EFFector Vol. 16, No. 23 September 8, 2003
A Publication of the Electronic Frontier Foundation ISSN 1062-9424
In the 262nd Issue of EFFector:
- Action Alert: Help Broaden the World IP Debate!
- Recording Industry Announces Lawsuits Against Music Sharers
- D.C.-Area EFFector Readers: European Cybercrime Talk Tomorrow
- EFF Needs a Volunteer Intern Coordinator
- Deep Links (17): Aiming at Pornography to Hit Music Piracy
- Staff Calendar: 9.6-11.03 Cindy Cohn at Ars Electronica in Austria
- Administrivia
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Action Alert: Help Broaden the World IP Debate!
The cost of software, availability of medicine and production of valuable scientific knowledge are, in large part, determined by the policies of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Today, WIPO focuses on restrictive intellectual property regimes, but it doesn't have to be that way tomorrow. WIPO is holding a budget meeting in Geneva from September 8- 10, where it will decide whether or not to schedule increased discussions of open and collaborative development models (OCDM). OCDM includes open source software like Linux and collaborative scientific endeavors like the Human Genome Project - valuable initiatives that benefit the public. WIPO expressed support for such a discussion, but backed off when the U.S. Patent and Trade Office (USPTO) warned it away. Tell the USPTO to reconsider its misguided stance and support public information resources throughout the world!
Links:
- Take Action (Note: International residents are also encouraged to take this action)
- Become an EFF Member today
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Recording Industry Announces Lawsuits Against Music Sharers
Electronic Frontier Foundation Warning on "Amnesty" Program
San Francisco - The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) today filed 261 lawsuits against people who allegedly shared copyrighted music online. The RIAA announced plans to sue more file-sharers and introduced an "amnesty" program available only to file-sharers who the RIAA has not yet identified or sued.
The lawsuits come in the wake of more than 1600 subpoenas the RIAA filed in recent weeks, seeking the identities of file-sharers who allegedly downloaded a "substantial amount" of copyrighted works. The RIAA claims that the music fans have engaged in illegal direct copyright infringement.
"More lawsuits is not the answer. Does anyone think that suing 60 million American file-sharers is going to motivate them to buy more CDs?" said EFF Staff Attorney Wendy Seltzer. "File sharing networks represent the greatest library of music in history, and music fans would be happy to pay for access to it, if only the recording industry would let them."
Under the amnesty program, dubbed the "Clean Slate Program," the RIAA claims files-sharers can avoid lawsuits if they sign a declaration pledging that they will delete all copyrighted music files from their hard drives and mp3 players and never again share or download music illegally. The amnesty program is only available to people who the RIAA has not yet sued or subpoenaed.
"The RIAA has offered 'sham-nesty,' not amnesty, for those sharing music online," explained EFF Staff Attorney Jason Schultz. "The recording industry wants file-sharers to confess guilt, while leaving these music fans vulnerable to lawsuits from record companies and music publishers and bands like Metallica that control independent music rights."
The Electronic Frontier Foundation has maintained that the recording industry should offer file-sharers a real amnesty program, for example, an opportunity to pay a reasonable monthly fee for to access the music they love using file-sharing software.
Links:
- For this Release
- EFF's Analysis of the RIAA "Amnesty" Program
- EFF Let the Music Play Campaign
- How Not to Get Sued by the RIAA
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D.C.-Area EFFector Readers: European Cybercrime Talk Tomorrow
On Tuesday, September 9, there will be a talk on problems with the Council of Europe CyberCrime Convention (CCC) in Washington, D.C. This treaty, which the United States has signed, could lead to huge changes in US and international criminal law and procedure. Professor Bert-Jaap Koops, author of the WWW Crypto Law Survey, will discuss significant problems with the treaty. Prof. Koops' talk is free and open to the public.
Details:
Date: Sept 9, 6:15 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Location: 108 Phillips Hall (22nd and Eye St., NW, Washington DC)
Links:
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EFF Needs a Volunteer Intern Coordinator
We're looking for a volunteer who can coordinate and organize our volunteer and intern program. Responsibilities include advertising internships in schools and on websites, processing applications through a task management application, setting up interviews, attending volunteer meetings in San Francisco, and coordinating interns and volunteers once accepted.
We are looking for a detail oriented person with basic+ computer skills and great "people" skills who can commit at least 10 hours a week for a period of six months. Internships are unpaid but school credit may be available. You must live in the Bay Area to apply.
Links:
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Deep Links
Deep Links features noteworthy news items from around the Internet.
- Aiming at Pornography to Hit Music Piracy
The recording industry is just awfully concerned about displaying women and teenagers as hyper-sexualized objects, didn't you hear? Does that mean that Britney, Christina and the Olsen Twins are free to go back to high school next week? - Poverty and Privacy: Tracking the Homeless
The Department of Housing and Urban Development is planning to build "Homeless Management Information Systems." Since when do you need a lease to have privacy rights? - RIAA Paperwork: Form UR-SCROO D
Now that's what we call amnesty. - Face Recognition: Another One Bites the Dust
Logan International Airport's camera system failed 96 of its 249 attempts to identify volunteer test subjects over the last year (a cool 39% failure rate). - eBay Pulls iTunes Auction
George Hotelling's auction of downloaded music runs afoul of the improperly-capitalized duo. - NBC Announces Law and Order: RIAA Series
Fresh from the Bureau of Almost Too Real to Be Funny. - Think Your Next Vote Will Be Counted Correctly? Get it in Writing
Paper trails are good for democracy, Wired reports. - EMI Loses Suit in France for Selling Defective CDs
Woman successfully recovers the cost of a "copy protected" disc that wouldn't play in her car stereo, judge tells record label not to sell defective CDs. - It's 2003: Do You Know Where Your Civil Liberties Are?
The Arlington, VA chapter of Amnesty International is holding educational forums on Patriot Act I and II. A grassroots answer to Ashcroft's "Victory Tour?" - BoycottDelta.com's Scannell Back Again
This time he's taking on all of CAPPS II. - Consumers File Racketeering Suit Against DirecTV
"These are three guys who had nothing to do with any satellite piracy, extorted into paying the money," says California lawyer Jeffrey Wilens. - Dutch Court Rejects Scientologist Claims
Free speech trumps copyright after a seven year fight. - Judge Rules in DMCA/Garage Door Case
A garage door maker can't use copyright law to block competitors from making universal remotes. - Doctors Without Borders on the Free Trade Area of the Americas Negotiations
The FTAA is bad on technology and copyright, and it will also make medicine more expensive throughout the Americas. - Porn Filters in Practice
Fairbanks, Alaska is considering a proposal to filter the Internet in its public libraries. This reporter thinks it's a bad idea. - More Debate on P2P
OpenDemocracy has a feisty debate raging on the future of P2P. - Travel Agent on CAPPS II
Edward Hasbrouck is a travel agent with a lot of concerns about the privacy of travel data. - Handicaps in CAPPS: Computerized Passenger Screening Is Not so Easy
Wendy Grossman talks about the technical difficulties of CAPPS II in the September 2003 issue of Scientific American.
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Staff Calendar
For a complete listing of EFF speaking engagements (with locations and times), please visit our online calendar.- September 6-11 - Cindy Cohn at Ars Electronica Conference in Linz, Austria
- Thursday, September 11 - Kevin Bankston at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco (6:30 PM - 7:30 PM) "Patriot Act Panel: A Closer Look at the Patriot Act - Is It Constitutional?"
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Administrivia
EFFector is published by:
The Electronic Frontier Foundation
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Editor:
Ren Bucholz, Activist
ren@eff.org
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