Posts Tagged ‘freedom’

Google, Facebook, ‘3 strikes’ concerns

// March 5th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view P2P | Advertising:- The Great Unwashed, that’s you and me, have been “expressing grave concerns” about the Hollywood-cum-Big Music ACTA and Three Strikes scams ever since they were first mooted. The lamescream press corpse ignores us. Yet let online advertising companies Fa$ebook and Google do the same and it’s instant  news. Our concerns centre on personal and data privacy — on keeping it out of the hands of the likes of Fa$ebook and Google . Theirs centre on improving their bottom lines on behalf of their owners and shareholders which, to an extent, means somehow mining peoples’ personal and private data, whether they like it or not and, it’s often said, whether they know it or not. “Lib Dem peers are seeking to amend the Digital Economy Bill to allow site blocking for copyright infringement”, p2pnet quoted Open Rights Group ’s Jim Killock as saying at the beginning of the week, stating, “This could lead to unwanted blocking of sites accused of copyright infringement, including sites like Youtube, and a massive chilling effect as any site with user generated content could easily fall foul of provisions like this.” The ISPA (Internet Service Providers Association) joined in saying it was “outraged” by the House of Lords decision to approve Amendment 120A to the UK Digital Economy Bill which would allow the High Court to grant an injunction calling for ISPs to block sites with a “substantial proportion” of content alleged to infringe copyrights. “This would open the door to a massive imbalance of power in favour of large copyright holding companies,” Killock warned in the Telegraph . Individuals and small businesses “would be open to massive ‘copyright attacks’ that could shut them down, just by the threat of action”, he stated. “Whilst we appreciate the concern of opposition front benches to clause 17, we regret that this amendment has been hastily constructed and rushed through at report stage without due consideration of the implications or consultation with the interested parties that would be affected” said ISPA. Now, “The government has been defeated in the House of Lords over measures to tackle online piracy after opponents said the plans could hamper digital innovation”, says the BBC . “Ministers want the power to change laws on online copyright in future without the need for further legislation”, says the story. However, “The Lords said the “blanket nature” of the clause was “objectionable”. But “their chosen replacement – giving courts the right to block internet sites which are infringing copyright – has also prompted criticism”, it says, going on: “The government argued that the new Digital Economy Bill should include the power to amend copyright law to ensure legislation could cope with more technically advanced forms of piracy in the future. “But Google and Facebook were among the firms to express ‘grave concerns’ about the provision, saying it could allow ministers to ‘increase monitoring of user data even where no illegal practice has taken place’.” Both companies have been ‘monitoring’ (to be polite) user data for years, claiming they have only our best interests at heart, and that they need access to the information to “improve users’ online experiences”. “Junior innovation minister Lord Young of Norwood Green said blocking websites was an ‘enormous step’,” says the BBC, going on: “He said it would be hard to block sites offering illegal content without also blocking legitimate material, and agreed that sites linking to other sites – such as search engines – could be adversely affected. ‘I don’t think it would be sensible or appropriate to adopt this approach,’ he warned during the debate on the bill.” However, Geoff Taylor, fromnt man for Vivendi Universal, EMI, Warner Music and Sony Music’s BPI, “welcomed the amendment and said the ISPA’s claim it could lead to ‘blocking based on accusation’ was unfounded, tjhe story adds. Guess who’s making the accusations … Continue to stay tuned. - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi p2pnet – ISPs ‘outraged’ over new copyright threat, March 4, 2010 Open Rights Group – Lib Dems seek web blocking: ask them to stop, March 2, 2010 ISPA – ISPA Outraged by Amendment on Network Level Blocking to Digital Economy Bill, March 3, 2010 Telegraph – YouTube ‘under threat’ from Digital Economy Bill changes, March 4, 2010 BBC – Lords force rethink of government’s online piracy plans, March 5, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? -

