can. I just wonder what everyone who doesn't live in the bay area will do...

      --
      The right to protest the State is more sacred than the State.
    18. Re:The excuse I needed... by icebraining · · Score: 4, Informative

      Figure out what reviewers you usually agree with and weigh their reviews more heavily

      I swear I'm not affiliated, but Criticker is awesome for that. The interface isn't all shiny, but the algorithm is solid.

    19. Re:The excuse I needed... by cpu6502 · · Score: 1

      They all had 7 or more stars on IMDb.com.

      I guess that shows how unreliable that site is. And since I had *already downloaded those 200 movies, I figured I might as well finish them. I haven't downloaded any movies since then. Maybe if my tracker has another "freeleech" period I'll download some of the 9 and 10 stars movies but I doubt it.

      --
      My AC stalker: " I personally agree with your posts most of the time, but that won't keep me from modding you troll"
    20. Re:The excuse I needed... by Skal+Tura · · Score: 3, Interesting

      or if it's bittorrent you must, maybe a seedbox :)

    21. Re:The excuse I needed... by EdIII · · Score: 3, Funny

      There you go :)

      Seedbox with SFTP. Unless they are good enough to crack the encryption per connection and obtain "evidence" to discontinue service or forward that information for the MAFIAA lawyerpults it will just result in a lot of expensive DPI with no results.

      I say bring it on. Anything that pushes people to Darknets, Onion networks (let it reach critical mass), and more encrypted connections, all the better.

      Besides, public torrent sites and crap like MegaUpload are beyond ridiculous and a you will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. Moving people off those sites to private encrypted trackers and ditching DHT and peer exchange will make it nearly impossible for the MAFIAA to get any headway, even with ISP support.

    22. Re:The excuse I needed... by lightknight · · Score: 1

      *Crosses fingers* Please let a lawyer from a evil firm notice that they probably lose common carrier status with this change, and sue them for everything, including their kid's college tuition money.

      --
      I am John Hurt.
    23. Re:The excuse I needed... by cjb658 · · Score: 1

      I'm waiting for private FTP servers to make a comeback

    24. Re:The excuse I needed... by IB4Student · · Score: 1

      So, Cox is also playing cop?

    25. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Is Sonic.net in the US, then they will be forced to do the same...eventually. Lawsuits forcing all ISP to conform to this (or a law requiring it) will be the next set of orders. This was helped along by the White House.

    26. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

      I actually just signed up at "HideMyAss" for their VPN service last night because I wanted to download a couple episodes of "Smash" and "Grimm." Today I got an email from HMA about a "File sharing complaint" that had been registered with them by someone. They stressed that they weren't handing over information about me to the people who filed the DMCA complaint and that there was nothing specific to prove that I was guilty, but said that sharing files was against their TOS and if I got more complaints they might have to suspend my account. Clearly I either need to look into the encryption options a little more or find a better VPN to sign up with. However it definitely shows that I ought to be using a VPN, even if HMA turns out not to be the right one in the long run.

    27. Re:The excuse I needed... by CohibaVancouver · · Score: 4, Insightful

      This past year I downloaded about 200 movies and liked almost none of them

      If you're obviously this difficult to please, why on earth would you keep downloading movies? Once you're on to movie #47 and it's still not to your tastes I think it's time to do something else. Like go for a walk.

    28. Re:The excuse I needed... by modmans2ndcoming · · Score: 1

      soon everyone will move to Kansas City and have 1Gbps internet for cheap through Google.

    29. Re:The excuse I needed... by modmans2ndcoming · · Score: 1

      Wide Open West Cable has no data cap and is not on this list.

    30. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      HMA is shit. They already known to sell users.

    31. Re:The excuse I needed... by NeutronCowboy · · Score: 1

      I would have taken them, except the best they could offer me was 6mb down and 768 up. Speakeasy is also not an option anymore, as they dropped out of the consumer market. Until they manage to provide fiber to my side of the hills (hah! fat chance), I'm stuck with ATT UVerse and their overpriced crap. Speed isn't too bad 24 mb down, 2 mb up, but the jitter is huge. I also have little hope for competent customer support.

      So again, I'm staring at ATT and Comcast as my only two choices in Internet access. Free market and competitive offerings my ass.

      --
      Those who can, do. Those who can't, sue.
    32. Re:The excuse I needed... by paulorv · · Score: 1

      This post actually inspired me to look up what fusion was and, what do you know... after 2 years of thinking Comcast & AT&T were the only providers available in my area, it turned out I have two more options through fusion!

    33. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You can also borrow DVDs and such from your local library.

    34. Re:The excuse I needed... by Jah-Wren+Ryel · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Go for foreign films. The MAFIAA doesn't give a damn about piracy of non-MAFIAA products. So get used to reading subtitles and get the added benefit of a brand new perspective on cinema. South Korea, Hong Kong and Japan all have some great filmmakers - and Europe is full of them too. Plus you will get to see the really good stuff years before Hollywood can figure out how to remake it.

      --
      When information is power, privacy is freedom.
    35. Re:The excuse I needed... by lexsird · · Score: 1

      What an interesting situation, for pirates to say, "This one isn't worth stealing". I like to check out torrent traffic just to figure out what is good and what is crap. If people stealing it, getting it for free, feel strongly enough to comment about it, then they might be on to something. Consider the passion, they are willing to face the MAFIAA and their thugs to chase their love of movies and share them if they think they are good. It's a bit dark, but I like it.

      I love NetFlix, they have lots of British stuff on there now and it's different from our garbage. It's a nice diversion and gives Netflix some breathing room to score some more titles for us. If we stick with them, they will produce I feel.

      FUCK HULU PLUS! No, I will not pay to be plagued with Ads, sorry, fuck off. I hate ads. HATE..as in FUCK YOU I WILL NOT WATCH THIS SHIT.

      No, I don't do cable TV, fuck them and their ads. I can find stuff without ads and I WILL.

      Oddly, radio ads don't bother me an iota.

      By the way, MY ISP is awesome. They don't care. They told me, share your router with your entire building, we don't care. Just pay your bill. It should be on a T-shirt and as a sales slogan. We don't care, just pay your bill. Mediacom the cable people, were all about setting on the phone poles and monitoring your traffic. I told them to make an aerial attempt at copulation with a rolling pastry, and got rid of them for this groovy DSL company.

      So, here's the plan. We kick them right in the balls with our wallets. Not me, but you guys doing business with them. I got a great company. But if I was with them, I wouldn't be with them. I probably wouldn't be with them already, but for sure NOW I wouldn't be with them. At all, ever.

      --
      Take the Red Pill.
    36. Re:The excuse I needed... by lexsird · · Score: 1

      You must be from my home town. We are the crookedest little town in the known universe I swear. If the town wasn't founded on top of gate to Hell, one opened not long after it was established. Our city counsel is notorious for being uber corrupt to the point of ludicrousness. We are out here on the edge of the State and it seems nobody cares about our county. We do have great Internet, though, at least for now.

      --
      Take the Red Pill.
    37. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      sonic ftw

    38. Re:The excuse I needed... by lightknight · · Score: 1

      Indeed. Surprisingly, Japan receives more of my entertainment business than the US. I dare say that despite my meager income, they've been making out quite well.

      And will continue to do so, provided they don't go insane like the MPAA / RIAA.

      --
      I am John Hurt.
    39. Re:The excuse I needed... by lightknight · · Score: 1

      Or South Korea.

      --
      I am John Hurt.
    40. Re:The excuse I needed... by viperidaenz · · Score: 1

      Same thing in New Zealand, except Telecom is the incumbent. I'm enjoying my 18/1.2Mbit ADSL2+

    41. Re:The excuse I needed... by reve_etrange · · Score: 1

      I'm in pretty good shape because the CO is nearby, though AT&T was marginally faster (presumably because despite my proximity they are still running a fiber to a PBX, and DSL from there, like regular UVerse). Hopefully one day their fiber will leave Sonoma County.

      --
      .: Semper Absurda :.
    42. Re:The excuse I needed... by reve_etrange · · Score: 1

      That's what I hear, but TFA doesn't say if they are involved in these particular measures.

      --
      .: Semper Absurda :.
    43. Re:The excuse I needed... by UltraZelda64 · · Score: 1

      "If you're obviously this difficult to please, why on earth would you keep downloading movies? Once you're on to movie #47 and it's still not to your tastes I think it's time to do something else. Like go for a walk."

      Or better yet and more creatively, take a shit. And then mail it to them. And tell them that the garbage that they put out is less valuable than this excrement.

    44. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Dont forget the NBN, hopefully that will be even easier to get competition on and wont be falling apart like the copper

    45. Re:The excuse I needed... by omglolbah · · Score: 1

      The protocol changed, but not the concept ;)

    46. Re:The excuse I needed... by ShakaUVM · · Score: 1

      In my neck of the woods (California), you can still order DSL service across AT&T's copper but from a different service provider.

    47. Re:The excuse I needed... by psoriac · · Score: 1

      I loved them when I lived in north San Jose but they only offer up to 6Mbps where I am now so I went with AT&T's u-verse dsl-only plan at 12Mbps. If sonic.net ever rolls out their fios here I'll sign up the next day.

      --
      I browse Slashdot at +3, Funny
    48. Re:The excuse I needed... by SuricouRaven · · Score: 1

      It worked, though. HideMyAss needs to CoverTheirAss by kicking repeat sharers off, but the worst you'd get is your VPN account suspended. They still protected you from a complaint to your ISP or threat of lawsuit.

    49. Re:The excuse I needed... by SuricouRaven · · Score: 1

      A combination of many cities granting monopoly access to one company (Company hands over money, city gives permission to bury cables) and a natural monopoly situation: Once one company has gotten entrenched in an area, it isn't viable for another to invest in the substantial cost of laying cables and building up the infrastructure. All the customers are already taken.

    50. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This past year I downloaded about 200 movies and liked almost none of them.

      Just... kill yourself.
      Die immediately of aids, please.

    51. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Whoa, man, 200 movies and you liked none? I would give up after third.

    52. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm not going to go out and buy Hollywood's crap, unless it's something I've already seen and liked -- such as Battlestar Galactica. This past year I downloaded about 200 movies and liked almost none of them. TV shows were a little better percentage but not by much.

      Instead I'll just read science fiction in books and magazines. Or watch free TV (the 45 channels I get over the antenna). Or free hulu. Or cheap games ($20 for 40+ hours is a good bargain). It makes no sense to buy movie/show DVDs when they have no return policy for the crap, and there are so many other options.

      So in a year time you watched 200 downloaded movies and multiple TV shows, plus TV, played games, and read books and magazines. And then you expect anyone to believe you would actually pay for movies if you liked them? Oh wait, you didn't like any of the 200, how convenient that must be for your righteous feelings.

      You're a real poster child for responsible and ethical consumerism. No wonder Hollywood wants to lock us all up. You not only give them a reason, you give them justification. I hope they do catch you, it would be better for those of us who actually practice what they preach.

    53. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Fuck that noise. I have no reason to. I'm not a little fucking thief. I don't need that kind of bullshit. I got a real job.
       
      I hope you end up in jail if you're downloading shit illegally.

    54. Re:The excuse I needed... by flyneye · · Score: 1

      Why does the mouse keep pressing the bar that sends electric shocks to its frontal lobe,when no food drops?
      Same thing.

      --
      *Repent!Quit Your Job!Slack Off!The World Ends Tomorrow and You May Die!
    55. Re:The excuse I needed... by cynyr · · Score: 1

      i'm here in Minneapolis, i have 2 choices... centurylink and comcast. There are 1 or two others in nearby places, but those are the two i can get in my apartment complex.

      --
      All of the above was encrypted with a Quad ROT-13 method. Unauthorized decryption is in violation of the DMCA.
    56. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That would be; when Hollywood figures out how to butcher the original and change it to look like any other formula film they produce.

      Watch the source and enjoy something difference!

    57. Re:The excuse I needed... by flyneye · · Score: 1

      I like to check out torrent traffic just to figure out what is good and what is crap

      Popularity is no indicator of quality. There are no examples of consistently good outcome at the decision of a majority. Government elections are a fine example of my point. Most people rely on others to tell them what is good anyway, our industry, entertainment and food are fine examples of that. You might as well just click on random files in order to find something worth your time. It would be more likely to succeed than following the herd.
      Failing that, educate yourself on finding what you desire. Shop for directors , rather than actors. Explore the obscure. Seek zeroes, so to speak.
      There you will find what you seek, grasshopper.

      --
      *Repent!Quit Your Job!Slack Off!The World Ends Tomorrow and You May Die!
    58. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I run a tiny tiny ISP in Iowa. We run it as ethically as possible. Unfortunately.. its a tiny ISP in Iowa. :)

    59. Re:The excuse I needed... by datavirtue · · Score: 1

      In other news....Joe Six Pack learns how to use an SSL proxy...details at 6.

      --
      I object to power without constructive purpose. --Spock
    60. Re:The excuse I needed... by datavirtue · · Score: 1

      Whoa whoa whoa....they said "sharing files is against their terms of service?" I'm not into supporting pirates but this blanket criminalization of sharing is severely testing my patience. The government has wanted to ban encryption for a while now...just wait till this gets rolling. I'm about to start running all my connections through a tunnel and I have nothing to hide.

      --
      I object to power without constructive purpose. --Spock
    61. Re:The excuse I needed... by datavirtue · · Score: 1

      Good advice. If you want decent stuff shop directors, producers, and writers. Sometimes you can determine quality from an actor because they discriminate on what they will do based on the writing, but this is not a sure thing with most actors. A bad story or hastily written screenplay is always a disastrous waste of time.

      --
      I object to power without constructive purpose. --Spock
    62. Re:The excuse I needed... by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1

      Nothing wrong with public trackers, DHT and peer exchange over a darknet, like torrents over I2P.

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
    63. Re:The excuse I needed... by glop · · Score: 1

      Hi,

      Don't limit yourself to science fiction. Some old books are actually fun in a way very similar to science fiction. The Anabasis by Xenophon for instance tells the story of 10000 Greek mercenaries stranded in the middle of the Persian empire. I enjoyed the encounters with the foreign people, the way they get organized and are voting all the time etc. All this makes it a bit like the kind of social thought experiment that the best science fiction produces. Except it really happened and they didn't have light sabers but overall I loved it. It brought a lot of the stuff I like in Babylon 5 for instance.

      There are also complete NASA shows from the 60s that explain the progress of the effort to land guys on the Moon. My 5 year old watched a 30 minute episode with interest!

      Anyway, you are right, if you disagree with copyright holders, a boycott is the best way as they only have themselves to blame and can't accuse 'the pirates'. As you said there is an abundance of content distributed in more open ways. And it's all competing for our limited spare time. And most content is only as worthy as we allow it to be.

      I am telling you, Hollywood is turning pirates into boycotters. And they will regret it as they will lose mindshare and the value of their brands will diminish. I admit most of the strategies you outlined don't qualify as "boycott" but reading does and a man can dream, can't I?

    64. Re:The excuse I needed... by datavirtue · · Score: 1

      Sometimes "natural" monopolies are protected by the government when, in theory, competition will raise prices. I know, I know, didn't make much sense to me either. This got started with electric and phone lines a long time ago in the US--where it didn't make sense to have each company running lines to the home (hence, one set of lines equals "natural" monopoly). People are getting a good deal with DSL service because the lines are "deregulated," meaning that anyone can use the lines to provide a service (phone, internet)--there is no longer monopoly control of the lines. Radio tower and cable infrastructure is still privately held, for now. Cable AND radio towers need "deregulated" as well.

      --
      I object to power without constructive purpose. --Spock
    65. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It makes no sense to buy movie/show DVDs when they have no return policy for the crap, and there are so many other options.

      Um. Netflix?

    66. Re:The excuse I needed... by halfkoreanamerican · · Score: 1

      Well spoken! I'm a big fan of Korean films after living there, but I prefer anything foreign or quirky to mainstream. There are exceptions but it's nice to download without worrying about being watched. It's also nice to watch something different. Sometimes you can get two birds with one stone--all while saving a buck.

    67. Re:The excuse I needed... by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      I hear this all the time. How come there is so little choice in the US? Is there some legal reason that stops a company opening shop and selling bandwidth?

