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US ISPs Delay Rollout of "Six Strikes" Copyright Enforcement Framework

zacharye writes with an excerpt from BGR: "The new 'six strikes' anti-piracy policy soon to be implemented by a number of major Internet service providers in the United States will reportedly stumble out of the gate. The policy, which is set to be adopted by Comcast, Cablevision, Verizon, Time Warner Cable, and other ISPs, will see action taken against users caught downloading pirated files in six steps, ultimately resulting in bandwidth throttling or even service suspensions. The system responsible for managing the new policy may not be ready on schedule, however, and the targeted launch date of July 12th may slip back as a result..."

12 of 216 comments (clear)

  1. Thanks for reminding me... by Cornwallis · · Score: 4, Informative

    why I'm not going to switch our company Internet access to Comcast.

    1. Re:Thanks for reminding me... by AngryDeuce · · Score: 4, Informative

      I was wondering why I stayed with Charter recently, until I realized that I had no fucking choice unless I wanted to downgrade to shitty 7 meg DSL.

      These guys better be hoping and praying (and dumping a metric shit-ton of money on our reps) that they never lose their local monopolies, because once they open up the lines like they did with long distance telephone service in the 90's they're going to see their enormous profits fucking evaporate overnight as customers give these guys the finger and go with someone that isn't gouging the fuck out of them.

    2. Re:Thanks for reminding me... by neokushan · · Score: 4, Insightful

      You don't have to be affected by someone's ideals in order to be against them. I wouldn't make friends with someone who went out to beat up people of a certain skin colour, even though I'm not liable to be one of his "targets".
      Why should it be any different for companies?

      --
      +1 IDisagreeSoHeMustBeATrollOrAnAstroturferOrAShill
  2. A great solution for oversubscribed ISPs by GeneralTurgidson · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Throttle everyone on the basis of piracy! No need for network expansions! The shareholders will go wild!

    1. Re:A great solution for oversubscribed ISPs by AngryDeuce · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Wasn't the bulk of the fiber backbone they all plug into paid for by taxpayers in the 90's during the Dot Com bubble? Maybe the people should be charging them similar fees for the bandwidth running along those pipes that they charge their end users...

  3. Users "caught" downloading? by AngryDeuce · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Don't they mean users "accused" of downloading? As it seems to me, all that is required is an accusation by some asshole MAFIAA goon. It's not like they actually prove their accusations or anything.

  4. Bye Bye free Wirless at Starbucks, McDonalds.... by realsilly · · Score: 5, Insightful

    and all of those other things. People will go where they can't be traced as easily and download all that they can, then local establishments will take the hit, and then when all those options are gone, some unsuspecting family will be hit next because I didn't configure their wireless connection to be secured.

    I don't agree with pirating, but I feel this is also just going to backfire.

    --
    Life takes interesting turns, but the most interest is when you're off the beaten path.
  5. How will they do it? Flogging a dead horse? by bogaboga · · Score: 5, Informative

    Who are they hoodwinking? Just recently, a US judge ruled that you cannot identify a "pirate" using an IP address. They appear to be preparing to flog a dead horse, right?

  6. "Illegal downloading" Again! by ratboy666 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    There ain't no such thing.

    Everything on the Internet is Copyrighted (or public domain)...

    There may be illegal sharing. Or making available. Just not downloading.

    Of course the "Industry" wants to plant a meme -- "illegal downloading".

    Since there is no such thing (as illegal downloading(*)), usenet groups have been cut first (because usenet clients do NOT upload as they download). Peer-to-peer systems upload from clients, which is why they got hit.

    MegaUpload? A shot across the bow -- and the service ended up being legal.

    Advice: Turn off sharing in your bittorrent client, unless you are sure that you can distribute the material.

    Or fetch the material from usenet, ftp, or other "one-way" means. Do not post the material on Web Sites, ftp servers or usenet -- do not make it available for download.

    Unless you live somewhere more enlightened, of course (Personal Copy Exemption in Canada, for example).

    (*) Except for specific material, child porn, hate literature, other material, depending on venue.

    --
    Just another "Cubible(sic) Joe" 2 17 3061
    1. Re:"Illegal downloading" Again! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Turn off sharing in your bittorrent client, unless you are sure that you can distribute the material.

      Or fetch the material from usenet, ftp, or other "one-way" means.

      Or torrent anonymously via I2P. The selection isn't as good, but it will be if more people start using it before their sixth strike.

  7. More likely... by betterunixthanunix · · Score: 4, Insightful
    People will start using more encryption and private filesharing networks to get their media. I already see it happening at universities, where students who are accused of downloading can face punishments without any sort of a trial. Eventually you will see people moving to things like Freenet.

    There are two interpretations:
    1. Old businesses die in the face of new technology -- and good riddance to bad rubbish.
    2. The MPAA continues to profit, because downloaders are also their best customers.
    --
    Palm trees and 8
  8. Re:Bye Bye free Wirless at Starbucks, McDonalds... by bzipitidoo · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Haven't you realized that's what they want? To shut down the Internet?

    They don't say it outright, but they very much wish it was 1985 for the rest of us, when less than half the population had a home computer, and the hard drive, if present, was 20M, mp3 didn't exist yet and even if it had the hardware of those days couldn't decode it in real time, and what little data exchange there was happened over 1200 bit/s modems on local BBSes, a few of which participated in FidoNet. Music piracy was possible but limited and inconvenient, with the cassette tape being the best way. They themselves are quite happy to reap the benefits of modern technology, they just don't like the rest of us being able to do so too.

    Don't agree with pirating? Futile, and dated of you. Might as well act disapproving of skirts above the ankle, and shocked over the licentiousness of 60's Rock and Roll. What do you think when you run into some senior who is still upset over Elvis the Pelvis? Who thinks the young are all depraved and they and the nation are going to Hell because of the music they listen to and their general disrespect for the traditions that made the country great. You roll your eyes at their cluelessness, that's what. And you ignore them. Dismiss them as a typical "get off my lawn" senior. No use talking to them.

    Sharing is here to stay. No amount of force or cajoling will put this genie back in the bottle. Today, you still have lots of company. You and people of similar mind are why ISPs dare to even think of giving in to Big Media to engage in such idiocy as these 3 or 6 strikes efforts. You disagree with the means, but not the goal. That's enough of a green light for them. Often, means and ends cannot be so easily separated. 20 or 30 or 50 years from now, such attitudes will look utterly ridiculous to most everyone, like asking for sunshine without the heat and acting as if that's such a perfectly reasonable expectation that it need not be spoken aloud because that would be insulting to others' intelligence. "You know, something beggable but not leprosy, which is a pain in the ass to be blunt and excuse my French, sir." If you want to stay relevant, you'll have to accept piracy.

    --
    Intellectual Property is a monopolistic, selfish, and defective concept. It is "tyranny over the mind of man"