MiniNova turned down ‘millions’: story

// March 4th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view Freedom | P2P:- Thanks to unrelenting pressure from the vested-interest corporate entertainment cartels, Dutch site MiniNova was last November forced to close its traditional indexing service, switching to content distribution. The cartels do, however, allow the world’s largest and, some argue, most effective and profitable indexing site, to continue unscathed and untroubled . It’s called Google. According to TorrentFreak “Global Gaming Factory’s planned acquisition of The Pirate Bay last summer surprised BitTorrent’s friends and foes alike”. But, it goes on: “The Pirate Bay was not the only site the company was after. It also put in a massive 20 million euro offer for fellow BitTorrent site Mininova.” TorrentFreak apparently has an inside track to GGF and was among the first to break the news the “Swedish internet cafe giant” was after TPB. But the deal was “ fraught with problems with P2P pioneer Wayne Rosso walking almost on day one, and other top level figures such as Johan Sellstrom — described by The Local as a “Swedish IT pioneer and former board member of GGF” — making not waves, but tsunamis which threaten to swamp the acquisition plans, and GGF CEO Hans Pandeya”, said p2pnet . TorrentFreak, however, continued to report the ‘acquisition’ as plausible long after the rest of the world had recognised it for what it apparently was — wishful thinking on the part of GGF, to put it in its best light. Now, “TorrentFreak has learned that GGF and Mininova already finalized a contract last summer to sell the torrent index for no less than 20 million Euros”, it says in a shock report, going on: “This deal and the amount have been confirmed by several independent sources close to Mininova and GGF. One of the sources who confirmed the Mininova buyout plans was Hans Pandeya himself. “One of our sources further said that the deal had already been signed off by Mininova, and that GGF would wait for the verdict in Mininova’s appeal with the Dutch anti-piracy outfit BREIN. This verdict was due one day before the GGF shareholders were set to give the green light on the Pirate Bay deal.” However, there may be more schlock than shock. “We didn’t have a signed contract or anything like that”, MiniNova president and co-founder Erik Dubbelboer tells p2pnet. “There was no deal”, he states simply. What’s happening to MiniNova these days? “We’re working on getting some more interesting content, mainly”, says Dubbelboer. “Some will be released pretty soon. “We are also focusing on our other projects. We have some new exiting improvements coming to Snotr , and we launched Dispostable not long ago.” Stay tuned. - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi unscathed and untroubled – Cartel-proof P2P indexing site, July 29, 2009 The Local – Debt collector hunts Pirate Bay buyer, August 21, 2009 fraught with problems – Global Gaming debts threaten Pirate Bay deal, August 22, 2009 The Local – Debt collector hunts Pirate Bay buyer, August 21, 2009 p2pnet – GGF boss Pandeya ’subject of smear campaign’, August 26, 2009 March, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? -

The DMCA, 12 years on

// March 4th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view P2P | Politics:- The  1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), largely the brain child of lawyers advising the wise auld heads behind the RIAA of yesteryear, many believe, is now 12 years old. And it “continues to stymie fair use, free speech, scientific research, and legitimate competition”, says the EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation) in Unintended Consequences: Twelve Years Under the DMCA . The study collects reported examples of abuses of the DMCA “and the ongoing harm the law continues to inflict on consumers, scientists, and small businesses” and the US copyright office is “currently mulling proposed exemptions to the DMCA’s ban on ‘circumventing’ digital rights management (DRM) and ‘other technical protection measures’ used to restrict access to copyrighted works”, says the EFF, going on > > > The Copyright Office is empowered to grant exemptions to the law every three years to mitigate the harms that DRM otherwise would impose on legitimate, non-infringing uses of copyrighted materials. The triennial Copyright Office rulemaking, however, has not been enough to prevent abuses of the DMCA. EFF’s report details the numerous harms stemming from the DMCA’s ban on circumventing DRM, including Apple’s attempts to lock down the iPhone and force users into its App Store. Also new in this year’s report is the account of hobbyists threatened by Texas Instruments for blogging about potential modifications to the company’s programmable graphing calculators as well as the story behind the legal attacks on Real DVD and other products that create innovative new ways for consumers to enjoy DVD content they have legitimately purchased. “The DMCA’s ban on tampering with digital locks on content is a dangerous anachronism, a holdover from a time when people thought DRM could solve all of Hollywood’s problems,” said EFF Senior Staff Attorney Fred von Lohmann. “The DMCA’s ban on bypassing DRM has failed to stem digital copyright infringement, but it has unfortunately been repurposed as a cudgel to threaten legitimate research and competitors.” Among the DMCA exemption requests being studied by the copyright office are three from the EFF. “One asks for an exemption for amateur creators who use excerpts from DVDs in order to create new, noncommercial remix videos”, it says, going on: “Another would explicitly exempt cell phone ‘jailbreaking,’ allowing iPhones and other handsets to run applications from any source.” The EFF’s third proposal “asks for a renewal of an exemption previously granted for unlocking cells phones so they can be used with any mobile carrier”, it says, adding: “A final decision on these and other requests is expected from the Copyright Office within the next few weeks.” [The pic on the right is from a 1998 post by James F. Carstens when the DMCA was introduced.] - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi March, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? -