      No, it's AT&T. AT&T now owns most of the phone companies in the USA and in the boonies like where I live they own damned near 100% of the fiber. That means that you have a choice of AT&T or an AT&T reseller. AT&T makes it so difficult and expensive to do business in these situations that it is effectively impossible to operate an ISP. Mine went out of business and merged with one several counties away which is actually piping in WiFi over FOUR HOPS from mountaintop to mountaintop to serve this county because they can't seem to get AT&T to get their shit together. If you get access from a reseller they create their own problems and add at least one person to the support chain, decreasing your uptime. It's usually actually cheaper than buying from AT&T directly but that doesn't help.

      I can either get dialup over copper that was bad when Pac Bell owned it, and which is worse now that SBC has owned it and AT&T owns it, and I can get maybe 28.8kbps connections on my 56k modem and have probably 5% packet loss due to the general noisiness, or I can get access from my now no-longer-local WISP. There's cable AND DSL off at one end of the road I live on, but I'm too far from the CO to get DSL and the cable network doesn't run out here either. And this is the case for a disturbing number of households. Most of the households in my county are covered by Mediacom and AT&T, so they can get a shitty throttled and monitored cable modem or shitty throttled and monitored DSL.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    68. Re:The excuse I needed... by Krazy+Kanuck · · Score: 3, Informative

      Apparently not everyone has seen this review of which VPN providers live up to their marketing hype, so I'll share. HMA is definitely not one to expect much from when push comes to shove with the MAFIAA. http://torrentfreak.com/which-vpn-providers-really-take-anonymity-seriously-111007/

    69. Re:The excuse I needed... by SCHecklerX · · Score: 2

      Isn't if funny how places are profiting off of the business model that the **AA should be using? There is a demand for a pay service to get unencumbered content at high speed. All of those profits could be going to them, but they continue on their path.

      Just set up your own trackers with client side certificates. Charge a monthly fee for the cert. Done. OHhhhh, but people might share their certs! So what. You still profit off of something where you already realized your the intended profits in the theaters.

    70. Re:The excuse I needed... by squidflakes · · Score: 0

      Woo! Less than 10 posts and we already have a blistering Libertarian screed against, well, civilization!

      So yes, blah blah blah, enjoy your oppressive feudal system where anyone with more power, money, or willingness to use force will be your lord and master.

    71. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm already on Comcast. My only other options are Verizon 4G or our local telephone co-op where I'll be monitored by people who know me personally.

    72. Re:The excuse I needed... by cpu6502 · · Score: 1

      (Score:5, Informative)

      You're welcome. ;-)

      BTW I'm surprised no one asked about my 45 channels of free TV. This is the antenna I use (sits in the living room next to the set) -- http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.asp?mc=03&p=CM-4228&d=Channel-Master-CM4228-8Bay-Bowtie-UHF-TV-Antenna-(CM4228)&c=TV%20Antennas&sku=

      --
      My AC stalker: " I personally agree with your posts most of the time, but that won't keep me from modding you troll"
    73. Re:The excuse I needed... by murphtall · · Score: 1

      I'm sure u could get satellite or dial up too.

    74. Re:The excuse I needed... by jdavidb · · Score: 1

      I wish I could mod this up to 6.

    75. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Isn't if funny how places are profiting off of the business model that the **AA should be using? There is a demand for a pay service to get unencumbered content at high speed. All of those profits could be going to them, but they continue on their path.

      When music downloads became reasonably priced and DRM-free, I stopped downloading music "illegally". I now buy all of my music.

      I download TV shows. If I could buy them at a reasonable price, soon after they air and without DRM I would stop downloading TV shows and buy them as well. Until then, my money will go to VPN services in Europe...

    76. Re:The excuse I needed... by Doctor_Jest · · Score: 2

      Someone pissed in your post toasties, didn't they? Civil disobedience to the application of increasingly draconian and oppressive regulations, bought and paid for by the corporate cronyism that completely bastardizes the free market into a conglomerate oligarchy bent on making you pay for everything it deems "theft" of intellectual property is what liberty is all about. ("Intellectual property" is an oxymoron in the first place. No founding father envisioned copyright to be a property right.) Shackle that with perpetual copyright (the Constitution says: "for a limited time") and you have a system where bullies and copyright holders (not creators) have stifled the innovation and progress that the Founders envisioned copyright to foster. No one is putting back into the Public Domain (companies like Disney owe their entire existence to the Public Domain...) and everyone thinks "copyright guarantees revenue". Copyright never was meant to guarantee revenue. The copyright system is about controlling how your work is used and distributed, not how much you can make off it. (I'm not the only one who says this, and it's not a "radical" idea considering what Jefferson and Adams said about copyright in the first place.)

      But if it makes you feel better, continue to think of the "free market" as a scary place, and let the government lube your ass before it fucks you, because that's what they're doing. They are keeping their donors in bed with them while you and I are stuck on the street looking at them swimming in cash. Swimming in cash not because they earned it on the free market with good ideas/products and great market stewardship, but swimming in cash because they rob the People of their money and claim it's "for the best" or "you're an evil pirate thief!" The People need representation (the EFF helps), and if civil disobedience (copyright infringement is a civil matter) fosters change... let's do it. If it pisses off Sony, Disney, CBS, Fox, and so forth in the process... Well, I'm in. Fuck 'em. And fuck everyone who still thinks "copyright is stealing." It's not.

      So yes, blah blah blah, enjoy your corporate overlords backed by purchased laws and a court system willing to dismantle your rights enumerated in the Constitution because you're just a person... you don't matter anymore. Change indeed.

      --
      It's the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man.
    77. Re:The excuse I needed... by NulDevice · · Score: 1

      Luckily, the lube will be covered by your government-mandated health insurance, unless of course you work for a religious organization that considers lube-assisted sodomy immoral.

      In Europe they have socialized lube. You can get basic lube for free or pay for a specialty lube. In France you get a month of paid leave afterwards.

      --

      ----
      "I used to listen to Null Device before they sold out."

    78. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sure, for $20/month for a landline, plus $20/month for AOL, plus power to run the thing, and the time to set it all up, is totally worth forgoing the subscription fees to get the content legitimately.

    79. Re:The excuse I needed... by mcgrew · · Score: 1

      Sometimes you can determine quality from an actor because they discriminate on what they will do based on the writing, but this is not a sure thing with most actors.

      It's never a sure thing. I'd never seen a single movie with either Bruce Willis or Morgan Freeman in it that I didn't like, so I plunked down five bucks at Walmart for a movie I'd never heard of, Red.

      Possibly the worst movie I ever wasted money on. It was simply a disjointed, incomprehensible mess.

    80. Re:The excuse I needed... by mcgrew · · Score: 1

      I live in Springfield, IL. 110,000 population in Springfield itself and probably twice that if you count all the little towns like Southern View that are actually part of Springfield. But my only choices are Comcast and AT&T.

    81. Re:The excuse I needed... by stms · · Score: 1

      This is truely a historic day I'm actually happy I'm with AT&T.

    82. Re:The excuse I needed... by mcgrew · · Score: 1

      I would have taken them, except the best they could offer me was 6mb down and 768 up. I'm stuck with ATT UVerse and their overpriced crap. Speed isn't too bad 24 mb down, 2 mb up, but the jitter is huge

      Maybe you're using the wrong desktop or distro, I have 6mb down and 768 up and I'm not getting any jitter at all, even when I'm watching Hulu on one machine while BitTorrent is seeding and uploading fiilles on the other one.

    83. Re:The excuse I needed... by catprog · · Score: 1

      And IINet also has their own DSLAMs

      --
      My Transformation Website
      Kindle Books http://www.catprog.org/rev
      Interactive CYOA http://www.catprog.org/st
    84. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      My general rule of thumb is 20MB/hour on dial-up, and that's assuming a pretty solid connection near the limit of what a 56k modem will do. Now, 6 episodes at 70-150MB per episode is within reach on the low side of that range, but that assumes you're dialed in for all 24 hours and basically never use the connection for anything else.

    85. Re:The excuse I needed... by reve_etrange · · Score: 1

      A far more plausible explanation is line quality from PBX to house, or within the house. Old wiring, poor insulation, sources of interference, floating ground, etc.

      --
      .: Semper Absurda :.
    86. Re:The excuse I needed... by xandroid · · Score: 1

      I've been using Sonic for a year and a half and really like them. Speakeasy before that, they were okay.

      --
      $ echo "ceci n'est pas une pipe" | sed -Ee 's/(eci n|pas )//g'
    87. Re:The excuse I needed... by ZeroSumHappiness · · Score: 1

      Or Tennessee.

    88. Re:The excuse I needed... by flyneye · · Score: 1

      I hate to think of Steve Martin and George Carlin writing for Sonny and Cher...

      --
      *Repent!Quit Your Job!Slack Off!The World Ends Tomorrow and You May Die!
    89. Re:The excuse I needed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      HideMyAss is a joke. 99% marketing BS, 1% performance, 0%respect for their customers
      Two Words: Swedish VPN
      Sweden has the toughest data privacy laws in the world.
      Swedish servers keep no logs. None. Not for a minute.
      Try VPNtunnel.se cheaper than HMA too.

    90. Re:The excuse I needed... by dupeisdead · · Score: 1

      Same here. Verizon DSL has sent me 3 emails (about 2 years ago) where they caught me downloading movies or tv shows. I'm curious what they will do to me next time I'm caught. One thing's for sure:

      I'm not going to go out and buy Hollywood's crap, unless it's something I've already seen and liked -- such as Battlestar Galactica. This past year I downloaded about 200 movies and liked almost none of them. TV shows were a little better percentage but not by much.

      Instead I'll just read science fiction in books and magazines. Or watch free TV (the 45 channels I get over the antenna). Or free hulu. Or cheap games ($20 for 40+ hours is a good bargain). It makes no sense to buy movie/show DVDs when they have no return policy for the crap, and there are so many other options.

      That's a lot of movies in a year. But the ones you did like, did you contribute anything back to them? If you liked 10 out of the 200 movies, i hope you bought them afterwards.

      --
      move along, nothing to see here.
  2. The land of the free... by alendit · · Score: 4, Funny

    The home of the brave.

    1. Re:The land of the free... by ka9dgx · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Land of the Foreclosed, home of the Banking Gangsters.

    2. Re:The land of the free... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      You know, it's commercial services dealing with illegal activity on their networks that, yes, we agree isn't as big a deal as it's made to be.

      Let's save the "Omg soilent green" rhetoric for more important (and genuine) injustices, huh?

    3. Re:The land of the free... by Savage-Rabbit · · Score: 5, Funny

      Land of the Foreclosed, home of the Banking Gangsters.

      The correct term is 'Banksters'.

      --
      Only to idiots, are orders laws.
      -- Henning von Tresckow
    4. Re:The land of the free... by Higgins_Boson · · Score: 5, Funny

      Land of the Foreclosed, home of the Banking Gangsters.

      The correct term is 'Banksters'.

      Straight up bankster, yo.

    5. Re:The land of the free... by jd2112 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Land of the "free with the purchase of any congressman".

      --
      Any insufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from technology.
    6. Re:The land of the free... by jamstar7 · · Score: 5, Funny

      I'd kill for some mod points right now.

      Hell, I'd buy Disney DVDs for mod points right now...

      --
      Understanding the scope of the problem is the first step on the path to true panic.
    7. Re:The land of the free... by jd2112 · · Score: 3, Funny

      I'd kill for some mod points right now. Hell, I'd buy Disney DVDs for mod points right now...

      No need. I have a 7 year old daughter so I buy Disney DVDs on a regular basis. The sad thing is one look at her bedroom proves that if they never got a dime from thier movies they would still make a fortune on merchandising.

      --
      Any insufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from technology.
    8. Re:The land of the free... by antdude · · Score: 4, Funny
      --
      Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
    9. Re:The land of the free... by bzipitidoo · · Score: 1

      Very hard to keep Disney junk away from her. Some friend or relative is sure to give it to her for a present. I set my nieces up with a PC with Linux. The Shockwave only children's websites strained things but it survived that. However, the first Disney PC game gift was too much, and sent them running back to MS's embrace. Wine had no hope of salvaging matters, the PC was of course an old castoff and needed native performance to make the game playable.

      --
      Intellectual Property is a monopolistic, selfish, and defective concept. It is "tyranny over the mind of man"
    10. Re:The land of the free... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I refuse to buy disney dvds. Why the hell is a movie from 1960 odd worth MORE then a new release? Granted, once my daughter gets a bit older I might not be able to keep the refusal up though lol.

    11. Re:The land of the free... by lightknight · · Score: 1

      Sadly, we are quickly approaching a time when your kid saying "Daddy / Mommy, when I grow up, I want to be a drug dealer" will be seen as more respectable than the alternatives.

      --
      I am John Hurt.
    12. Re:The land of the free... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This is what I don't understand. Disney should never complain about people pirating their movies (I'm not sure if they do or not, and don't feel like looking it up).

      Cars 2 could have sucked out loud. Before that movie came out, toys in every store, kids with new dolls and action figures and what-not.

      Maybe movie and music companies just need to advertise MORE, and make MORE cheap, plastic toys based on shitty movies.

      What I'm saying is, stop buying the toys. It helps no one, and it turns your daughter into a non-thinking consumer (says the non-thinking adult consumer).

    13. Re:The land of the free... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You haven't been to Atlanta recently, have you?

  3. Vote with your wallets. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Stop buying music and movies. Very simple!

    1. Re:Vote with your wallets. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Can I stop buying the government that gives them free money? Oh, wait...

    2. Re:Vote with your wallets. by SuperTechnoNerd · · Score: 1

      I have. Forever. Never again.

    3. Re:Vote with your wallets. by CyberSaint · · Score: 1

      Pff. You want to see them give the MAFIAA free money? Come to Canada where they'll literally tax your hard drive to pay the crooks to screw you. Heil Harper!!!

    4. Re:Vote with your wallets. by Osgeld · · Score: 1

      did that a decade ago, never made a dent as 3 other people I know buy and rebuy (as in VHS to DVD, DVD to BR) movies every week for the "reward points"

    5. Re:Vote with your wallets. by surgen · · Score: 2

      Stop buying music and movies. Very simple!

      But Congressman, my revenues are down! It must be piracy, people don't take principled stands!

    6. Re:Vote with your wallets. by StikyPad · · Score: 1

      Right, the entire first half of the comments, devoted entirely to the best way to continue pirating without getting noticed, simply reeks of principled stands.

      Fact is, people generally *don't* take principled stands. I wish they did, but as a whole, they just don't, and the examples are everywhere. For every one guy who resigns from Goldman Sachs on principle (after over a decade of making huge profits of course), there are thousands upon thousands who continue to bill, bilk, and swindle for personal gain. People generally act out of self-interest with an emphasis on instant gratification, and rationalize accordingly.

    7. Re:Vote with your wallets. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No, just buy them *used*.

  4. counter lawsuits - entrapment by RichMan · · Score: 2, Interesting

    If the ISP can detect that I am accessing stuff I should not they can just slam the door shut so I don't get it.
    If the ISP detects I am getting stuff I should not and does not slam the door they are complicit in the action since they are sending it to me knowing that I should not have it.

    Anyone fingered by an ISP should sue them entrapment.

    1. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by gknoy · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I believe only agents of the government can be guilty of entrapment.

    2. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by mark-t · · Score: 4, Insightful
      Can you also sue a bar for entrapment, when you get nailed for driving drunk, when the bar could have simply stopped serving you after one drink?

      Be an adult, and take responsibility for yourself.

    3. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If they're serving open drinks at a drive through window?

      Maybe.

    4. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by CaptainLugnuts · · Score: 0

      Only in Florida, the land of drive-through liquor stores.

    5. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Can you also sue a bar for entrapment, when you get nailed for driving drunk, when the bar could have simply stopped serving you after one drink?

      Be an adult, and take responsibility for yourself.

      This is more along the lines of the bar cutting you off after one drink because you could possibly drive drunk with any more in you.

    6. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by NoKaOi · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Can you also sue a bar for entrapment, when you get nailed for driving drunk, when the bar could have simply stopped serving you after one drink?

      Under normal circumstances, of course not. But if the bar has worked out a deal with law enforcement to call them if you have more than one drink, then they might be acting as an agent for said law enforcement agency. If the bartender encourages you to drink more, knowing that you're gonna be driving home, then calls the cops, while acting as an agent for those cops, then that could be entrapment. I'm not saying it's an exact analogy...but just pointing that out.

