Posts Tagged ‘politics’

New ACTA Leaks

// March 19th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view P2P | Politics:- New ACTA leaks have emerged this week that fill in the blanks about the remainder of the still-secret treaty.  While earlier leaks provided extensive detail on the Internet and civil enforcement chapters, these latest leaks shed new light into the criminal enforcement section, the chapter on ACTA institutional issues, and international cooperation. Criminal Enforcement As described by KEI , the European Union has proposed language to require criminal penalties for “inciting, aiding and abetting” certain offenses, including “at least in cases of willful trademark counterfeiting and copyright or related rights piracy on a commercial scale.”  Willful copyright infringement includes instances that “have no direct or indirect motivation of financial gain.” Institutional Arrangements KEI reports that the Institutional Arrangement chapter – Chapter 5 of the ACTA text – is the second longest in the treaty.  It includes the creation of an ACTA Oversight Committee that may have the power to amend the treaty itself.   The leaked text reveals the following proposal: The new ACTA Committee shall: Supervise the implementation of ACTA Consider further “elaboration” or “development” of the agreement Address “disputes that may arise regarding the interpretation or application” of ACTA Consider any other matter that may affect the operation of this agreement. The Committee may: Establish ad hoc or standing committees, working groups, experts groups, or task forces to carry out various activities. Seek the advice of non-government persons or groups make recommendations regarding the implementation of ACTA, provide guidelines for implementing the agreement identify and monitor techniques of piracy and counterfeiting assist non-parties in assessing the benefits of accession, share information on best practices support international organizations take other such actions as the parties may decide. The Committee is expected to met regularly, as well as in special sessions. The EU wants the meetings to be normally held in Geneva.  ACTA “can extend invitations to governments who are candidates to join ACTA, to attend as observers.” ACTA will also come with its own secretariat.  KEI reports that: The ACTA Secretariat may be provided by the country serving as the Chair, or be a permanent independent secretariat, possibly existing within another international body (such as UPOV within WIPO, or UNITAID within WHO). Korea wants the secretariat to be provided by the WTO. Morocco wants the secretariat connected to WIPO. International Cooperation Chapter 3 of ACTA provides new mechanisms for international cooperation and information sharing.  The chapter includes provisions mandating law enforcement cooperation with respect to criminal investigation or prosecution as well as cooperation at the border.  The EU would like “particular attention devoted to the circulation of IPR infringing goods detrimental to health and safety.” It appears there is some disagreement between the EU and the US on the limits on the obligation to disclose confidential information.  The U.S. proposes the following limiting language: The Parties understand that obligations under this Chapter and Chapter 4 [Enforcement Practices] are subject to the domestic laws, policies, resource allocation and law enforcement priorities of each Party. The EU’s proposed carve out is much more extensive: Nothing in this Chapter and Chapter 4 shall require any Party to disclose confidential information which would be contrary to its laws, regulations, policies, legal practices and applicable international agreements and arrangements, including laws protecting investigative techniques, right of privacy or confidential information for law enforcement, or otherwise be contrary to the public interest, or would prejudice the legitimate commercial interests of particular enterprises, public or private. The chapter also includes information sharing requirements including statistical data and national legislative and regulatory measures.  Morocco would like to establish an observatory as as a tool for collecting information.  Information sharing could also extend to law enforcement investigations.  While the precise language is still being negotiated, the basic approach states: Each party shall ensure, as appropriate and mutually agreed, within the limits of national legislation, policies, practices, and applicable international agreements and arrangements, that its competent authorities have the ability to provide the competent authorities of any other Party, either on request or on its own initiative, with information concerning enforcement of intellectual property right infringements. In other words, widespread information sharing between countries as party of any investigation. The international cooperation chapter also includes extensive provisions on capacity building and technical assistance.  This is noteworthy since it (1) confirms the vision that developing countries will ultimately be pressured to join ACTA and (2) represents a counter to the developing country focus at WIPO.  While WIPO has typically provided this assistance, the emergence of the development agenda has promoted a more balanced approach to technical assistance in developing countries.  ACTA seeks to return technical assistance to an enforcement oriented approach. As a starting point, ACTA states: In order to facilitate the implementation of this Agreement or the accession thereto, Parties shall [endeavour to] provide, on request and on mutually agreed terms and conditions, assistance in capacity building and technical assistance in favour of developing country Parties to this Agreement… Morocco has been particularly aggressive on the capacity building front, calling for a special fund to finance ACTA activities and listing many areas for technical assistance, including the promoting the culture of intellectual property. 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. 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New anti-3 Strikes online effort

// March 19th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view P2P | Politics:- If you’re among those concerned by the way vested-interested politicians and entertainment industry shills such as non-elected bureaucrat Peter ‘Mandy’ Mandleson are trying to force Britain’s Digital Economy Bill through before the upcoming general election, head over to 38degrees . It’s teamed up with Open Rights Group “to make it easy for you to write to your MP urging them to stop the Government rushing the bill through”, it says, going on: “It’ll take you less than 2 minutes. Just enter your postcode above (so we can find your MP) and click ‘participate’ to get started.” The “draconian law is opposed by industry experts, internet service providers (like TalkTalk and BT), web giants including Google, Yahoo and Ebay and even the British Library”, says 38degrees , going on > > > Despite all this opposition, the Government is trying to rush it through quietly just before the election without proper debate – without a chance for us to voice our opposition. Email your MP now and urge them to stop the government rushing this law through. There’s plenty to oppose in the Digital Economy Bill, it gives the government the ability to disconnect millions. Schools, libraries and businesses could see their connection cut if their pupils, readers of customers infringe any copyright. But one group likes it, the music industry. In a leaked memo a few days ago they admitted the only way to get the bill through would be to rush it through without a real parliamentary debate. “Let’s stop that happening”, say the Open Rights Group and 38degrees. Stay tuned. - … .. … 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 -? - Click here to learn what technologies might help you bypass censorship in your area.