Lily Alan, Ed O’Brien protest 6 Music close

// March 4th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view P2P | Radio:- Aunty, aka the BBC, Britain’s once-revered national broadcaster, is shutting down two digital radio stations, as p2pnet was pretty much alone in reporting on Tuesday. Axed are 6 Music and Asian Network, with BBC Switch and BBC Blast, two multimedia outputs aimed at teenagers, also facing amputation. Protesting the 6 Music closure are UK singer Lily Alan and Radiohead’s Ed O’Brien, both staunch supporters of the organised entertainment cartel’s Three Strikes plan currently being touted by various governments which believe they owe allegiance to Hollywood and Big music rather than the people who elected them. On the 6 Music closure, O’Brien has posted an open protest letter on the Radiohead site , and the Guardian has an ‘OpEd’ from Alan on the same subject. However, given that O’Brien is a founder and director of the Featured Artists’ Coalition and Alan is one of its supporters, if not an actual member, he might well change his mind about arguing against the shut-down. And Alan? Well, the last time she got excited, her hysterical outburst inspired O’Brien, and the rest of his pals on the FAC board, to do a complete about-face on their much-publicised decision to stand against the Three Strikes element of ACTA , an entertainment cartel scam. Under it, national governments would become corporate copyright agents and ISPs, copyright enforcers against their own customers. People accused of sharing with each other online could, at the behest of the corporate movie and music industries, be thrown off the net. And all in the name of protecting the bottom lines of Vivendi Universal, EMI, Warner Music and Sony Music, and Disney, News Corp, Time Warner, Viacom, NBC Universal and Sony Pictures. Both Alan and O’Brien are claiming the 6 Music closure would adversely affect indie music and musicians, which is passing strange given that both have done, and are still doing, far worse by openly backing the Three Strikes plan. However, their positions are understandable. Once you get into bed with Big Music and Hollywood, day becomes night, black becomes white, and lies become truth. http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/consultations/departments/bbc/bbc-strategy-review/consultation/consult_view Jon Newton – p2pnet - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi pretty much alone – BBC to close 6 Music and Asian Network, March 2, 2010 Guardian – Lily Allen: Why we must save BBC 6 Music, March 2, 2010 ACTA – New Zealand ‘tough’ on ACTA, March 2, 2010 complete about-face – Dear Ed O’Brien …, January 23, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? -