      Now..a better analogy might be a BYOB bar, where they take a sip of everything you drink to determine alcohol content, then report you to the cops if the alcohol content is too high. It's the sampling of my drink, whether or not it was alcoholic, that I would have a problem with. The difference is that if a bar did that, I simply wouldn't go to that bar, and I doubt many other people would either. With Internet access, most of us don't have the luxury of options.

      One thing I want to know is: What methods are they going use to determine if somebody is pirating?

    7. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Corporations don't help you in illegal actions! Grab your gun!

      Don't get me wrong, I'm as big a fan of (both!) piracy and free speech as you will come by, but I don't think that this is a 'grab your gun' moment. More of a 'start your own ISP' moment.

    8. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by QuasiSteve · · Score: 1

      But it's not actually about ISPs detecting whether or not you're doing something that some group or another believes you should not be doing.

      I know it's out of fashion to actually RTFA, but:

      The program, commonly referred to as "graduated response," requires that ISPs send out one or two educational notices to those customers who are accused of downloading copyrighted content illegally.

      That's not about the ISP accusing them - but those groups that are involved with the program.

      It may make it easier for those groups to, down the line, suggest that ISPs should just take on that task as well - but that's still quite a leap away from "US ISP's become copyright cops" as the current subject suggests.

      Under this program, ISPs would become mailmen (telling people that group X thinks you're doing something illegal), intermediaries (checking whether you got that mail) and executors of court-less verdicts (throttling, cutting off internet access altogether), but that doesn't make them cops.

      It's still undesirable behavior to most of their customers, which might make one wonder why ISPs are agreeing to this in the first place. On the other hand, most ISP ToS's already state you can't use the service for illegal activities - which distributing copyrighted material without explicit license to do so falls under - so it's not that far of a stretch for those groups to suggest that ISPs actually enforce their own rules better or be faced with legal action instead.

    9. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by misexistentialist · · Score: 1

      Though they aren't investigating, it's not "quite a leap" to call them "cops" for acting as law enforcers. If you insist on a more precise term for cops that don't investigate, I suggest "thugs". Thank God they aren't cops, but when you don't pay your bookie those aren't "mailmen" who threaten you or "executors" who break your legs.

    10. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by QuasiSteve · · Score: 1

      But then what would you call an ISP that actually checks for compliance with, and enforces its own ToS? Are those then cops? And if part of their ToS says "no uploading illegal material" and including in that the subject matter at hand, wouldn't that make them "copyright police" by default?

      The reason it's 'quite a leap' is because police are the investigative branch. If anything, the subject should have read that ISPs are becoming copyright executioners, with the interest groups as the judges, and nobody for a jury.

    11. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by GmExtremacy · · Score: 1

      But that's just it... you apparently only have to be accused of infringing upon copyright. No oversight required.

    12. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by CyberSaint · · Score: 1

      Yeah, for sure, we'll just find a way to invalidate the exclusivity agreements the governments have handed the monopolies and get right on that.

    13. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by iamnobody2 · · Score: 1

      Flagstaff Arizona had Ruff's Guns & Liquor, but they sold their liquor license years ago and are just Ruff's Sporting Goods now I think.

      --
      nobody's perfect
    14. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by dryeo · · Score: 1

      One thing I want to know is: What methods are they going use to determine if somebody is pirating?

      Bandwidth consumption of course. Has the nice side affect of saving them the money to update their infrastructure as well.

      --
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverted_totalitarianism
    15. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by SnEptUne · · Score: 1

      Yes you can. In Canada, it is against the law for people to sell alcohol for people who will be drink afterward.

    16. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by LordLimecat · · Score: 1

      . If the bartender encourages you to drink more, knowing that you're gonna be driving home, then calls the cops, while acting as an agent for those cops, then that could be entrapment.

      Maybe I missed the part where the ISP encourages piracy.

    17. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by Greyfox · · Score: 1

      Most of the bars around here will shut you down if they think you've had too much to drink because, yes, several of them have been sued for that. That's well after the point where you're going to get a DUI though.

      --

      I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?

    18. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      never been to NOLA, have ya?

    19. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      As to what methods they will use ... thats simple if greed MAFIAA say you are pirating thats it, thats the method... kinda like with "terrorism".... :)

    20. Re:counter lawsuits - entrapment by Taibhsear · · Score: 1

      Anyone fingered by an ISP should sue them entrapment.

      And molestation.

  5. The transformation is almost complete by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The internet was once thought of as a digital library and commons. Now it is little more than an interactive television.

    1. Re:The transformation is almost complete by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Enjoy your new retina-burning tablet.

    2. Re:The transformation is almost complete by SuperTechnoNerd · · Score: 5, Interesting

      When I was a young computer geek - the very first month I used and understood the internet sooo many years ago, I knew this GREAT THING - this great concept - would be a threat to a lot of people and would never survive in it's current form. I'm just surprised it lasted this long.

    3. Re:The transformation is almost complete by causality · · Score: 1

      When I was a young computer geek - the very first month I used and understood the internet sooo many years ago, I knew this GREAT THING - this great concept - would be a threat to a lot of people and would never survive in it's current form. I'm just surprised it lasted this long.

      See, you're actually using foresight combined with a working knowledge of modern politics.

      Shut up, you! There's nothing to see here. Now look at this copyrighted video (TM)(R)(C) and pay your extortion fee I mean royalties like a good Citizen...

      --
      It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education. - Einstein
    4. Re:The transformation is almost complete by CohibaVancouver · · Score: 1

      The internet was once thought of as a digital library and commons.

      It still is - Write a blog. Write a book. Post it up. Discuss it. It's a still a digital library and commons. It's just not a place to download "The Avengers" for free, but it was never thought of a place for that.

    5. Re:The transformation is almost complete by bzipitidoo · · Score: 2

      You think the content cartels have finally won, eh? You really think so?

      Well, fear not. They haven't. It's an unwinnable war. They're stubborn old men who are incapable of understanding that piracy is unstoppable, and that sharing is good. Tell me how you think they can stop sneakernet? Several movies can be traded in an instant with the hand off of a flash drive. Or encryption, how will they stop that? The most tragic part of all this is that they've wasted millions on this "problem", on trying to turn back the clock. To use a car analogy, it's as if solar cells and batteries became so good that the public abandoned gasoline, thereby saving the planet from global warming, and the oil companies declared it was a problem and tried to reverse it.

      --
      Intellectual Property is a monopolistic, selfish, and defective concept. It is "tyranny over the mind of man"
    6. Re:The transformation is almost complete by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      One question. How can taking an "image" of something publicly posted be stealing or even copyright infringement?

      Another question. Why wouldn't monitoring of customer traffic be considered illegal wiretapping if no search warrant issued? IP requests should be considered like a phone number keyed on a telephone network, make and maintain the connections as the customer requests but no monitoring of the call/data transfer.

      Those questions should be but the tip of the iceberg.

    7. Re:The transformation is almost complete by Jah-Wren+Ryel · · Score: 2

      I'm just surprised it lasted this long.

      The fight is far from over. All this move will do is spur further innovation in darknet technology.

      The copyfight battles will ebb and flow, but in the long run the MAFIAA can't win - they can only get old and die. It is in our genes to share, without an innate desire to share cool stuff with other people our species would never have developed civilisation. You can fight human nature, but you can't win.

      --
      When information is power, privacy is freedom.
    8. Re:The transformation is almost complete by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes it is. I got 6 Avenger episodes last night...

    9. Re:The transformation is almost complete by firefrei · · Score: 1

      All this move will do is spur further innovation in darknet technology.

      Eh. If Darknet is the only way of keeping the net free then we've already lost. The Internet is suppose to be an open network to anyone; it shouldn't require a knowledge of a geek to be able to enjoy this privilege - it should be available to anyone including the layman. Clearly the Internet as we know it is on its way to destruction, being locked down and censored as best as Governments can. There will always be ways to communicate via darknet of course, but it will be harder and harder and the end result will see what was a nice mainstream networking technology become a shellf of its former self.

      You can fight human nature, but you can't win.

      Likewise, since greed and power is also a component of human nature, you can try to fight those in power who control the ISPs and the pipes, but you can't win the war. Just the occasional battle. It fucking sucks how this great technology is now something that we have to fight for.

      --
      I remember when Linux was good... too...
  6. SSL? by guanxi · · Score: 1

    Assuming people use SSL or something similar, how will ISPs know when someone is violating copyrights?

    1. Re:SSL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      fingerprinting, digital signatures, hashing, forensics, backtracing server, quantum cryptography, etc.

    2. Re:SSL? by smileygladhands · · Score: 1, Insightful

      SSL requires an initial HTTP request that isn't encrypted, in order to transfer keys which are used to encrypt the connection. ISP's see the entire transaction from start to finish. Yay? Also, just wait until Linux Distributions and the Anarchist Cookbook become "illegal files".

    3. Re:SSL? by Em+Adespoton · · Score: 2

      Assuming people use SSL or something similar, how will ISPs know when someone is violating copyrights?

      All they need for suspicion of violation is your DNS lookup records, routing table history, and protocol volume history.

      There's a LOT of data that gets passed through your ISP that's below/beside the TLS layer.

      They'll look for things like: Spewing torrent connections but not connected to an OSS or MMORPG server? You're getting investigated.

    4. Re:SSL? by sconeu · · Score: 5, Informative

      The whole point of an SSL Diffe-Hellman or RSA key exchange is that any eavesdropper (including the ISP) can't figure out the session key, even if they hear the entire negotiation.

      --
      General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.
    5. Re:SSL? by smileygladhands · · Score: 1

      Point taken.

    6. Re:SSL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm not sure how accurate that statement is: from what I remember, the ISP would see you connect to a specific port and IP... but the juicy HTTP info (i.e the URL) is only sent after the encrypted session has been made. They wouldn't see you grabbing "https://site/nsyncs_greatest_hits.mp3". Can anyone else comment?

    7. Re:SSL? by Hatta · · Score: 1

      RIAA, MPAA, etc, will connect to bittorrent trackers that share files they have copyright on. They will see who is seeding, note their IP, contact their ISP, and begin this process.

      --
      Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
    8. Re:SSL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      All they need for suspicion of violation is your DNS lookup records, routing table history, and protocol volume history.

      From TFA: "The program, commonly referred to as "graduated response," requires that ISPs send out one or two educational notices to those customers who are accused of downloading copyrighted content illegally. If the customer doesn't stop, the ISP is then asked to send out "confirmation notices" asking that they confirm they have received notice."

      The question is, accused by whom? Does the ISP proactively monitor for gigabytes of traffic on, say, port one-nineteen and provide John Doe's name to MAFIAA, who then asks for DPI? Or does the MAFIAA have to say they believe John Doe is downloading before the ISP confirms, without a warrant or court order, that John Doe has lots of traffic coming down from connections he initiated at that port.

    9. Re:SSL? by cpu6502 · · Score: 2

      Would these so-called "magnet links" protect torrent downloaders? Or are they mainly to protect Piratebay and other websites from prosecution?

      Does turning-off PeerExchange or DHT: help a downloader stay hidden from Studios?

      --
      My AC stalker: " I personally agree with your posts most of the time, but that won't keep me from modding you troll"
    10. Re:SSL? by EllisDees · · Score: 1

      That's not particularly useful since all of the modern trackers inject random fake IP addresses as seeds. They are going to at least try to connect before sending a warning and any good blocklist will stop that.

      --
      -- Give me ambiguity or give me something else!
    11. Re:SSL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Magnet links do not protect you at all. Torrents as they currently are, contain all available data to get you in trouble.

      Torrents are not encrypted. You can route torrents through an encrypted VPN service, but many VPNs do not like you doing that, and the speed is never as good.

      The solution to avoiding the ISP and legal troubles will come in the form of encrypted sharing networks, where data is randomized, anonymously, either through small groups of people making friends networks (Retroshare look it up) or larger pools of people. The trick is, when do we start setting these encrypted sharing networks up, and how do we all meet, and how do we keep the cops from joining. And if they do, is it really an issue?

      Retroshare and similar programs will allow you to give the big "fuck you" to the RIAA. The trick is, we have to stop using torrents and start forming encrypted communities.

    12. Re:SSL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'd like to see a study that actually proves those blocklists like PeerGuardian actually do anything useful.

      RIAA/MPAA can easily come in from different IP addresses other than the ones they own - say for example, a commercial DSL line at their HQ, a server leased from a hosting company, a VPN service, a proxy, and what have you.

      There is no way for you to know when a random DSL customer is actually a MPAA mole or if someone's VPS at ThePlanet's data center is actually the RIAA.

    13. Re:SSL? by Anthony+Mouse · · Score: 1

      That's not particularly useful since all of the modern trackers inject random fake IP addresses as seeds.

      You're assuming they give the slightest damn about accuracy or false accusations. There's no oversight! Why wouldn't they just accuse every IP on the list whether it's fake or not? It doesn't cost them anything, and they're assholes.

      Remember this? "Innocent" printers being accused of copyright infringement. The fun begins when anyone with half a clue realizes that they can now easily frame anyone else they want to and get them kicked off the internet. It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest if some asshats like Anonymous started framing large numbers of innocent people like that, just to be jackasses.

      There is a reason this sort of thing is supposed to require due process and judicial oversight. (Not that "disconnecting people from the internet" is the sort of thing that should ever happen for any reason. Can you imagine what people would have said even fifty years ago if someone proposed prohibiting accused but not convicted book pirates from having pen and paper?)

    14. Re:SSL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They'll just do what ISPs elsewhere did, they'll throttle SSL to 1 kbps.

    15. Re:SSL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Because of the people who use virus scanning, the ISP, RIAA have amassed a huge database of file signatures.

    16. Re:SSL? by Jaysyn · · Score: 1

      Anonymous is much, much more likely to start framing politicians & police officers.

      --
      There is a war going on for your mind.
    17. Re:SSL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      ...we have to stop using torrents and start forming encrypted communities.

      Headed up by FBI moles...

    18. Re:SSL? by CohibaVancouver · · Score: 3, Funny

      The trick is, we have to stop using torrents and start forming encrypted communities

      Or, just go borrow the DVD from your buddy and be done with it.

    19. Re:SSL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You can route torrents through an encrypted VPN service, but many VPNs do not like you doing that, and the speed is never as good.

      I've said it for years- have torrent users provide the proxies.

      In addition to a 'file tracker', torrent users (well, the software they use, you know what I mean) connect to a 'proxy tracker'. A user who shares a proxy get to use someone else's. Each proxy can be say, 1 mb/sec. Proxies can be 'stacked'. Etc, etc.

    20. Re:SSL? by sunderland56 · · Score: 1

      If they severely throttle SSL, then anyone who works from home will be severely affected. Can't do corporate business unencrypted - SSL/VPN is requred by any company with half a brain - and can't work with a badly throttled connection.

    21. Re:SSL? by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1

      Magnet links make no difference to downloaders, they only make tracker sites one more step removed from the illegal material and reduce their hosting costs - the entire set of magnet links for TPB is now available as a 90MB file.

      Turning of PEX or DHT probably won't make any difference. A peer blocker would be a better bet. Torrents can be encrypted, but since they're using self-signed keys the negotiation process can be MITM'ed and often is, and this doesn't hide you from the studios at all - they track you by downloading the file like anybody else and then monitoring IPs in the swarm as they download and seed, only a VPN can hide you.

      Torrents over i2p are untraceable and unstoppable, the only problem right now is a lack of popularity.

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
    22. Re:SSL? by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1

      GP is wrong if the key comes from a CA (assuming the CA isn't leaking info). Only self-signed SSL connections can be MITM'ed - the encryption used in the transfer of the torrent content itself works like this, but not tracker sites.

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
    23. Re:SSL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well, YES, but my pool of buddies includes a few million people, the DVD is an iso, and I borrow it over the Internet.

    24. Re:SSL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why should they? The onus on them isn't to be right, just to try to stop the traffic. They don't care if fake IPs get served as long as the real ones do as well.

    25. Re:SSL? by Em+Adespoton · · Score: 1

      The question is, accused by whom? Does the ISP proactively monitor for gigabytes of traffic on, say, port one-nineteen and provide John Doe's name to MAFIAA, who then asks for DPI? Or does the MAFIAA have to say they believe John Doe is downloading before the ISP confirms, without a warrant or court order, that John Doe has lots of traffic coming down from connections he initiated at that port.

      It was my understanding that the ISPs mentioned were already doing the second voluntarily, which leads me to believe that they are planning to now take a more active role in monitoring.

    26. Re:SSL? by Taibhsear · · Score: 1

      Granted the torrent file itself might not be encrypted but many torrent programs utilize encryption of the transfer of the file pieces. Deluge and Azureus/Vuze off the top of my head.

    27. Re:SSL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah, I just don't get what all the fuss is about *file* sharing. There's plenty of ways to watch movies for free that are perfectly legal (ever hear of a PUBLIC LIBRARY?). Just venture out of your parents basement and make a few non-virtual friends.

      I'm not interested in downloading movies mainly because, 1) it hogs my internet bandwidth for too long, 2) it takes up too much disk space, 3) I can't easily carry the movie over to a friends house to watch w/o burning a DVD-- and 4) none of 1-3 are actually *free*. Borrowing DVDs are *actually* free.

  7. Everyone, just cancel your service for 2 months... by serbianheretic · · Score: 2

    And they will be begging you to come back. Without filtering.

  8. Thanks America by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Thank you, America, for ensuring I have two choices for broadband, both of which are in bed with the RIAA for this scheme

    1. Re:Thanks America by cpu6502 · · Score: 0

      It's more than that if you count dialup and wireless:

      1. cable
      2. DSL or FiOS through telephone company
      3. Wireless/cellular
      - 3.a. ATT
      - 3.b. Sprint
      - 3.c. Verizon
      - 3.d. VirginMobile
      - 3.e. et cetera
      4. Wireless/TV Band Devices
      - 4.a. (one-year-old technology; in process of rollout)
      5. Dialup
      - 5.a. AOL
      - 5.b. Netzero
      - 5.c. PeoplePC
      - 5.d. Ooops I just noticed you said broadband.... delete number 5 (though you can use it for torrenting files if need be).

      --
      My AC stalker: " I personally agree with your posts most of the time, but that won't keep me from modding you troll"
    2. Re:Thanks America by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Asshole. Try living in certain parts of NEPA. The choices are cable and fuck yourself.

    3. Re:Thanks America by soundguy · · Score: 1

      6. Wireless/ 4G Clear/Sprint (formerly Clearwire) operates in major cities. Seattle has had other Wimax-type providers for years, although they were aimed at business and were pretty expensive

      7. Wireless/ Satellite - Limited traffic allotment and horrible latency, but available pretty much anywhere in the US with a view of the sky

      8. Wireless/ Infrared - I don't know if it's still in operation, but a couple of years ago, someone rolled out a line-of-site infrared system on the tops of the downtown Seattle office buildings

      9. T1 This old dog is still out there and is offered by a number of providers in most markets served by copper.

      10. Never underestimate the bandwidth of a station wagon full of hard drives going 70 miles an hour

      --
      Nothing worthwhile ever happens before noon
  9. Liability? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Aren't the ISPs signing themselves up for a great deal of liability here? If they have the equipment and manpower to monitor for someone downloading Metallica songs, that also gives them the capability to scan for a great deal of other legally questionable content. Doesn't this make them responsible when someone, say, transmits illegal imagery over the ISP's service? They could have stopped it, so they should be considered accessories to it. Am I missing some legal loophole here, or is it simply a matter of "wink wink, nod nod, the people in charge only care about MP3s"?

    1. Re:Liability? by mark-t · · Score: 1

      There is a whole lot of difference between having the ability to detect it, and *ALWAYS* being able to detect it.

      Basically, you'd be rolling the dice, and hoping you don't get caught if you are going to break the law in this way. All this means is that your chances of getting caught may be slightly higher... but by no means certain.

    2. Re:Liability? by Penguinisto · · Score: 1

      That said, if someone sues a person for child porn (of their kid), could they not sue the ISP for not stopping it?

      After all, the ISPs involved have proven that not only *can* they monitor content and act on it, but that they *do* monitor content - and act on it. In a civil case, this should be sufficient to make the target ISP liable... and companies like Comcast or Verizon have a whole lot more money than Joe Pedo will, making them one hell of a ripe target for any lawyer in such a situation.

      "Common carrier", you say? Not anymore.

      --
      Quo usque tandem abutere, Nimbus, patientia nostra?
    3. Re:Liability? by TubeSteak · · Score: 1

      Aren't the ISPs signing themselves up for a great deal of liability here? If they have the equipment and manpower to monitor for someone downloading

      You misunderstand what's going on.
      The **AAs got certain ISPs to agree to screw over their customers based on **AA accusations.
      So instead of having to sue alleged downloaders based on an IP address, the **AA can just send a letter to the ISP.

      It completely bypasses due process.

      --
      [Fuck Beta]
      o0t!
    4. Re:Liability? by mark-t · · Score: 1

      And the police have the ability to arrest people who drive drunk.

      Doesn't mean they always catch them. Can you sue the police for incompetence if a drunk driver kills your spouse?

    5. Re:Liability? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The police get protection from the sovreignity of the government under which they are organized. It is also their job to arrest people. So, if they do not have the resources to arrest all the law breakers, we cut them a break. It is not the job of ISPs to do anything but transmit bits. So, they're being nosy fucks that deserve to be sued when they come up short doing things that they have no business doing.

    6. Re:Liability? by Penguinisto · · Score: 1

      Basically what sibling said. I believe that the ISP's actions with regard to snooping for copyright violations places them firmly under the "preponderance of evidence" in a civil case for not catching identity thieves, pedophiles, and sundry.

      (The old pre-breakup) AT&T was able to establish common carrier because it studiously avoided monitoring calls, and claimed themselves as a dumb pipe. The ISPs up until now were able to do this as well... but the moment they start monitoring and acting on subscriber activities, they start carrying liability.

      --
      Quo usque tandem abutere, Nimbus, patientia nostra?
    7. Re:Liability? by mark-t · · Score: 1

      ISP's don't have the resources to catch all copyright infringers either.

  10. Don't download this song by mhh91 · · Score: 5, Funny
    1. Re:Don't download this song by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "Dieses Video ist in Deutschland leider nicht verfügbar, da es möglicherweise Musik enthält, für die die erforderlichen Musikrechte von der GEMA nicht eingeräumt wurden.

      Das tut uns leid."

      roughly translates to:

      "This video is not availabe in germany, since it might contain Music to which the necessary rights havent been granted by the GEMA (royalty collectors)"

      Goddamm you if you mod that funny

  11. Government, meet your corporate OLs by Randym · · Score: 1
    ISPs, including Comcast, Cablevision, Verizon, and Time Warner Cable, have officially agreed to step up efforts to protect the rights of copyright owners. From the article: 'Supporters say this could become the most effective antipiracy program ever. Since ISPs are the Internet's gatekeepers, the theory is that network providers are in the best position to fight illegal file sharing.

    How delightfully efficient of our corporate overlords. Those 'people' are so clever! Personal anonymity is so 20th Century.

    --
    DNA is a Turing machine. You, however, being dynamic and emergent, are not.
  12. In case you didn't get it... by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 5, Interesting

    ... this means they will be MONITORING your traffic. Possibly including deep packet inspection and worse.

    Pardon me, but even if I'm not doing a damned thing wrong, I don't want or need my ISP to be monitoring my activity, any more than I would want a phone company listening to my telephone calls.

    I find the idea ethically and morally repugnant, and, for that matter, on thin ice legally.

    I should also point out that my cable contract contains none of these provisions. Maybe it's fine for new accounts, but I will hold them to my existing contract.

    1. Re:In case you didn't get it... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I should also point out that my cable contract contains none of these provisions. quote>

      They will find a way to sneak it in.

    2. Re:In case you didn't get it... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      They probably have a clause buried in said existing contract that gives them the right to change it whenever they damn well feel like it, so I doubt you'll have much luck trying that.

    3. Re:In case you didn't get it... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Tell your family about it. Bet they feel the same way. Make sure they tell their friends too...

    4. Re:In case you didn't get it... by Hatta · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Nothing in this article indicates any sort of traffic monitoring on the part of the ISPs. It only sounds like a standardized way to keep track of the C&D letters they've been sending out for years.

      Don't get me wrong, this is bad too as there's no accountability for sending faulty C&D letters, and I doubt there's going to be much of an appeals process. But it's bad in a different way than deep packet inspection is.

      --
      Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
    5. Re:In case you didn't get it... by DigiShaman · · Score: 2

      Deep packet inspection will throw off false-positives. Statistically, you can discard a few findings when logging traffic. But, if your aim is to block data based on a dictionary pattern (as my firewalls do), that causes all sorts of hell. Think VOIP, streaming video, or gaming traffic getting dropped because the ACK keeps transmitting the same "dirty" packet over and over hoping to get a response.

      Personally, I've seen this happen with over the wire backups. Sometimes the MD5 or SH1 signature (if that's what they use, I don't know) will match but in fact have nothing to do with what's cataloged in the dictionary. When you call firewall vendors guilty of this false positive behavior, their official response is to add an IP source/destination exception or disable that particular false-positive signature.

      Oh, and I haven't even touched on buffer hell either.

      --
      Life is not for the lazy.
    6. Re:In case you didn't get it... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, but I believe Jane is correct - that they will, or already do, packet inspection on some level. It's bound to happen. Just like :"I would want a phone company listening to my telephone calls. " has already and still happens. My friend works for Verizon and says they have direct connections to various government agencies that basically allows them to grab any call they want at any time.

    7. Re:In case you didn't get it... by jamstar7 · · Score: 1

      I should also point out that my cable contract contains none of these provisions. Maybe it's fine for new accounts, but I will hold them to my existing contract.

      What, no 'Terms and conditions are subject to change without notice or warning' in your contract? Your ISP must be slipping, every ISP contract I've seen has such a clause.

      --
      Understanding the scope of the problem is the first step on the path to true panic.
    8. Re:In case you didn't get it... by jamstar7 · · Score: 1

      Don't get me wrong, this is bad too as there's no accountability for sending faulty C&D letters, and I doubt there's going to be much of an appeals process.

      There is no 'appeal' from corporate actions. This isn't a legal action in that there are no judges or courts involved. This is vigilante injustice on the wild wild internet, where the corporados are trying to make the internet safe for profitibility and paid content delivery.

      --
      Understanding the scope of the problem is the first step on the path to true panic.
    9. Re:In case you didn't get it... by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 1

      See my reply to Nurb432.

    10. Re:In case you didn't get it... by Khyber · · Score: 1

      I catch said ISPs inspecting my business packets and I'll fucking sue their ass into oblivion for attempted espionage.

      --
      Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.
    11. Re:In case you didn't get it... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Pardon me, but even if I'm not doing a damned thing wrong, I don't want or need my ISP to be monitoring my activity, any more than I would want a phone company listening to my telephone calls.

      Actually, they already are and have been for some time. The idea of an ISP that simply shuffles packets from router to router and only monitors the quantity of bits is about a decade old. They move petabytes of consumer data every day and know very well what their network is carrying, right down to the application level. They already know how much of your traffic is email, netflix, youtube, facebook, google searches, bittorrent, etc. And yes, they log your traffic. Usually under the guise of law enforcement or anti-DDoS purposes. How do I know all this? I work for a company that writes the software that does this for them. Our customer list is a who's who of Internet providers around the world. So it's not just some ISPs doing it. It's pretty much all of them.

      I should also point out that my cable contract contains none of these provisions. Maybe it's fine for new accounts, but I will hold them to my existing contract.

      You should try reading your contract. In there it clearly states that may change the terms of your contract at any time without any notice or approval and you are powerless to do anything about it. If it doesn't, I'll eat my hat.

    12. Re:In case you didn't get it... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Read your contract again. I'm fairly sure it says that they have the right to amend the terms as they like. Your typical right of refusal to new terms is to discontinue your service, most likely with an early termination fee on your part. Fighting it is likely to cost you enough to seriously dent you pocket or ruin your financial life in exchange for being let off the pittance that they won't even notice (assuming you win; otherwise the consequences will be worse).

    13. Re:In case you didn't get it... by Hatta · · Score: 1

      Exactly. They can't enforce their will through the legal system so they're setting up an extra-legal process with no protections for the end user.

      --
      Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
    14. Re:In case you didn't get it... by pak9rabid · · Score: 1

      And you're going to catch them how exactly?

    15. Re:In case you didn't get it... by Khyber · · Score: 1

      Oh, I dunno, prolly the same way we have the feds asking about internet usage and making sure it's advertised correctly?

      Yes, I have a packet-sniffer box attached to my modem.

      I don't do illegal downloading, yet I see a bunch of illegal packet inspecting and taking of vital company information (mine.)

      Guess you don't have Charter cable, do ya?

      --
      Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.
    16. Re:In case you didn't get it... by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 1

      "I catch said ISPs inspecting my business packets and I'll fucking sue their ass into oblivion for attempted espionage."

      Good for you. And I mean that sincerely. We could use a lot more people with that kind of attitude. We should not just sit idly by and let these companies get away with what amounts to corporate rape.

      I had an idea along this line. It might need some refinement. But here it is: A very slightly modified P2P filesharing network, that simply includes some kind of network ID in the packet stream. Then make a public (frequent, easily seen) declaration that is shown in all P2P clients for that network, something like this:

      Any traffic on this network using this ID is making use of OUR proprietary network. We acknowlede the reality that copyright content owners have done a great deal of damage to the freedoms of citizens. To prevent further intrusions and violations of privacy, we declare the following:

      ANYONE who accesses this network for the purpose of monitoring, observing, or logging the activity of other users of this network is specifically denied access. Anyone who uses information gleaned from this network in order to attempt to determine, punish, or act against other users of this network, or gather and use ANY information about them, in any way, shall be guilty of unauthorized access to a computer network as defined in 18 USC 1030 and similar laws, which is a felony carrying a penalty of up to 10 years in Federal prison. Such parties, when identified, will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

    17. Re:In case you didn't get it... by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 1

      The point being: anybody who tries to use information from the P2P network to sue them for copyright infringement, would be admitting to being AT LEAST an accessory to a felony, and possibly guilty of a felony themselves. Saying that they got the information from someone else won't wash: they are still actively participating in felonious activity.

      Let's see how far they get trying to sue people for civil infractions like filesharing, when in order to do so, they have to commit a felony.

  13. Re:Everyone, just cancel your service for 2 months by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    No slashdot for 2months!? C'mon now!

    Unless we can set up an OMG Pony net to send handwritten posts... oh wait...

  14. goodbye internet by Aphoxema · · Score: 1

    Better when it was a law, at least then you'll notice when they silence dissidents and have it on record.

    --
    "Most people, I think, don't even know what a rootkit is, so why should they care about it?"
  15. Countermeasures? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Well, damn. Anyone have recommendations for some reasonably priced proxy services that exit overseas?

  16. Really folks. by Cosgrach · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Why doesn't someone simply go up to the guys who propose this crap and simply SHOOT THEM IN THE FUCKING HEAD!?

    --
    Why is it that most of the people that I encounter seem to have been shat from the Sphincter of Mediocrity?
    1. Re:Really folks. by cdrudge · · Score: 4, Funny

      Because violating a copyright is 5 years or $250k fine (or whatever it's up to these days) while 1st degree murder carries a slightly stiffer sentence up to and including becoming a stiff.

    2. Re:Really folks. by jd2112 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      So copying a Michael Jackson song potentially caries a greater penalty than killing him.

      --
      Any insufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from technology.
    3. Re:Really folks. by couchslug · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The same reasons you don't.

      --
      "This post is an artistic work of fiction and falsehood. Only a fool would take anything posted here as fact."
    4. Re:Really folks. by Jackie_Chan_Fan · · Score: 1

      Its worth it. Vive la Revolution!

    5. Re:Really folks. by cpu6502 · · Score: 2

      I keep asking myself the same question about the Greeks. Millions protest against the selling-out of their country to Germany and the bankers, but the people in charge (like the unelected prime minister) don't get shot. It makes me think our ancestors had more balls than we do.

      --
      My AC stalker: " I personally agree with your posts most of the time, but that won't keep me from modding you troll"
    6. Re:Really folks. by misexistentialist · · Score: 1

      There are too many of them, and violence doesn't change minds. This plan would be withdrawn within hours if a substantial percentage of subscribers saturated their ISPs' call centers cancelling all services effective July 12. Do enough people care?

    7. Re:Really folks. by geminidomino · · Score: 3, Insightful

      If you're going to violate TWO copyrights, though... the murder rap is definitely the better deal.