Hollywood’s AFACT: spying on Australians

// March 3rd, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view Freedom | P2P:- Briefly today — very briefly — under Downloaders watched for movie piracy , “Australian film fans who download pirated movies are being tracked online, AFACT says” stated Rupert ‘New Isn’t Free’ Murdoch’s news.com.au. It went on > > > The Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT) has revealed it has hired experts to actively monitor excessive downloaders who use torrents to get film content. “If you’re using (torrents) (we) can see every movie you want, everyone who is sharing it and everyone who has it on their hard drive,” an AFACT spokeswoman said. “It’s very public what you do and as copyright holders we have a third-party company that is mining all that information and sending it to Internet Service Providers. “If (the ISPs) say the IP address is ours, we can see what file people were sharing, what time, how long and how much they downloaded … Then it suddenly vanished. “There were over 200 comments, 99% of them angry about this been a horrible invasion of privacy, by a corporate non law enforcement entity”, says Filip in an email. “The article got pulled off the site very quickly, but somebody saved a copy .” AFART is of course the Hollywood-owned ‘trade’ unit which recently ended up with egg all over its face and holes in both feet after trying to stomp local ISP iiNet. Instead, it was ordered by a court to pay costs of around $4 million and is now trying desperately to weasel out of it . Who could it be? “It’s very public what you do and as copyright holders we have a third-party company that is mining all that information and sending it to Internet Service Providers”, says the AFART mouthperson. Third-party company that is mining all that information, eh? Who that might that be? – one wonders. In January, “Ex-RIAA ‘evidence’ provider MediaSentry is like a really nasty rash”, said p2pnet , continuing > > > You think it’s gone. Then it turns up somewhere else. Acquired by SafeNet Digital Rights Management for $20 million in 2005 it was sold to rival MediaDefender three years later for a paltry $136,000 in cash and the promise of another $800,000. In the US, where it was apparently operating illegally in a number of states, it was fired by the RIAA. But spurious data it’d dug up against alleged file sharers is still embedded in official court documents. Although it also functioned this side of the border — “I wanted to give you a heads-up that MediaSentry (yes the very same discredited a**holes! ) are still up to their old tricks here in Canada  — Ontario at least!” — we haven’t heard anything about it lately. But the same can’t be said of Australia where long-term employee Andy Kemp (right), who describes himself as “reliable, detail-oriented, and motivated”, seemingly earns his living by making empty threats on behalf of the kartels. So is Media Dysentery working for Disney, News Corp, Time Warner, Viacom, NBC Universal and Sony Pictures in Australia? If it is, in May last year, “I can categorically state that Media Sentry are NOT authorised to operate within Australia nor to Intercept communications within Australia no matter what they state in the email,” said G.Thompson , a digital forensics consultant, programmer, lecturer, researcher in a p2pnet Reader’s Writecontinuing: “In fact stating they can and making published allegations against a specific user with identifiers attached so that the user is made known to other organisations ie: an Australian ISP, Educational Institution, and Rental Accommodation Manager(s) could result in action on defamatory grounds being taken against them if the publication of the information causes damage (which in this case seems likely that it has). “And thinking they are immune since they are outside Australian jurisdiction would be a folly on their behalf and I kindly draw their attention to Dow Jones and Company Inc v Gutnick [2002] HCA 56 – ( http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/cth/HCA/2002/56.html ).” If it isn’t Media Dysentery, who is it? And whoever it is, do they have legal authority to be spying on Australians on behalf of Hollywood? Stay tuned. (Cheers, Filip and Andrew aka Comeoncomcast) - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi weasel out of it – AFACT goes after iiNet for costs, February 22, 2010 p2pnet – MediaSentry – hard at it in Oz, January 27, 2010 operating illegally – MediaSentry and RIAA: government probe?,  April 5, 2009 SafeNet – Acquisition Expands SafeNet Digital Rights Management Business into Managed Services and Anti-Piracy for the Entertainment Industry,June 2, 2005 $20 million – SafeNet to buy MediaSentry, June 2, 2009 same discredited a**holes! – MediaSentry phuks up in Canada, July 2, 2009 describes himself – MediaSentry scandal continues, November 7, 2009 p2pnet – MediaSentry operates in Australia: confirmed, May 23, 2009 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? -