    8. Re:Really folks. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You had tri-testicled ancestors?

    9. Re:Really folks. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Except for the part where he's already dead... yes.

    10. Re:Really folks. by GmExtremacy · · Score: 1

      Some (most?) people don't seem to care about collateral damage. As long as the stated intention is to "get the criminals," all is well. Perhaps until something happens to them.

    11. Re:Really folks. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why doesn't someone simply go up to the guys who propose this crap and simply SHOOT THEM IN THE FUCKING HEAD!?

      Get with the times.

      IEDs FTW!

    12. Re:Really folks. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      this reminds me of something I found on hacker news yesterday:

      http://thisorthat.com/blog/why-the-joker-and-not-batman-is-the-savior-of-us-all

    13. Re:Really folks. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Woohoo! Fuck yeah!

    14. Re:Really folks. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah, if you violate 1+ copyrights, take one for the team and cap that mother fucker.

    15. Re:Really folks. by DarthVain · · Score: 1

      Also they are like Hydra, destroy one head, and two more will appear...

      Only fire will work. Preferably that which is nuclear fire, delivered from orbit. It be the only way to be sure!

  17. this means nothing by Charliemopps · · Score: 2

    It's a token effort that only large ISPs are making. My guess is that they are doing this in exchange for something... cheap deals on digital content, or something of the sort. In reality they will do very little to enforce this. The second this starts costing them customers they'll drop it like a hot potato. Remember, they have absolutely no incentive to help the dieing media industry police their content.

    1. Re:this means nothing by nitzmahone · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Except for those that are *part* of the "dying media industry" (think Comcast/NBC Universal and TimeWarner). Same kinds of internal conflict that Sony has for being a provider of devices that can infringe on copyright and a producer of copyrighted content. Guess which side wins (have a look at Sony's crippled devices)?

    2. Re:this means nothing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Except that pretty much all the large ISPs have their own media arms, like comcast/nbc. Most also have monopoly or near monopoly in regions for cableTV and internet service, which compete against digital "sharing" with streaming services and On-Demand.

    3. Re:this means nothing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Troll

      Hey... I'd *SWITCH* to an ISP that did this.

      With fewer pirates tying up the ISP's bandwidth, that leaves more for me.

      Hey... porn is legal.

    4. Re:this means nothing by NoKaOi · · Score: 1

      It's a token effort that only large ISPs are making. My guess is that they are doing this in exchange for something... cheap deals on digital content, or something of the sort. In reality they will do very little to enforce this. The second this starts costing them customers they'll drop it like a hot potato. Remember, they have absolutely no incentive to help the dieing media industry police their content.

      Dunno about where you live, but where I live I think they'd love excuses to reduce bandwidth usage. TFA mentions they'll be issuing various levels of warnings. I'm sure they'd love to stop customers using P2P to download and serve movies, since they're already over-promising speeds. I can download a big file fast or stream a Netflix movie at good quality at 1am, but god forbid I would want to watch a Netflix movie (which I'm paying a subscription fee for) at 8pm when everyone else is trying to do the same thing while the neighbor's kids are downloading the latest Justin Beiber music video. Obviously they should either upgrade their infrastructure or stop over-promising speeds, but it's probably a lot cheaper just to send out a bunch of letters.

    5. Re:this means nothing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Untrue, big communications companies have been investing rather heavily in media and content companies, such that their interests are more inline with the RIAA/MPAA scum than ever before.
      If the media companies wanna investigate piracy, they should have to do it themselves, on their own dollar. I dont pay my ISP to investigate me.
      Its un-constitutional and un-American to intercept ppls communications without warrant, and thats exactly wat they are doing.
      This is setting a very bad precedent.

      -HasHie
      "Fck the internet police"

    6. Re:this means nothing by cpu6502 · · Score: 1

      >>>they have absolutely no incentive to help the dieing media industry police their content

      The ones like Comcast and Verizon that profit by selling a separate TV service have incentive to make sure you buy their 100+ channels at ~$60 a month, rather than simply download the shows directly and save money.

      --
      My AC stalker: " I personally agree with your posts most of the time, but that won't keep me from modding you troll"
    7. Re:this means nothing by Forbman · · Score: 1

      Well, at least two of the ISPs (Time Warner, Comcast) are part of "content" provider companies...

    8. Re:this means nothing by Adrian+Lopez · · Score: 5, Insightful

      My guess is that they are doing this in exchange for something

      Given the Obama Administration's involvement, I suspect they're doing it under some kind of threat. It's part of a growing trend: regulation without legislation and enforcement completely divorced from the process of law,

      --
      "In prison you just have to shut your eyes and take it. Here you have to shut your eyes and give it."
    9. Re:this means nothing by 0111+1110 · · Score: 1

      The only copyright violation notice I've ever had in my life was recently with Verizon and it was for some TV show! So you may have something there. It would be interesting if the only copyright violations they enforced was for TV. They've been trying to get me to upgrade and add TV service for ages.

      --
      Quite an experience to live in fear, isn't it? That's what it is to be a slave.
    10. Re:this means nothing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Except it won't lose them many customers because not everyone necessarily has many options.

    11. Re:this means nothing by Jah-Wren+Ryel · · Score: 1

      It's a token effort that only large ISPs are making. My guess is that they are doing this in exchange for something...

      It is bandwidth capping by another name. Pirates probably average a lot more bandwidth usage than non-pirates. Especially up-stream bandwidth because of the way bittorrent works. So the ISPs get to knock off their most expensive customers, at least on paper.

      --
      When information is power, privacy is freedom.
    12. Re:this means nothing by spacecomputer · · Score: 1

      Agreed, because We Can't Wait to steamroll congress and the american people for who ever gives us the most re-election money.

      --

      Remember, Amateurs built the ark. Professionals built the Titanic

    13. Re:this means nothing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >Guess which side wins (have a look at Sony's crippled devices)?

      What crippled devices? All I see at the store is ipods.

    14. Re:this means nothing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      how can it cost them customers? most areas there is only one broadband provider

    15. Re:this means nothing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, that's a problem. Since they are also content providers (Comcast with NBC), they have their own interests in mind more so than their consumers' interests in mind. But let's see if this blows up in their face when safe harbor stops being applied and they are help liable for simply not doing enough.

      I think there might be two kinds of piracy. Pirating things you can't get and pirating things you can get. Like maybe missing an episode of your TV show so you go download it, or wanting to download something that has been off the air for years and isn't available to buy.... versus too cheap (or too poor?) to pay. How about Internet providers work out a deal with Netflix and other companies to provide their service for free to their customers, but as a minimal cost increase. By minimal, I mean like $3 more per month. Something under 50% of the cost to get the actual streaming service. Perhaps with an option to opt out?

  18. odd i dont see charter in the list by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    odd i dont see charter in that list but im sure their next but even at that stealth boxes are king hows the isp to know what exactly im doing if im not downloading from my ip or MAC address

  19. How can I get caught? by hawguy · · Score: 2

    All of my content at home is purchased and legal. What kind of suspicious behavior can I do to make Comcast flag me as a pirate (without having to actually download pirated content)?

    1. Re:How can I get caught? by The+Archon+V2.0 · · Score: 1

      All of my content at home is purchased and legal. What kind of suspicious behavior can I do to make Comcast flag me as a pirate (without having to actually download pirated content)?

      Torrent stuff, I'd wager. Linux ISOs is the obvious one, though there is free & legal music out there.

    2. Re:How can I get caught? by PRMan · · Score: 1

      Write ten songs with the same titles of ten popular songs and torrent the MP3s?

      --
      Peter predicted that you would "deliberately forget" creation 2000 years ago...
    3. Re:How can I get caught? by theblackdeer · · Score: 1

      Find small independent bands and movie directors/producers that share their stuff via torrents, and start seeding. Or find these people and ASK them if you can seed their stuff for free, over P2P networks. Make sure you get that in writing, though, the bit about them wanting you to seed the stuff.

      Not sure what your plan is (surely, you must be a lawyer?), but I don't believe a non-copyright holder can take you to court over someone else's copyright. See the Righthaven case for more info.

    4. Re:How can I get caught? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      A lot of bands allow live recording of their concerts by ticketholders, who are then allowed to trade them. Torrenting was the most popular method a few years back (replacing the media and mail trading days). Most of the songs are likely copyrighted, however the live recording policy is generally by the band. I know almost every Dave Matthews Band show has its audio available from torrents (www.dreamingtree.org).

  20. What counts as copyright infringement? by _xeno_ · · Score: 1

    I can't wait to learn what they consider to be "copyright infringement." Watch a video on YouTube that wasn't legally licensed? Have someone post a picture on your Facebook wall that wasn't licensed from the photographer? (That's more likely than it might seem at first - think "wedding pictures.") Read a forum that has links to pirated material? Want to jailbreak your phone?

    Say goodbye to Internet access.

    --
    You are in a maze of twisty little relative jumps, all alike.
    1. Re:What counts as copyright infringement? by mark-t · · Score: 1

      Well, they are talking about infringing torrent content only, so youtube, et al, would be entirely unaffected.

      I think that the only potential problem that might arise is if you happened to be using bittorrent legtimately at the same time that somebody fingers your IP address as accessing infringing content via bittorrent.

  21. Not entrapment, tortious interference by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    A third party interfering with a business deal made by two others is tortious interference. You would have to have pretty deep pockets to prove it, and it would have to be a pretty clear-cut case where there was no harm being done, say, a Bittorrent stream of a Linux distribution.

  22. SSL Encrypted Usenet? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Just asking from a purely hypothetical position, but would an user downloading from an SSL encrypted usenet provider be found out by this system?

    1. Re:SSL Encrypted Usenet? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      The first rule of SSL-encrypted Usenet is... you don't talk about SSL-encrypted Usenet

    2. Re:SSL Encrypted Usenet? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Probably not, most usenet clients do not check ssl certificates though so doing a man in the middle is not hard. I do usenet over an ssh proxy.

  23. Time for change... by hendridm · · Score: 1

    I'm glad I have TDS Metrocom's sweet wireless service at the office.

    Goodbye Time Warner at home, though!

  24. How is this even legal? by Pubstar · · Score: 2

    Participating ISPs can choose from a list of penalties, or what the RIAA calls "mitigation measures," which include throttling down the customer's connection speed and suspending Web access until the subscriber agrees to stop pirating.

    The only reason why I could see them doing something like that is because they may be held liable. Oh wait, DMCA gives them Safe Harbor. So what exactly gives them the power to stop the service that I pay for because I may be using it for something illegal. It's like my phone getting shut off by T-Mobile because I may have used it to call a dealer to buy some pot. I see class action lawsuits in the future for these companies.

    1. Re:How is this even legal? by mark-t · · Score: 1

      So what exactly gives them the power to stop the service that I pay for because I may be using it for something illegal.

      They own it. I'm pretty sure that they have no legal obligation to offer their services to everyone unconditionally.

      Your recourse, of course, if their terms are unsatisfying to you, is to take your business elsewhere. This creates a system of checks and balances that keeps it from spiraling hopelessly out of control.

    2. Re:How is this even legal? by compro01 · · Score: 1

      I see class action lawsuits in the future for these companies.

      Won't work. The supreme corporate already ruled they can say no to being sued.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AT&T_Mobility_v._Concepcion

      --
      upon the advice of my lawyer, i have no sig at this time
    3. Re:How is this even legal? by Jackie_Chan_Fan · · Score: 1

      The only problem with that is... The entire country can not simply just not use the internet.

      Corproations wouldnt like that very much and of course Its simply not realistic. It will never happen.

      So the false choice of "just dont use the internet, or agree to be fucked" is not really what any citizen would consider fair.

    4. Re:How is this even legal? by silas_moeckel · · Score: 1

      But since they are a monopoly they do need to offer service universally. What next the power company shuts ya off?

      --
      No sir I dont like it.
    5. Re:How is this even legal? by jamstar7 · · Score: 1

      Your recourse, of course, if their terms are unsatisfying to you, is to take your business elsewhere. This creates a system of checks and balances that keeps it from spiraling hopelessly out of control.

      Another great idea in theory, not so great in practice. In my apartment building, I'm stuck with Time-Warner. Nobody else will even come by once I tell them the address.

      --
      Understanding the scope of the problem is the first step on the path to true panic.
    6. Re:How is this even legal? by Pubstar · · Score: 1

      Oh yeah, I forgot about the whole 'arbitration' clause that every company makes you sign.

  25. This will not improve sales. by Jackie_Chan_Fan · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The best part about this is, they will not increase the sale of any of these products at all.

    If you cant afford it in the first place, you wont be buying it.

    All this does, is actually hurt our entire civilization, especially those who cant afford these things. Things that are so easily copied and hurt no one by allowing poorer people access to them. There is no loss of sale and it only benefits the poor. Especially those burdened by health issues who pay 15k a year for insurance plans, who barely scrape by in todays world with min wage jobs, people who dont have a say at all in this country... people who try to just better their lives through knowledge using free programs, and perhaps building a future they can one day afford buy these "THINGS".

    The benefits of piracy have outweighed the negative.

    Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, made 2 billion dollars in 2 months. Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 made a billion dollars in 1 week. Avatar made over a billion dollars world wide in ticket sales alone, not to mention blu-ray sales, netflix etc on top of that. These 3 items were ALL readily available through piracy. They were also pirated heavily. Did it actually negatively impact the sales? Perhaps a tiny bit, but c'mon. The amount of money those 3 items generated, prove that no matter how much something is pirated, it makes a FUCKLOAD of cash regardless.

    Without piracy, ITUNES would never have existed. iTunes is a very profitable buisness for music, and apps. ALL of which are still pirated today.

    Trying to end piracy, is basically denying the poor of things they otherwise could never afford. How will that ever benefit humanity?

    1. Re:This will not improve sales. by mark-t · · Score: 0

      Without piracy, ITUNES would never have existed.

      Citation, please.

    2. Re:This will not improve sales. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What are you 12? Not been paying attention? Apple shill? Troll?
      What? It's gotta be some combination of those. Or you're just stupid.

      Piracy while all the world screaming they want a real online store to buy almost any song for a reasonable price is what allowed ANY music service to ever exist. Piracy is the direct cause. Because without piracy and our screaming the music studios would have NEVER allowed an online music store to exist. Of course the real joke is that the music studios believed that piracy would vanish once we had our online music stores. haha. didn't work.

      But it's still completely valid and true to say that piracy is the direct reason we have itunes here now. It could never have existed without the massive music piracy pushing the music studios to adapt to this internet thing finally. Even if it took them 10 years too long.

    3. Re:This will not improve sales. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Look up the Diamond RIO, Winplay3, winamp, and the mp3 scene before it went mainstream.

      The entire concept for iTunes and the iPod came from piracy. Thats why they went with AAC instead of MP3 for sales. It could be protected. Winamp, MP3, AAC, FLAC, Apple Lossless... all happily co-exist today. iTunes right along Foobar and other music managers, including googles.

      It all works out in the end. Piracy created the IBM compatible. The PC you use today is thanks to the hackers at compaq chipping away at IBM's bios.

      Piracy has created YOUTUBE. The entire mentality of the internet has been based around the open sharing of information and that those who can buy, will buy.. and those who cant, can watch ads, or simply pirate it. Its not a big deal. It in fact has created Google, and even brought Apple back from the dead, and made them one of the richest companies today.

    4. Re:This will not improve sales. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You seem to be living under the delusion that these companies are under some sort of obligation to provide people who cannot afford to pay the applicable fees with entertainment. People who are poor need to learn to make lifestyle compromises to continue to live at all... and I would not ever presume to think that video games and movies are some sort of essential part of life.

    5. Re:This will not improve sales. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Without piracy, ITUNES would never have existed.

      Citation, please.

      What content would you put on your first ipod?

      The fact is that at the time the ipod was released, people already had a metric assload of ripped/pirated mp3's to put on it. No other contemporary portable music player had a comparable capcity / form factor. The rest is history.

      Huge libraries of pirated music were the primary driver that made a large-capacity disk-based mp3 players sexy in 2002.

      Citation :
      Napster released 1999
      First ipod retail availability at end of 2001

    6. Re:This will not improve sales. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "people who try to just better their lives through knowledge using free programs, and perhaps building a future they can one day afford buy these "THINGS"."

      to

      "Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2", "Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3", and "Avatar".