Silenced by copyright claims

// March 3rd, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view Freedom | P2P:- “Nearly a year ago, we wrote about how a YouTube presentation done by well known law professor (and strong believer in fair use and fixing copyright law), Larry Lessig, had been taken down , because his video, in explaining copyright and fair use and other such things, used a snippet of a Warner Music song to demonstrate a point”, writes Mike Masnick (right) on TechDirt . ” There could be no clearer example of fair use — but the video was still taken down”, he says, going on > > > There was some dispute at the time as to whether or not this was an actual DMCA takedown, or merely YouTube’s audio/video fingerprinting technology (which the entertainment industry insists can understand fair use and not block it). But, in the end, does it really make a difference? A takedown over copyright is a takedown over copyright. Amazingly enough, it appears that almost the exact same thing has happened again. A video of one of Lessig’s presentations , that he just posted — a “chat” he had done for the OpenVideoAlliance a week or so ago, about open culture and fair use , has received notice that it has been silenced. It hasn’t been taken down entirely — but the entire audio track from the 42 minute video is completely gone. All of it. In the comments, some say there’s a notification somewhere that the audio has been disabled because of “an audio track that has not been authorized by WMG” (Warner Music Group) — which would be the same company whose copyright caused the issue a year ago — but I haven’t seen or heard that particular message anywhere. However, Lessig is now required to fill out a counternotice challenging the takedown — while silencing his video in the meantime: While you can still see the video on YouTube, without the audio, it’s pretty much worthless. Thankfully, the actual video is available elsewhere , where you can both hear and see it. But, really, the fact that Lessig has had two separate videos — both of which clearly are fair use — neutered due to bogus copyright infringement risks suggests a serious problem. I’m guessing that, once again, this video was likely caught by the fingerprinting, rather than a direct claim by Warner Music. In fact, the issue may be the identical one, as I believe the problem last year was the muppets theme, which very, very briefly appears in this video (again) as an example of fair use in action. But it was Warner Music and others like it that demanded Google put such a fingerprinting tool in place (and such companies are still talking about requiring such tools under the law). And yet, this seems to show just how problematic such rules are. Even worse, this highlights just how amazingly problematic things get when you put secondary liability on companies like Google. Under such a regime, Google would of course disable such a video, to avoid its own liability. The idea that Google can easily tell what is infringing and what is not is proven ridiculous when something like this is pulled off-line (or just silenced). When a video about fair use itself is pulled down for a bogus copyright infringement, it proves the point. The unintended consequences of asking tool providers to judge what is and what is not copyright infringement lead to tremendous problems with companies shooting first and asking questions later. They are silencing speech, on the threat that it might infringe on copyright. This is backwards. We live in a country that is supposed to cherish free speech, not stifle it in case it harms the business model of a company. We live in a country that is supposed to encourage the free expression of ideas — not lock it up and take it down because one company doesn’t know how to adapt its business model. We should never be silencing videos because they might infringe on copyright. Situations like this demonstrate the dangerous unintended consequences of secondary liability. At least with Lessig, you have someone who knows what happened, and knows how to file a counternotice — though, who knows how long it will take for this situation to be corrected. But for many, many, many other people, they are simply silenced. Silenced because of industry efforts to turn copyright law into something it was never intended to be: a tool to silence the wider audience in favor of a few large companies. “The system is broken”, says Mike, adding: “When even the calls to fix the system are silenced by copyright claims, isn’t it time that we fixed the system?” - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi TechDirt – Bogus Copyright Claim Silences Yet Another Larry Lessig YouTube Presentation, March 2, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? -