      Stupid as fuck

    7. Re:This will not improve sales. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I've see some silly things from people trying to rationalize their pirating, but that is hands down the silliest.

      It's a damn shame that when I speak out against agreements like those in TFA, I'm instantly lumped in with people who have the audacity to claim that not only are they entitled to free entertainment, but they're making the world a better place by doing so.

    8. Re:This will not improve sales. by mark-t · · Score: 2

      What content would you put on your first ipod?

      Stuff that I took from CD's that I legitimately owned. Private copies of audio works are not infringing on copyright, having an explicit exemption in Canada, which is where I am from. In the USA, I'm pretty sure that's covered under "fair use".

    9. Re:This will not improve sales. by Jackie_Chan_Fan · · Score: 1

      Ok, lets put aside the fact that you think poor people shouldnt have any enjoyment in life.

      I never said companies are under any obligation to do anything. I'm using simple math and reasoning here with a bit of humane instinct which you seem to lack, cause you just want to be a cunt.

      The point which you obviously can not figure out for yourself, is that If I had sandwich, and you were hungry... AND we both had a digital connection and a machine that could transmit the sandwich from you to me, to 1000s of other hungry people without loss of income, or destruction of my own yummy sandwich... Would you still say I had no obligation to share? Perhaps I would not have an obligation, but then I would be a cunt.

      It's not that the companies have an obligation, they do not. It is simply the fact that history has proven that todays software engineers, were yesterdays pirates. Today's special fx artists, started with pirated copies of photoshop and 3dstudio dos. History has shown that piracy has STAFFED our entire computer industry with knowledgable hackers who knew what an NUP was.

      I'm sorry but you cant deny history, and its benefits... and denying the poor, or the uneducated, a chance to learn or benefit froms omething they could never afford... would be a GIANT failure for civlization. APPLE, MICROSOFT, GOOGLE, YAHOO, YOUTUBE, EVERY Videogame studio, Every tech giant you ever heard of, exists because of pirates.

    10. Re:This will not improve sales. by Jackie_Chan_Fan · · Score: 1

      Fair use would be allowing you to COPY your owned music back off your ipod to any computer you want. Of course you cant do that can you?

      Well, now you can, thanks to hackers who liberated everyone's iPod through third party software.

    11. Re:This will not improve sales. by Jackie_Chan_Fan · · Score: 1

      Yes, you are.

      Dont get upset because you cant put 2 and 2 together or hold more than 1 idea in your little brain.

      You have no idea how this industry formed... kids sharing copied atari and c64 games on floppies staff most of the entire industry, and educated the rest. They're the neighbors kids that fixed your mommy's computer, so her shitty cunt son (you) could play his bible software on it.

      Fuck off cunt.

    12. Re:This will not improve sales. by Jackie_Chan_Fan · · Score: 1

      Interesting because the co-founder of Apple agrees with me, and not you.

    13. Re:This will not improve sales. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Which one did you put on your second? You never *ever* had any copies of things you haven't had bought (at that time), or lent out to someone without getting them back? So, why don't you go and hypocrite someone else? M'kay? Thx. Bye.

    14. Re:This will not improve sales. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Avatar made over a billion dollars world wide in ticket sales alone, not to mention blu-ray sales, netflix etc on top of that.

      the official books almost always show that movies lose money.. even blockbusters. example: http://entertainment.slashdot.org/story/10/07/09/1621218/hollywood-accounting-how-harry-potter-loses-money

      if the industry didn't use those same hollywood accountants to calculate the billions upon billions of "lost" revenue due to piracy... they'd probably find out what we already know to be true... piracy has a negligible impact on domestic sales of movies and music and in some cases, increases sales.

    15. Re:This will not improve sales. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I really like this response. Here's the things about my life that has changed due to how easy it was for me to pirate some stuff.

      I was a mediocre programmer for a long time, could write a program that works, but nothing that'd turn a profit. So in my final year of high school I got into piracy, downloading music like most did as their first pirating experience. After awhile I was pointed toward websites that pirate books, not the $10 to $20 books but expensive books that get upward to $100 per copy.

      Now I'm far ahead of most programmers when it comes to Direct3D and OpenGL. I regularly visit several popular game development forums just to be helpful to those with questions, in some cases the people I helped get started went on to release games for Xbox Live, Steam, and various other game distribution markets. Some of the tools I've written I regularly get emails about, thanking me for distributing such a time saver without a high cost involved, occasionally receive nice donations from the really grateful people.

      I learn 3D modeling, which got me a nice short term job when my family was facing losing our home. The job required working knowledge of 3DSMax, which I had worked with in the past because I had downloaded a pirated copy. I've since bought a copy of the software, but it's very likely that without being able to pirate that software I'd have wound up in the streets.

      Not only has piracy bettered my life, but me not being afraid of it has bettered other peoples lives as well. Not saying piracy is a good thing, just saying it isn't so black and white.

    16. Re:This will not improve sales. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Are you really asking for a citation for an opinion? Author cites himself, fucktard.

    17. Re:This will not improve sales. by ka9dgx · · Score: 2

      Once upon a time, you went to these places every neighborhood had called "record shops"... where you could sample a recording (perhaps even listening to the whole thing) before you decided to make your purchase. The crushing of the local record shops by the conglomeration of the distribution channel brought along a reduction in the ability to sample purchases... which resulted in a fall in sales.

      Napster came along, and people could sample music before buying it again... CD sales soared upward.

      Not happy with the prospect of having someone able to try something before buying it... the MPAA started down the insane path of suing customers. CD sales began to crash again. They will now never recover.

    18. Re:This will not improve sales. by Zenzilla · · Score: 1

      Actually you could, with MP3s. The music was kept in a directory with the names of the files randomly changed. As long as the files were properly tagged you could just copy them over and load them into whatever media player you wanted to. I don't know about ACC, never bought any of that crap.

    19. Re:This will not improve sales. by Osgeld · · Score: 1

      I have a different view, if the poor can afford internet speeds in the USA that allows them to download a movie that cost a buck something at redbox then maybe they have their priorities wrong.

      oh those poor people cant enjoy *insert retardedly popular movie of the month here*, and they cant afford a buck something to rent it for a night? where are they getting that used car payment a month for decent high speed internet?

      PS: yes I am classified as poor in the US, I have shitty internet, no cable, and just blew a 3 year old 25$ used tire on the interstate yesterday, redbox is a much better alternative for me than wasting a couple days downloading an inferior copy of something I would watch once and never again. I am against this privatized ISP police, but I could not care less about the helpless poor people, and their nonexistent right to own every shitty movie ever created. They can enjoy them just fine.

       

    20. Re:This will not improve sales. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Okay first off that comment has NOTHING to do with what he said, you just wanted to bitch about something related to iTunes because hating DRM and Apple and the music industry is the cool smart hip thing to do. Either way, you're wrong. He can copy all that music back to his computer, or any computer. Music you put onto your computer from a CD won't have any DRM so you can do whatever you want with it. If he bought it from the Apple Store, which he didn't, then he could copy it back to his computer + 4 or 5 others that are authorized. That's a fair enough deal in my opinion. I mean it's rather pointless because if you really want to distribute the music it's super easy to get rid of the DRM, the most straightforward way being simply burning it to a CD, but I've never had any trouble because of it. I can't think of any actual reason I'd ever need to have my music collection on more than 5 computers at a time. (you can change which 5 computers are authorized at any time, if you don't use a computer anymore you just unauthorize it. It's not a bad system there really aren't any loopholes where you get fucked over and lose your music collection. I know you'd like to find one to prove how terrible this is but the thing is it's just not all that terrible.)

    21. Re:This will not improve sales. by Osgeld · · Score: 1

      food and making sure johnny ghetto has a permanent copy of spider-man are hardly the same thing, one you can live without ever consuming.

    22. Re:This will not improve sales. by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1

      Haha the culture-stealing oligarchs must love you. You screw yourself to give them more money that they'll use to steal more culture and buy more laws to screw you with. You can't even get a new tire for your car while they enjoy cocaine and hookers on their yachts and sue grannies into oblivion for more money. Then with the life you can barely afford to sustain, you defend them. Sucker.

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
    23. Re:This will not improve sales. by mark-t · · Score: 1

      So, why don't you go and hypocrite someone else? M'kay? Thx. Bye.

      Why would what I said above make me a hypocrite?

      Which one did you put on your second? You never *ever* had any copies of things you haven't had bought (at that time), or lent out to someone without getting them back?

      When I got my second (and current) iPod, I wiped my first one and gave it to somebody who wanted one. So... no.

      Original point still stands... I fail to see how iTunes only exists because of piracy.

    24. Re:This will not improve sales. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Obvious troll bait, but I'll bit.

      You sir, are a class A moron.

    25. Re:This will not improve sales. by rs79 · · Score: 1

      $25 is a really expensive used tire. I paid $40 for a near-new set of 4 Michelin MXV4 215-65/15 from a yard sale for the last Mercedes I bought. (which cost $1850 in 1996 with 186,000 miles on it).

      You rich kids and your $25 tires. Geesh.

      Oblig: lawn, damn kids, yadda yadda

      --
      Need Mercedes parts ?
    26. Re:This will not improve sales. by Osgeld · · Score: 1

      that was mounted and balanced

    27. Re:This will not improve sales. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No the best part is people will be forced to get smarter and not use public trackers and programs so easily traced, in turn making all their monitoring pointless, making it much harder for them to catch people and increasing the encrypted traffic on the internet. Long story short it will piss off several people, programs will have new features (encryption, etc) to reduce this from working and at the end of the day nothing was accomplished that they want. I expect several people to ask me what to do, mainly after they get their first warning, and I will tell them to use private trackers, force encryption, etc. I would also let them know about some more secure ideas like VPN, etc. Huge influx of people to private trackers and to other more secure services.. That is what I expect to see.

  26. Awesome. by Zuriel · · Score: 3, Insightful

    With US ISPs playing copyright cop, darknets and other anonymizing techniques will be active by default in all P2P clients by the time my country rolls out similar laws.

    Being a step behind the US means workarounds will be mature and widespread by the time I have to deal with this...

    1. Re:Awesome. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I just learned about I2p. And implemented it, at least for those times when I might be torrenting :)

  27. How long will collapse of music industry take? by kawabago · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Sales will start falling off immediately after July 12th but they won't feel the hit until into the fall. I'll take a guess that it will take less than a year for the total collapse of the music industry due to sales falling to near zero. If they choke off file trading, people won't be able to find new music so they will stop buying.

    1. Re:How long will collapse of music industry take? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Sales will start falling off immediately after July 12th

      No, they won't.

    2. Re:How long will collapse of music industry take? by Fnord666 · · Score: 2

      I'll take a guess that it will take less than a year for the total collapse of the music industry due to sales falling to near zero

      In other news, VPS and VPN providers located outside of the US have a record year. Low End Box is a good place to start.

      --
      'The tyrant will always find pretext for his tyranny.' - Aesop's Fables
    3. Re:How long will collapse of music industry take? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Nice fantasy, but MTV, Snooki and Glee are where most kids get their info on the music world. Youtube always has "X sent me here" posts. How this got modded Interesting is beyond me. He is clearly venting. Most here are. Grow up and take some responsibility for your own actions. Or, stop partaking in American media, mass produced or otherwise. I haven't turned on the TV since the 1990s. I found it insulting. Noxema commercials did it. I walked away and haven't missed much since. The last new TV show I remember watching was "The Single Guy" with Jonathan Silverman. I can't recall the year, but the pilot has somehow managed to stay in the back of my mind all these years.

    4. Re:How long will collapse of music industry take? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or find independent artists online who offer their music for free/pay-as-you-want/cheap, with money going direct to the artist (or, if through iTunes, some going to the store).

      I haven't bought anything "mainstream" (off the Top 40 chart) in years. But then, my taste runs to real music not manufactured, copy/pasted, recycled in a week stuff.

  28. Proceeding without SOPA = lawsuit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    My understanding the inconvenience of innocent until proven guilty in a court of law was really one of the important aspects of SOPA/PIPA.

    That you could "conduct an investigation" and unilateraly take action against a user without fear of legal recourse.

    Notice none of these ISPs are willing to go as far as cutting the user off. A couple of throttling lawsuites should be more than enough to empty this little RIAA/MPAA sesspool.

  29. Bound to happen by SuperTechnoNerd · · Score: 5, Insightful

    What took them so long? I guess since they could not get laws passed they wanted, they are going to do an end run and get the ISP's to do their dirty work.

    The free, unmonitored, unfiltered, open internet we know today will be unrecognizable ten years from now, mark my words.. Bottom line: the internet as we know it is incompatible with controlling, big money corporations. Period. They fear it like the plague, and will never stop at trying to break it, or control it. And they have the resources to do it.

    In places like china and the middle east your internet access is filtered and monitored due to fear of upsetting the government's rule.
    In this - supposedly free country- your internet access is filtered and monitored due to fear of upsetting corporate profits.
    I just can't see the difference.

    1. Re:Bound to happen by Jackie_Chan_Fan · · Score: 2

      This is correct.

      Sadly it is the corporations that run the internet as well. They have had the power all along to crush the public and oppress the masses.

    2. Re:Bound to happen by lvxferre · · Score: 1

      I may be some kind of optimistic idiot, but I think it's not the internet who's fall, but the media businesses who doesn't adapt to it. Like the MAFIAA.

      The thing is, people aren't willing to give up free internet, even if it's to download a few pirated movies. Try to take it from them and they'll rage and go against you. The internet is going to stay very much as it's now IMO: always threatened, but even more threatening.

      --
      Nerdy news for your nerdy needs? http://www.soylentnews.org Soylent News is people!
    3. Re:Bound to happen by http · · Score: 1

      Actually, it is the fault of the internet. The decentralized broadcast communications it enables are anathema to mass media business. Take some time to read Mander's "Four Arguments for the Elimination of Television". It's a thick read, and not without flaws, but I've yet to see any serious flaw in its predictions based on observations current at the time, most of which are still true today. One of the most salient points it raised is that few technologies can be shown to be morally neutral.

      --
      If opportunity came disguised as temptation, one knock would be enough.
      3^2 * 67^1 * 977^1
    4. Re:Bound to happen by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "will never stop at trying to break it, or control it."

      and they can't! they can embrace it or kill it but nothing in th emiddle.

      if they and government kill it then that kills a lot of investments and a lot of business - wont happen!

      so they will embrace it in the end.

      until then we just have to try to keep people from getting hurt by the machine eating itself, so watch out for your brothers and sisters everyone.

      when a carnival ride goes haywire it is dangerous - just clear and be ready to treat the wounded.

    5. Re:Bound to happen by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      In places like china and the middle east your internet access is filtered and monitored due to fear of upsetting the government's rule.

      In this - supposedly free country- your internet access is filtered and monitored due to fear of upsetting corporate profits.

      I just can't see the difference.

      I can. One is called tyranny and the other is called fascism.

    6. Re:Bound to happen by rs79 · · Score: 1

      "The free, unmonitored, unfiltered, open internet we know today will be unrecognizable ten years from now,

      uucp had this working alright, it's the telco based tcp/ip that screwed us up.

      wimax mesh may fix that. and we really ought to dump tcp.

      a bell labs buddy of mine sent me this recently:

      40 years of netorking, redux

        uucico --> inetd --> bit torrent (P2P) -----> Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA)

      Toss out bloated TCP
      P2P UDP moves to the IP (160-bit) Header
      60-bit Locators in the IP Header (or One-Way IP with no Source only a
      Channel/Port)
      68-bit IDs in the IPv16 Header (320-bit) with up to 16 bytes of data

      160+320=480 bit DHT Keys for the SOA
      The Network IS the Registry

      --
      Need Mercedes parts ?
  30. TW Customer by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I think Time Warner is going to be getting a phone call here in the next few days.
    I'll be damned if I'm going to keep paying the same price and lose quality of service (you doing deep inspection of my packets is a degradation of service in my book)

  31. Better than RIAA lawsuits by cornicefire · · Score: 1

    Small fines are better than strange random law suits, right? The big law suits were full of silly numbers. At least these numbers do a better job of fitting the crime-- and I do think that downloading is a crime.

    1. Re:Better than RIAA lawsuits by deciduousness · · Score: 1

      I really hope when you say that "downloading is a crime" you don't include content that has already been purchased, free content, open-source content, moving content from one place to another, etc...