Matthew Good: connecting with fans

// March 3rd, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view Music | P2P:- “Arguably”, says p2pnet regular and frequent poster Robert, “my favourite artist, Matthew Good (right) has decided to improve the connection with his fans”. Matthew’s had a blog since the Matthew Good Band days and “for a lengthy period had users sign up, for free, and they were permitted to comment on articles Matt and other contributers wrote”, says Robert. This, he says,” resulted in great interaction with fans”, but “unfortunately also added a lot of unnecessary stress”. The situation peaked with the removal of comments for almost a year. “Only recently and on select postings have comments been permitted” says Robertgoing on > > > Unfortunately, often the post and comments are removed, as some people just show up to stir up trouble. After much thinking and research, Matt has decided to change his website.  He realizes the value of connecting with fans, but how does one manage to connect with fans, add features for social interaction, and keep the bullshit to a minimum? Here’s how… Matt has decided to restructure his site. The blog will remain, with the return of guest contributers and a new paid membership area will added.  Paid membership areas never sit well with people, however one should really think about the pros and cons of this concept.  I hope this article helps people understand how an artist can use paid memberships to connect with fans, offer interaction between artists and fans and fans amongst themselves, all while reducing the headaches associated with allowing people to comment. For the paid members, videos will appear, one or two per week.  The videos will include writing process, and Q&A.  Many bands do Q&A, but I haven’t heard of any sharing the writing process.  It will appear like a story, one might describe roadblocks and another might cover the breakthrough of said roadblock.  The cool part?  Fans can comment and even give suggestions and fans feel a stronger connection through the artist simply sharing their experiences with fans. In addition to videos there will be a forum. Forums are clearly not new to websites right? Well this forum includes Soundcheck parties.  I don’t mean go and listen to the band tune their guitars, I mean a lottery where paid members can enter and when there is a concert in their area, can listen to the soundcheck, then ask questions, have things signed, learn about what goes into a show, etc. Soundcheck parties engage fans in the live experience, while also sharing the knowledge of what goes into a live show.  What about the recording process?  There will be lotteries for a few members to have the chance to experience a day in the recording process.  Dubbed Listening Party, a few members will get the chance to sit in a real recording studio and watch how it all goes down, which can be very interesting and helpful for up and coming bands, as well as a dream come true for die-hard fans. So we have videos detailing the writing process, Q&A, chances at Soundcheck Parties and Listening Parties, so what else is there? A Social Media section where paid members can connect with one another, as they already have a common connection, Matthew Good.  This page will enable members to post a little something about themselves, such as new to a city and looking to meet other fans or they have a band and wish to promote it to other fans, or their photography. With the social media page, fans have a twitter-sized little description section followed by a URL field and this can include “Hey I saw this great story from The Guardian …” and post the link, or “I saw this amazing sunset …” and post the link to their flickr page.  It is open to the members to see and given Matt is committed to interacting with his fans, he too will be viewing these posts and following links where he’s interested. So we have an opportunity for fans to share things they like with other fans and even the artist themselves! On the subject of fans connecting, Matt says: “I can’t count how many people whom have met, because, you know, of that shared connection of being a fan. So, you have someone in Chicago who’s now friends with someone from Calgary. Who, you know, 10 years ago didn’t know one another and now they are super close friends because of it. When it comes to my job that’s almost the best thing about it really, is that connectivity, that people can have because of it.” That last sentence is key!  It is not just about connecting artists and fans, but fans with fans as well! Now for the part most people have issues with, membership fees.  Are these not just extra income for the artist and their label to recoup losses, due to ‘piracy’ or the economic downturn?  No, they are not.  Sites that can support all those features, as well as handle tens of thousands of connections each day, require hardware and help from people with the technical expertise.  Most musicians do not want to become data centre experts, web development experts, networking experts, cloud-computing experimenters, as these all take away from their primary focus, art! Matt and his team have done a lot of research on the subject, consulting experts as well has having highly experienced techie members on his team.  They worked out $24.95/yr as the price required to provide these services.  Unless you are Metallica or Madonna whom have more money than you can shake a stick at, you really can’t afford to fund all of this yourselves to provide a free service to your fans.  Anyone with any technical knowledge of the Web and how it works knows this is not easy to implement, especially to scale well, and maintain. On the subject of the membership fee, Matt explains: “The revenue generated by membership is going to allow us the flexibility to do things, to implement things that we think are great, that otherwise, financially, we would be restricted .. that we can’t do.  Or at present can’t do, like say we need to pump in an extra $5000 into site development that right now I’d have to basically pay for.  It kind of just rolls back into the site, which is something that’s the basic reason for doing it … Kinda pays off in that respect.” Members of course get to comment on other members’ posts, Matt’s posts, the posts of contributers, etc. Members also can offer suggestions for things to implement, which is the purpose of the forums. The team intends to take these requests seriously and other members can easily provide yay or nay support through the forum.  The idea is to include fans in these decisions, as that’s the purpose of the site, to connect the artist with the fans, so why shouldn’t the fans have a voice? Policing the forums can be extremely difficult and requires moderators. How does a fan feel when the artist is overwhelmed with the task of policing instead of focusing on their creative works or engaging with fans?  Do fans want an invisible wall of moderators deciding which posts constitute harassment or blatant stupidity?  Matt adds this additional reasoning for the paid membership “As ‘democratic’ as people like to make the Internet seem, the reality is, having been involved in it as long as I have been… civility goes straight out the frickin’ window.  And unless you have some kind of stop-gab measure in place where people are going to actually be interested in being involved and not be jackasses .. you know .. for them to shell out money for the ability to do so obviously shows it is something that they take seriously. … once you open the frickin’ flood gates it just turns into a three-ring circus.” Additionally, the members themselves have the opportunity to voice concerns regarding the particular behaviour of certain members, whom don’t mind paying $25 to act stupid. Of course some skeptics might think that people who simply disagree with the artist will be labelled by other members as those requiring disconnection from the members area.  This is a possibility, but the artist themselves have the ultimate decision.  Naturally fans are supportive of their favoured artist and will rush to their defense even if it isn’t warranted.  This could lead to some fans teaming up against someone who simply disagrees with certain posts.  The hope is that common sense will be applied by most members and occasionally the artist will need to step in and set the record straight. Nothing is perfect, but the fact that members are included in keeping the peace is another form of connecting with the fans, encouraging them to take responsibility that comes with implementing this type of artist-fan interaction.  They are a part of it, not just observers! The concepts presented by Matt have lots of potential.  And given that Matt does engage in comments, it will be far better than other forums where the band members do not show up at all, leaving the moderating to hired-hands.  The real benefit is actually being there to connect with the fans, which Matt does an exceptional job in the current, sometimes-comments-allowed, form. “This new site will amplify this connection by orders of magnitude (powers of ten for the non-mathies)”, says Roberet, adding: ” Fans partake in the creation of the connection medium, not just the exchange between artists and fans.” Artist-to-fans-to-artist. - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi March, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? -