  32. Whatever... by Vladius · · Score: 1

    This is what proxies and VPNs are for.

  33. Pull the plug by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The day this plan goes into action i will be calling my local time warner office to let them know why i am discontinuing my service. Thank them cordially and wish them luck. I will go to a DSL provider that has some ethics if possible. If not i have a LAN setup that i can enjoy for a long time to come without the need for an ISP of any kind. Truth be told there will probably be many ways to make it practicly impossible for isp's to decipher your data, And if you ask me i welcome it. All information on the internet should be encrypted anyway. When that comes it wont matter.

    1. Re:Pull the plug by Jackie_Chan_Fan · · Score: 1

      Dont forget there are some Sat services too that now provide decent bandwidth up and down.

    2. Re:Pull the plug by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why would you wait? If enough people called now, there would be no, "the day this plan goes into action."

  34. Not too shocking... by Roogna · · Score: 1

    After all, right off the bat. Comcast and Time Warner -are- two of the big media companies and copyright holders now. Of course they're more than willing to police their ISP networks looking for copies of their content.

  35. Due process by Skapare · · Score: 1

    Where is the due process? Just who (MPAA,RIAA vs Comcast,Verizon,etc) is making the determination that there is a violation to be acted on? We already know MPAA and RIAA have been getting it wrong in a lot of cases. Would Comcast, Verizon, and other ISPs be in any better position to get it right?

    I hope they are not so stupid as to ass-u-me that torrent protocol connections automatically mean copyright infringement. What I download is GPL and other free license software.

    I suspect there will be more use of HTTPS and SSL, too.

    --
    now we need to go OSS in diesel cars
    1. Re:Due process by nurb432 · · Score: 1

      We are talking a corporate entity and their contracts for service to the private sector, not the legal system. Due process doesn't apply here.

      --
      ---- Booth was a patriot ----
    2. Re:Due process by rs79 · · Score: 1

      "I suspect there will be more use of HTTPS and SSL, too."

      http://vimeo.com/18279777 (ignore the first 15 minutes of chair shuffling)

      --
      Need Mercedes parts ?
  36. Re:Sold out by Obama by Jackie_Chan_Fan · · Score: 1

    Republicunts would sell you out too.

    Corporations run this world, your life is meaningless shit to them. They will have you killed if they want you out of the way.

  37. The end of Youtube. by Jackie_Chan_Fan · · Score: 1

    This will of course be the end of Youtube. You simply wont be able to upload anything. Even home movies with a copyrighted song in the background.

    1. Re:The end of Youtube. by ratboy666 · · Score: 1

      Your home movie is also copyrighted (fyi).

      --
      Just another "Cubible(sic) Joe" 2 17 3061
  38. the most effective antipiracy program ? by nurb432 · · Score: 1

    No, its the most effective bandwidth reclamation program, as it will drive people away from these carriers, and for those that stay the ISPs will use the program to get rid of their heaviest users by falsely claiming they are violating.. and cut them off.

    --
    ---- Booth was a patriot ----
  39. Entrapment - no by nurb432 · · Score: 1

    No, its not entrapment, but they are an enabler.

    --
    ---- Booth was a patriot ----
  40. Crap like this is why by Nyder · · Score: 2, Insightful

    my internet provider isn't a big media player.

    Fuck them and the lobbiest sluts the senators fucked to get us to this point.

    --
    Be seeing you...
    1. Re:Crap like this is why by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      my internet provider isn't a big media player.

      Fuck them and the lobbiest sluts the senators fucked to get us to this point.

      Ah yes... you mean the Obama administration and the Democrats, primarily. My old party. Buh Bye!

  41. LOL by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Guys...

    The MPAA and RIAA are threatening us since Napster.

    I think it is about time they stop threatening and shut the Internet down.

    Nobody needs it to buy their movies and music. :D

  42. Contracts by nurb432 · · Score: 1

    Look closely at your contract and you will find you are SOL.

    Even if it doesn't explicitly say they can monitor and take actions to "protect the integrity of their network" like most all do, they left a clause in where they can change the terms at any time. Your only recourse is to be able to cancel without penalty.

    --
    ---- Booth was a patriot ----
    1. Re:Contracts by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 4, Interesting

      "Even if it doesn't explicitly say they can monitor and take actions to "protect the integrity of their network" like most all do, they left a clause in where they can change the terms at any time."

      To the extent that they have such a clause, it's not a contract!

      Let me clarify that: generally speaking, especially in my area, where we have one of the major cable companies but no real competition, the contract in the first place is very one-sides, with the big powerful cable company on one side, and the consumer (who has few choices) on the other. Combine that with the fact that it's a "boiler-plate" contract -- that is to say, there is no real opportunity for negotiation -- and what you end up with is what the courts call a "contract of adhesion". Contracts of adhesions are WEAK contracts, and sometimes courts will not honor them at all.

      The reason for this is really the whole historic foundation of contract law, which goes back to common law beginning far earlier than this country even existed. Some things about contract law must be kept in mind. First, a contract is a VOLUNTARY agreement between 2 or more parties. Voluntary means without coercion, and it implies that you can negotiate your terms. After all, if the other party is stipulating all of the terms then it's not really very voluntary on your part, is it? It's "take it or leave it". Which is somewhat coercive, especially if you don't have other choices.

      The second big issue to keep in mind is that in order to have an agreement at all, you have to know what you are agreeing to IN ADVANCE. Otherwise you can't really be agreeing to it, can you? Informed consent is an essential part of a contract.

      So pardon all the theory. We know that in recent years many courts have tended to be corporate ass-kissers. Nevertheless, technically at least, a contract can't really say "we reserve the right to change the terms of this contract". Because then there is no informed consent, and to the extent there is no informed consent, there is no contract.

      I am well aware that as a practical matter, some judges might honor such a contract (the assholes!). On the other hand, some would not. But if they tried to do it to me in this case, they'd have a fight on their hands.

    2. Re:Contracts by VortexCortex · · Score: 1

      technically at least, a contract can't really say "we reserve the right to change the terms of this contract". Because then there is no informed consent, and to the extent there is no informed consent, there is no contract.

      I was following you, until you omitted this part:
      "By continuing to use our services after such a change in contract terms, you agree with said changes. You agree that you will be responsible for informing yourself of changes. The current contract can be viewed at any time by visiting this web page."

      So, you have the power to review the contract before every use of their service, and discontinue your use of the service. I'm not sure if this means viewing the contract itself is a "continued use", or if you must check the contract between each packet. Most such contracts have terms such as these, which put the onus on you for not remaining informed, and take your continued usage as implied consent.

      It's difficult to use the Internet at large without agreeing to several of these contracts per minute...

    3. Re:Contracts by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 1

      "I was following you, until you omitted this part:
      'By continuing to use our services after such a change in contract terms, you agree with said changes. You agree that you will be responsible for informing yourself of changes. The current contract can be viewed at any time by visiting this web page.'"

      I have never in my life seen such a clause in a contract. Definitely never one that claimed I had to "inform myself" of any changes.

      Don't misunderstand; I'm not claiming such a thing doesn't exist. But I haven't seen one.

      However, "continued usage as implied consent" is self-contradictory. It strongly implies that there simply is no contract... I am merely using their service from month-to-month on whatever the terms happen to be that month. That isn't a contract at all; it's a declaration that there isn't one.

    4. Re:Contracts by StikyPad · · Score: 1

      That's why another part of the contract undoubtedly says that you may cancel at any time if you disagree with the changes. As for your claim of coercion based on practical issues of limited alternate providers, courts have consistently found that limited (or inferior) choices are not the same as having no choice. This was one of the grounds for dismissing suits against no-fly lists -- you can just take a train!

    5. Re:Contracts by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 1

      "That's why another part of the contract undoubtedly says that you may cancel at any time if you disagree with the changes. "

      You are arguing against yourself. This is just another indication that it isn't a real contract! It fails the single biggest requirement for a contract: informed consent. In order to have a valid agreement, you have to be informed of the terms of the agreement before you can be said to have "agreed". After-the-fact consent is not even close to the same thing.

      It also fails another big test for the presence of a valid contract: negotiability. Regardless of whether you decide to agree after-the-fact, the terms are still being stipulated in a completely one-sided manner, which as I explained earlier is pretty much the definition of a "contract of adhesion".

      "As for your claim of coercion based on practical issues of limited alternate providers, courts have consistently found that limited (or inferior) choices are not the same as having no choice. This was one of the grounds for dismissing suits against no-fly lists -- you can just take a train!"

      So what's your point? I already clearly explained that my argument holds for people who don't have a reasonable choice about their internet providers. Like in my town, for instance. There is only one high-speed broadband company, other than satellite service, which is in a different category.

    6. Re:Contracts by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 1

      To maybe clarify what I mean:

      Don't make the common mistake of presuming that what a battery of corporate lawyers put in their "contract" is the same as "legally valid". They are often not even close to the same things. They put in their contract what they want you to believe, and what they hope they can convince a judge of if it comes to that. But it almost never comes to that (thanks to our current generation of American Sheep), so they get away with it.

  43. Re:Everyone, just cancel your service for 2 months by camperdave · · Score: 3, Funny

    No slashdot for 2months!? C'mon now!

    Why do you think your workplace has an internet connection? For business purposes?

    --
    When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
  44. Question About ISP's? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I currently have Time Warner Cable but I'd like to dump them after reading this....unfortunately, I live in a area where my options are VERY limited. Anybody happen to know if Windstream is part of this cartel of "participating ISP's" or not?

  45. Oh yeah? by earls · · Score: 0

    WELL MY GWAMPA SAYS that they got spinny sat-tell-lights that buzz around a flash and stuff and gots a special camera like that can scan a home top and tell if the person is masterbaiting and if they are zoom right down on in on ems and they can feed it directly into president HUSSEIN NOBAMA'S secret muslim volcano lair of socialism at any time and if he don't like what he sees you wind up on the no fly list. Swears on the bible it's true.

  46. Judge, Jury, and Executioner by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I find this whole method blatantly unconstitutional. These companies do not have the right to act as police agents nor penalise people without a trial. How are they going to guarantee that the complainant owns the copyright they say they do, that the item they claim was involved was what it was, that the person who ownes the connection was the one who comitted the act and that the use of said item's does not fall under the fair use exception. Keep in mind there is no appeal system in place. If this happens to me, I am going to sue the living crap out of the for violation of my basic civil rights. These actions touch on free speech, habeas corpus, right to jury, and contract law. The SOPA failed, they are going to be dead in the water the first time someone with deep pockets loses their Internet connection. On that same note, it has been proven time and time again that the various copyright cops have themselves pirated are they going to lose their connections. Keep in mind the White House itself used a font without permission so do they get cut off. This is a insane.

  47. EFF by andydread · · Score: 1

    I only know of the EFF that are active in fighting these assholes and many times winning. Fuckit I think i am going to donate another $100 to the EFF with a note to fight these bastards some more. Fight them in the courts and beat them at lobbying asshole Washington to pay attention to our rights or get voted the fuck out.

  48. I'd take the second choice too. by earls · · Score: 1

    Oh, lol, you were calling the parent an asshole!

  49. to hell with this--file charges by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Come July 12, I'm going to download something and wait for a letter.

    Then I'm going to tell their attorneys that they can settle out of court with me in exchange for dropping a criminal complaint of wiretapping.

    Just because they can do DPI doesn't mean they have the right. Even on their own network. Even the telco's only get to listen in on conversations temporarily and to troubleshoot specific network problems

  50. don't talk about (rfc 1036) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So how will Verizon detect what I'm doing on my encrypted connection to easy, thunder, or giga? Why use torrents if offshore servers let you connect via VPN? It's cheaper than one night out at the cinema with the wife and it is all-you-can-eat! With a VPN they can be a moving target... moving IPs, moving ports, moving countries, whatever. Torrents are dangerous. Maybe someday rfc 1036 will be revived with intelligent posts! I can dream.

  51. Re: You downloaded about 200 movies by TaoPhoenix · · Score: 3, Informative

    You are, in their eyes, The Problem.

    "Who said we get to download first and decide at our whim only that we like it?"

    --
    My first Journal Entry ever, in 8 years! http://slashdot.org/journal/365947/aphelion-scifi-fantasy-horror-poetry-webzine
  52. Common Carrier by hilather · · Score: 4, Interesting

    If the ISPs start policing copyright policy, would that not cost them their common carrier status and make them liable for all activity on their networks? Any subject matter experts on common carriers present?

    1. Re:Common Carrier by BradleyUffner · · Score: 1

      If the ISPs start policing copyright policy, would that not cost them their common carrier status and make them liable for all activity on their networks? Any subject matter experts on common carriers present?

      You can't lose something you never had. ISPs have never been common carriers.

    2. Re:Common Carrier by hilather · · Score: 1

      Yeah, I just read over the wikipedia article on common carriers after posting. Still, this must create some kind of dangerous precedent for ISPs. If they can do if for the MPAA/RIAA, then they could be forced in the future to do it for others, no?

    3. Re:Common Carrier by Holi · · Score: 1

      I thought we were done with that rumor. ISP's are not common carriers, they never have been or wanted to be. It's why the DMCA has the Safe Harbor provision.

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
    4. Re:Common Carrier by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You may think that, but the fact is the current administration is bought and paid for by the MAFFIA, just take a look at the DOJ almost all of them worked for the MAFFIA prior to there jobs there and there alliance is only to the MAFFIA and not to the citizens of this country.

    5. Re:Common Carrier by lanner · · Score: 1

      Someone mod this up since I can not.

    6. Re:Common Carrier by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's simple: they're not common carriers...and never have been.

    7. Re:Common Carrier by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Every time a news post like this comes up, someone posts about common carrier status.

      Here's the short version: Common Carrier status is only applied/relevant to telephone networks. Not Internet.

    8. Re:Common Carrier by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      U.S. ISPs have not been classified as common carriers for years.

    9. Re:Common Carrier by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Doesn't matter, ISP's are not common carriers.

    10. Re:Common Carrier by webheaded · · Score: 1

      Why do people keep posting this? It has been explained a thousand times here on Slashdot in topics like this. Every. Single. Time. They do not have common carrier status because this isn't a phone service. It would be nice if they did, but they don't. Fact of the matter is that they 0 fucks to give.

      They might change their tune when the ISPs that aren't owned by a media company (strange coincidence, that one) realize they're losing customers. Or maybe not (depends on who much money the *AA's are giving them). Maybe they'll just keep hamstringing it along and all this is really just a consolidation of existing annoyances processes with a bit of escalation. Up until now, they mostly just emailed you. I have to think that cutting off people's internet is not good for business and hope that they'll eventually tell the *AA where they can take it and put it.

      I can't help but think this is probably illegal somehow but that it won't matter. That would require the government who is bought off by Hollywood to actually prosecute them for it and I'd be willing to bet that they actually had a hand in this.

      --
      "Those who would sacrifice essential liberties for a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - BenF
  53. SPAM / Virus monitoring by krbvroc1 · · Score: 1

    If only the ISPs would spend some effort of notifying customers who are infected with viruses and are sending out spam and such. Funny that they cannot bother to deal with that, but can be the RIAA/MPAA police.

  54. Just what I needed by lightknight · · Score: 1

    Just what I needed to convince me to move out of this country.

    --
    I am John Hurt.
  55. Obvious solution, enforce our own copyrights by yottalove · · Score: 1

    Remember in the United States you have a copyright for every new expression you utter at the moment of fixing in a medium -- no registration is required. If everyone would complain official to their ISP when someone else violates any of their copyrighted expressions, you would soon see the ISPs not enforcing this idiotic agreement. Remember 'fair use" is an affirmative defense, so even if the copyrighted expression seems de minimus, that is not for the the copyright holder or the ISP to decide.

  56. open WiFi of Starbucks: download big stuff. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This got me thinking... why not just create your own Network in your neighborhood to use WiFi-cascading and then just have your own DNS and tell everyone to "put-out" some public shares like an old trade guild Order and such?

  57. Where's the full list of ISPs? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Why does nobody have the full list of ISPs doing this? Every single article I can find is fucking worthless.

  58. Lynch mobs are illegal; shouldn't this be? by mykos · · Score: 1

    I thought that extra-judicial punishment was illegal in the US. Shows what I know.