Canadian 4-step digital agenda

// March 3rd, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view P2P | Politics:- Parliament resumes this week following the unexpected – and unexpectedly contentious – decision by Prime Minister Stephen Harper to reset the legislative agenda through prorogation. The House of Commons may have been quiet but the calls for a national digital strategy have grown louder in recent months. Last week, the International Telecommunications Union issued its annual global measurement of the information society, which served again to highlight Canada’s sinking global technology ranking. Canada ranked 21st (down from 18th in 2007) in its ICT Development Index, which groups 11 indices including access, use, and technology skills. Canada’s sliding global ranking reflects 10 years of policy neglect. Other countries gave priority to digital issues while leaders from all parties here have been content to rest on the laurels of the late 1990s, only to wake up to a new, less-competitive reality in 2010. Industry Minister Tony Clement has spoken frequently about the need for a national digital strategy but concrete policies have been slow in coming. The parliamentary restart presents another opportunity for action. Given the failure to date to articulate a comprehensive digital strategy, perhaps a different approach might work. Following the Speech from the Throne and the budget, there will be about 100 days until the summer break. Clement could set a series of realizable targets during those 100 days. Such targets would not solve ongoing concerns regarding the competitiveness of Canada’s wireless sector or the findings that Canadians pay higher prices for slower Internet speeds than consumers in many other countries but some momentum could be gained and some quick wins achieved. A 100-day digital agenda could have four components: new laws, new initiatives, new enforcement, and new policy development. On the legislative front, Clement should reintroduce the Electronic Commerce Protection Act, the antispam bill that passed through the Commons and was to have been the subject of Senate hearings earlier this year. Having received all-party support and extensive study, the legislation should be placed on a rocket docket with a commitment to passing the bill before the summer recess. Two other long-awaited bills should be part of the short-term digital strategy. With the national copyright consultation complete, a digital copyright bill consistent with Clement’s commitment to a forward-looking, technology neutral approach should be introduced within the next 100 days. So, too, should a privacy reform bill, which Clement identified as a priority at the start of 2010. Beyond new legislation, government can use the next 100 days to lead by example. A new data.gc.ca website, with open government data sets like those found in the U.S. and U.K. should be easy to achieve. The government also could follow the Australian approach to solve the crown copyright problem that restricts use of government documents by adopting open licences that grant permission to use documents without formal approval (or the need for a new law). The government can use the next 100 days to step up its digital enforcement agenda. This includes ensuring Internet providers are compliant with net neutrality requirements and that telemarketers abide by do-not-call legislation. Finally, longer-term digital agenda issues must be put on the policy front burner. These include discussions on spectrum allocation, digital television transition, removal of Canadian control requirements in the telecom sector and new media issues. None of these initiatives will mark an immediate resurgence in Canada’s digital ranking. But, after years of missteps, perhaps some baby steps now would put the nation’s digital agenda back on track. Michael Geist – Michael Geist’s Blog [Geist is the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa. He can be reached by email at mgeist @ uottawa dot ca ] - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi March, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? -