  59. Encryption by jonfr · · Score: 1

    Move to an top level encrypted torrent programs. That includes secure torrent files (if they do not exist, go out and invent them!). It might not be possible to hide your IP. But it is possible to encrypt the torrent and other p2p traffic with an high level encryption. If the current RSA-4096 bit encryption is not good enough. Go and invent an better one.

    The pure greed of MPAA and RIAA is an shame to the creative industry. As in the end most artist do get little for the work while the companies them self make all the profit. In fact, MPAA has never made so good profits. Yet they claim piracy is damaging them. But that claim is not supported by any evidence and is therefor an lie.

    On MPAA profits for 2011, http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2011/02/piracy-once-again-fails-to-get-in-way-of-record-box-office.ars
    Even RIAA admits that P2P is not only to blame for drop in cd-sales, http://www.zeropaid.com/news/91984/riaa-admits-p2p-not-solely-to-blame-for-decreased-music-sales/

    1. Re:Encryption by jonfr · · Score: 1

      This is for the year 2010, not 2011 for MPAA. I am sorry for the mistake.

  60. I would switch if... by Lohrno · · Score: 1

    I would switch ISPs if I ever got a notice like that. If they are inspecting my traffic, what else are they inspecting?

  61. the only effective anti-piracy measure by Dan667 · · Score: 1

    will be a change in the riaa and mpaa business models that adapts to the current business environment. They can piss in the wind all they want, I guess they like wearing it.

  62. Rights of the copyright owners by gmuslera · · Score: 1

    See? Slavers have rights too! Why don't you care about them?

  63. Trading Service by DanielRavenNest · · Score: 1

    Swap DVD's and loaded USB drives. You can borrow as much media as you contribute to the pool, in GB.

    1. Re:Trading Service by Samantha+Wright · · Score: 1

      Excellent! Then I shall encode all of my movies with raw images and PCM audio.

      --
      Bio questions? Ask me to start a Q&A journal. Computer analogies available for most topics!
  64. self-destruction by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    sexual rejection = inadequacy which leads to self-destruction... this isn't even science, but rather fundamentals.

  65. Firing their own customers to help other companies by 0111+1110 · · Score: 1

    So these morons are really stupid enough to fire 1/3 to 1/2 of their customer base just to make the media cunts happy? I pay over $100 / month for my internet service. If my ISP really enforces this I am going to look into other options for the cheapest possible internet connection.

    Although I think there is a local ISP who is not in on this stupid deal. I just checked and they now have even faster connections than my ISP. I may have to just switch to them when this goes into effect and tell them exactly why they are losing me as a customer.

    The first step is to start using private trackers. And the smaller the better. Invites for the best ones are going to become even more like gold dust. The second step is to look into fast anonymous VPNs preferably based outside the US.

    This must be the ultimate wet dream of the MAFIA. If the ISPs actually enforce this I think I may actually have to start boycotting them by not buying any more blu-rays or music CDs. unless they are used and even that may not be a great idea.

    --
    Quite an experience to live in fear, isn't it? That's what it is to be a slave.
  66. Re: You downloaded about 200 movies by lexsird · · Score: 2

    Please sir, may I have some more gruel?

    --
    Take the Red Pill.
  67. Yes, once the public gets back class-consciousness by Burz · · Score: 1

    and its backbone. With any luck, when it happens, the politicians won't have a chance to play musical-chairs again with common carrier/service classifications.

  68. um, massive bandwidth cuts? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The EXCHANGE is obvious! MASSIVE cuts in bandwidth! Who do you think uses the most bandwidth? And Netflix will be next, there's nothing Verizon wants more than to replace Netflix with "on demand."

    http://www.avclub.com/articles/netflix-responsible-for-about-onethird-of-all-inte,56270/

  69. Parent is giving bad advice: Do not follow it. by Burz · · Score: 1

    Merely turning on encryption doesn't get you anonymity.

    1. Re:Parent is giving bad advice: Do not follow it. by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1

      True. There's no cert authority or hardcoded key (would be worthless) for torrents, so they can be MITMed, and encryption doesn't do anything about swarm monitoring. What's needed is torrents over darknets, such as i2p which is ideal for this purpose.

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
  70. Re: You downloaded about 200 movies by lightknight · · Score: 1

    The same people who are increasingly unhappy that our congress critters are willing to go down on any, and I mean any, lobbyist who accidentally pocket dials their phone number. And I am someone who, despite objections from my friends, supports Intellectual Property -> this copyright law stuff, where it's valid for the lifetime of the creator plus 70 years, has got to be fixed. I really, really need it explained to me why copyright is receiving more powerful protection THAN PATENTS.

    The only thing that tells me is that our society has stopped inventing sh*t, and just wants to continue profiting from the previous generation from now until the end of time.

    --
    I am John Hurt.
  71. That's progress for you! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    How hopey-changey!

  72. Prediction: by kheldan · · Score: 1

    No significant increase in revenues will result from this bullshit -- and they'll claim that this measure "wasn't effective enough", cite more bullshit made-up statistics about piracy, and try to leverage even more of the same sort of bullshit.

    --
    Are YOU using the TOOL, or is the TOOL using YOU? Think about it!
  73. The things people do... by AtomicSymphonic · · Score: 0

    ...to get free stuff.

    (TL;DR: If you don't have the cash, you can't buy it. Period.)

    Alright, what follows this sentence will probably get me modded into the negatives, but I have the right to free speech, so I'm going type out my opinion and leave it be...

    *sigh* Here it goes... rant/

    According to my personal ethics (which I realize is not shared with others), if you can't pay for it, you CANNOT own/use/view/listen/read (to) the content.

    I know there are those like me out there that will buy the real thing and not make excuses such as "try before you buy" (which is reasonable, but not always practical for content creators), "DRM sucks" (It does work, it may annoy the hell out of you, but I've personally never had problems with DRM), "It costs too much", etc.

    But there are several out there that use all of the above excuses to cover their true intentions for pirating: They don't want to pay for it. Or they do it because they can.

    If you find some paid content on the internet that's easily downloaded that's not done through some semi-obscure or really obscure method (torrenting is not mainstream, no matter how you spin it. I doubt those using Limewire years ago knew it was P2P and legally dubious...), do yourself a favor and don't download it. Support the official release, even if there is no "demo" available. Sometimes you just gotta swallow the content and the fact that your money is gone and either like it or don't. That's how reality works most of the time. Support even the big Hollywood releases!........../rant

    Alright, thanks for your time in reading my opinion. Commence downmodding.

  74. Fuck the U.S.A. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Seriously, fuck you guys. End yourselves and leave none behind. You will not be missed.

    with no Love,
          Canada

  75. Needs more... by Greyfox · · Score: 1

    Opportunistic Encryption. I keep expecting there to be a driver for everyone to encrypt their traffic. So far, not happening very much. It's still vulnerable to a man in the middle attack, but I don't think the consumer-grade ISPs are quite at the point of setting that sort of thing up yet.

    --

    I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?

  76. Proposal: Make Noise! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Okay, 6 billion can play that game...

    From now on, people, EVERY file, EVERY picture, EVERY bit of data you store or send on the net will be renamed to a copyrighted work. "DSC-1012.JPG" now becomes "TrueGrit.JPG". "BoringCollegeLecture.mp3" now becomes "BabbaOReilly.mp3". "AmoebaReproduction.mov" becomes "CowboysAliens.mov".

    All this "noise" will have the ISPs sifting through so much of it, that they'll either give up trying, or lose so much actual material in the process, they'll have to give up.

    Assholes.

  77. Ah, I'm glad I live on the eurasian plate by __aancvu2993 · · Score: 1

    And gentlemen, you are so funny: "ooohh booh hoo where are the ethical ISPs??? ohhh runs around ohhh *faints*"

    I have four words for ya: I love these darknets YEEEAAHHHH

    and developers :)

    That is all.

  78. Re:Firing their own customers to help other compan by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You still buy from these "people"? How quaint. Put your money where your mouth is and just don't touch their junk.

  79. Re: You downloaded about 200 movies by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

    This is the crux of the problem. Consumers don't want to waste money one stuff they don't enjoy. Big media is okay with letting people have stuff for "free" as long as they get some money from advertising when it's shown on TV or played on the radio. Consumers don't see much difference between ad-supported-free and P2P-free.

    --
    const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
    SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
  80. My reply by shiftless · · Score: 0

    I can recall receiving only one email about downloading pirated content, on a Comcast business account. I sent it back and said if you want to continue receiving money from me every month then you will never send me another email like this again.

    Haven't ever seen one again, though I've since changed ISPs.

  81. Gate? by techstar25 · · Score: 1

    "Since ISPs are the Internet's gatekeepers". That's the problem. There is no gate. You can't tell us they are the gatekeepers when there is no gate to being with. The internet doesn't work that way, although these morons at the ISPs seem to think it does.

  82. Veiled opportunity here, folks... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ..Imagine if we got lucky and the ISP's simply reported/disallowed any **AA material going through their space. Every song, every video, all suspect. Shut them off at the knees, broke within a month. iTunes to the early demise it deserves. I can dream.

  83. Dumb X 2 by glorybe · · Score: 1

    The ISPs have just screwed themselves. Now an offended party will be able to sue under the claim that an ISP failed to protect. One ISP will be compared to another and those that police less will be sued. So we will have an expense in policing and a legal hazard hanging over the head of every ISP. So now that we understand the first huge problem this creates we can view the second huge problem. People intent on violating copyright laws and the like will become familiar with easy to use dark or encrypted distribution which ISPs can not control. That puts a lot of power in the hands of people that normally could not use good encryption with ease. So we will see a host of crimes that are out of view of all police agencies and either too expensive or just impossible to penetrate. Traffic in child pornography, smuggling or even trafficking in human beings could all increase due to this nonsense from the ISPs. It has long been established that if an ISP provides no censorship at all then there is no liability for defective censorship. They have really screwed up this time.

  84. The Troll Hunter by DarthVain · · Score: 1

    Great movie. Also I smile while reading slashdot and a passage reminds me of a particular quote (which you have to hear to get it):

    "TROOOOOLLLLLL!!!"

    1. Re:The Troll Hunter by oldmac31310 · · Score: 1

      Throll pish!

      --
      http://www.acetonestudio.com
  85. Sorry but no by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I tried Japanese films for a while, but the pixellate out all the good stuff.

  86. Re: You downloaded about 200 movies by bistromath007 · · Score: 1

    P2P-free introduces the possibility of finding things I like instead of the advertisers. When somebody monetizes a P2P service effectively, I'll consider paying for shit. Until then, big content got paid. Fuck 'em if they want to get paid twice.

  87. USENET! by riondluz · · Score: 1

    Usenet, Usenet, Usenet, Usenet, Usenet, Usenet...

    Damn, I've been wanting to say that for 20 years!

    Private Servers, encrypted, with limited newsgroups, Dnews-like.

    Many have said that Usenet (i said it again) is the very best distributed model out there. Time to tweak and resurrect it, IMO

    --
    resist propaganda
  88. Good, cheap internet will be enough! by Tyr07 · · Score: 1

    Well, if I don't need to download any music, tv or anything else, and every service has tons of commercials like youtube etc, then I really don't need tons of bandwidth or transfer cap.

    Good - I can get that cheap internet, and I hope everyone does, cutting their profits effectively in half.

  89. The first case to go to trial... by AnalogDiehard · · Score: 1

    ...will fail because this violates wiretap laws.

    I am officially boycotting Hollywood, including their ISP cronies who happen to be affiliated with Hollywood. I refuse to patronize any business that sidesteps the legal process and shifts the financial burden of copyright infringement detection to others.

    --
    Eternity: will that be smoking, or non-smoking? I Corinthians 6:9-10
  90. !st Amendment by Sasha-Whitefur · · Score: 1

    More censorship. It is still censorship, even if the government doesn't do it. Watch unfair rates skyrocket, to pay for it.

  91. Re: Copyright vs. patents by b4dc0d3r · · Score: 1

    Because entertainment is how sheeple are distracted from actual news. The Friday afternoon bombshell leak, which goes unreported or unnoticed because by Monday morning some celebrity got arrested or awarded for something, or died, and that takes over the airwaves.

    I don't believe this myself, but it's as good a theory as any.

    The real answer lies in some of the decisions around copyright and ACTA/SOPA/PIPA. Patents protect things that the government wants to be public domain for economic reasons, allowing business to profit from a temporary monopoly followed by a boon in generics. Extending copyright means increased export of copyright goods, it's a simple economic valuation. So I can sum it up in two words:

    trade deficit

    Reduce buying of cheap Chinese goods, and I guarantee you the support for long copyright will wane among national level politicians. Include oil imports as well (even if we are a net exporter we can still balance trade by reducing imports), and you have no incentive to sustain the long copyright.

  92. Copyright math... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I love this

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZadCj8O1-0

  93. TV download by deciduousness · · Score: 1

    Most of the content that I download is TV shows that I already pay for, I just don't want to watch them at the times that they air. Most of them are also not "On-Demand". I certainly don't want to watch them in some crappy web-based format that buffers every 10 seconds for 800x600 resolution. That leaves downloading them in High-def. I can get them in under 10 minutes and watch them whenever I want.

  94. Re: You downloaded about 200 movies by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Also, Big Media is happy to sell you on a movie, album, or other kind of media, but has no qualms about whether or not it will actually meet your expectations.

    For example, a movie with a fake trailers that don't accurately describe the movie and albums with mostly bad songs and a few good songs that get airplay.

    Also, you might as well just watch trailers of modern cinema these days: you'll see all the cool explosions without the terrible plots or nonsensical premises.

  95. Is it truely done for the sake of copyright? by Freeman-Jo · · Score: 1

    I'm an amatuer photographer, how can I contact those ISP to watch for my copyrighted photos? What about other hundred thousand other artists whose name you never heard of, are the ISP gonna protect them too? Or is it just that our privacy isn't worth as much as those big name entertainment company greedy profit?

    --
    -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- If picture worth a thousand words, how many megapixels is it? -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
  96. So.. just what.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    .. so, just what do they GET out of this, exactly? Is this a voluntary agreement for the ISPs? By policing, they can only lose customers. Are they being paid to find pirates, or no?

  97. Stop stealing and you won't have to worry about by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    All this talk about bit torrents and folks worrying if they are gonna get in trouble etc. While I do think its an infringement on mine or any one else s privacy to be spying on us like the story implies, I have to say this : stop down loading illegally and you won't have to worry about it. Look at it like this if you set up a lemonade stand and a glass of lemonade was 10 cents and it cost you 5 cents to make it and then people figured out a way to steal your lemonade one glass at a time you'd be pissed too. And as for the guy who downloaded 200 movies and didn't like any of them. I hope your the first one arrested There are to many sites that offer legally free movies TV and music for any one to have to illegally download anything! Hell you want free music go to indiecharts.com or reverbnation.com for starters all kinds of free music you can listen to without breaking the law. Or maybe that's the point you do it because you can, all though I get the distinct impression a lot of you on here are doing it because your to dam cheap to pay for anything. I don't care what your excuse is stealing is stealing No matter how you look at it.

  98. What you can do by akentrepreneur · · Score: 1

    You can prevent ISP's from spying on your traffic by using an encrypted tunnel such as hushtunnel.com. Most proxies available are SSL based and as such are prone to trusted man in the middle attacks. Hush Tunnel uses SSH and is the easiest way to protect your online privacy, encrypting and anonymizing your internet traffic with a single click.

  99. the speed is never as good by nurb432 · · Score: 1

    So the choices are either go slower or go home basically.. I will chose go slow.

    For those of us that still remember 300baud dial-up, people today really don't know hat 'going slow' is.

    But if *everyone* encrypts, i predict that they will just lower the bandwidth caps for 'non blessed data' ( so you can still stream THEIR content ) to make it impractical to share, especially in a torrent fashion where you share to large groups of people, not just your close friends. ( and it will totally destroy things like FreeNet )

    --
    ---- Booth was a patriot ----
  100. If only... by vanyel · · Score: 1

    ...one could wave a magic wand and make it impossible to copy "illegally" for a month. And then watch the revenues go *down*...

  101. The entertainment industry as a whole by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    To anyone who actually downloads or purchases music or movies on a regular basis: THANKS for helping to promote overregulation of the Internet, copious amounts of advertising, and lining the pockets of venues and record companies instead of the hard working artists who actually deserve compensation for your "entertainment" -- I really appreciate your "personal" and "unique" connection to your music collection and how it controls your whole frame of thought. Because you're entitled to being entertained after all.