Baby Holden bounces Prince, Universal

// March 2nd, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view Freedom | P2P:- Remember the YouTube video of Holden Lentz (right) bouncing happily to a Prince song? He loved dancing to Mr Purple’s ‘Let’s Go Crazy’ and his mum, Stephanie, posted a 29-second YouTube family home video for other people to enjoy. You can barely hear Prince yodelling in the background. “Once upon a time little Holden Lentz used to like Prince,” Stephanie told p2pnet. But, now, “He’s all about Chuck Berry.” That was after “Universal and Prince violently objected to this awful infringement of their copyright,” said p2pnet at the time, going on: “The EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation), acting for mother and,  in effect, son, says Vivendi Universal’s claim is rubbish and company, the biggest of the Big 4 labels for whom suing their customers is now standard practice, should be held accountable, ‘for misrepresenting that her fair use violated its copyrights’.” Now, says Am Law Daily , “we got an early sign that the EFF and Lenz may be on their way to a victory on the fair use issue, according to The Recorder , an Am Law Daily sibling publication. “The federal judge handling the case ruled that, in the event of a favorable ruling, Lenz would be entitled to some ‘limited’ damages under the terms of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act …” Judge Jeremy Fogel’s ruling “is narrow and calls for the awarding of attorney fees only for ‘work done prior to filing the lawsuit,’ the Recorder says” accroding to AM Law Daily, which adds: “That means the EFF would have to submit a special application for the $400,000 or so it has racked up in litigation fees, the Recorder says.  Judge Fogel, of federal trial court in San Jose, California, has not ruled on the merits of the fair use claim yet, but the EFF and other experts said that simply allowing for Lenz to receive damages creates an important precedent.” Want to see what al the fuss was about? - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi bouncing happily – Baby Holden defeats Prince and Universal, November 1, 2008 p2pnet – ‘Fair Use’ doesn`t count in DMCA take-downs, July 21, 2008 Am Law Daily – Remember the Toddler Bopping Along to the Prince Song?, March 1, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? -

‘I am a man’: Johnny Weir

// February 27th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view Freedom | P2P:- Figure skater Johnny Weir “has come in for a lot of crap during this year’s Olympics”, says Lightly Buzzed . “First the PETA jerks took him to task for using animal fur in his outfits, then a bunch of a-hole broadcasters started making jokes about his sexuality and even floated the idea that he needs to undergo a gender test to confirm his maleness (what is he, a South African runner?)”, it says. But “Rather than sit there and quietly endure these insults, Weir decided to hold a press conference and speak in a frank and heartfelt manner about the situation”, says the story, adding. “I’d say he put the haters in their place pretty effectively.” He did. - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi Lightly Buzzed – Johnny Weir Reassures Us That He is Indeed a Man. With Facial Hair and Everything., February 26, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? -

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