Facebook to finance ‘online privacy’ fund

// March 19th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view P2P | Advertising:- Privacy pirate Fa$ebook is to pay for a ‘digital trust fund’ with more than $6 million in grants to organizations that study online privacy. But it’s not doing so out of the goodness of its heart. Rather, “a San Jose federal judge has approved a $9.5-million settlement of a class-action lawsuit over social networking site Facebook’s program Beacon that published what users were buying”, says the Los Angeles Times . As is traditional with corporate entities caught red-handed, the social advertising site “denied any wrongdoing” but “agreed to end the Beacon program last November”, says the story, adding: “Over the objections of privacy advocates, Facebook will have a seat on the fund’s three-member board.” The board comprises Chris Jay Hoofnagle, who heads the Berkeley Center for Law & Technology; Tim Sparapani, Facebook’s public policy director; and writer Larry Magid.” - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi Los Angeles Times – Federal judge approves Facebook ‘Beacon’ class-action settlement, March 17, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? - Click here to learn what technologies might help you bypass censorship in your area.

Bloggers and Russia’s bed of gold

// March 19th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view P2P | Politics:- The net has changed the world. It’s the great equaliser. For the first time, people in all walks of life from every part of the planet canb directly communicate with each other, completely by-passing the old media. The word ‘politicians’ has long been synonymous with ‘liars’ and until the net came along, these supposed representatives of the people could get away with it knowing while the traditional lamescream press corpse might make one or two shock-horror reports, the matter would die soon afterwards. But once something goes online, it stays there in full public view, as bureaucrats in Russia are discovering. “Russians typically shrug their shoulders at the lavish lifestyles of government officials, assuming nothing can be done about bureaucrats who take bribes and pocket state funds”, says Agence France-Presse . But “when Russia’s interior ministry announced plans to buy a golden bed, it raised an outcry — and revealed the potential of the Internet for stirring up outrage against entrenched corruption”, it says, going on > > > While the state-dominated media looks the other way, a small but determined group of Russian bloggers is challenging corrupt bureaucrats, rallying public opinion and goading prosecutors into action. Their blogs have attracted unanticipated popularity, reflecting deep-seated anger at some high-handed behavior of officials in Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s government. Last August, the ministry announced plans to buy 24 million rubles (800,000 dollars) worth of furniture, including a bed “covered with a thin layer of 24-carat gold,” according to the official tender documents. The documents were posted deep within a website where all the government’s purchases must be published, under a law passed in 2005 during one of the Kremlin’s periodic efforts to root out corruption. After bloggers and journalists exposed the plans, the ministry defended itself from ridicule by saying the bed was needed for a special VIP guesthouse in Moscow where it hosts foreign officials. But Alexander Malyutin’s zakupki_news blog “helped draw attention to the golden bed and other dubious expenditures of taxpayer money”, says AFP, adding: “Those have included plans by a Saint Petersburg astronomy institute to buy a Mercedes and by the governor of Russia’s far eastern Sakhalin province to bring African drummers from Burundi to perform at his annual New Years party. Both those tenders were canceled after outcries in the blogosphere, but the golden bed purchase went ahead.” In August 2009, “The Interior Ministry is looking to spend 24.4 million rubles ($764,000) on new furniture”, said the St Petersburg Times , noting the  bed order caslled for a “hand-carved frame made from European cherry, including headboards and footboards covered with ‘a thin layer of gold — 24 karats’.” The office furniture must also be of the highest caliber. The varnish for a conference table can only be from Germany, while “all of the table’s fittings should be of German or Italian origin.” Adds AFP, “The blogosphere, so far untouched by censors, is slowly becoming a ’socially significant force’ that spreads information ignored by Russia’s state-dominated media, said corruption expert Kirill Kabanov. ” ‘The major television channels are structures which serve the interests of the bureaucracy,’ said Kabanov, head of the National Anti-Corruption Committee, a non-governmental organisation.” - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi Agence France-Presse – Bloggers fight corrupt deals in Russia, March 18, 2010 St Petersburg Times – Ministry Seeks to Buy Gold-Decorated Bed, August 21, 2009 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? - Click here to learn what technologies might help you bypass censorship in your area.

‘P2PNet encourages stealing … ‘

// March 19th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view P2P:- “P2PNet encourages stealing and other kinds of crime. There are plenty of good sites on the internet. We don’t need you. I am sorry the DDOS attack is finished and I am sorry it did not close you down and I expect it is just the beginning.” The email above was waiting for me this morning when I logged on. I disagree with Dredd that the attack was from “people with both time and money “. Time, yes. But the “money” part suggests a corporation or associated organisation was behind it, and I doubt that was the case. I think it was someone I’ve upset. The same applies to a series of comment whines from someone with a serious hard-on for Google Street View. S/he keeps posting I run pictures without asking permission, but at the same time I criticise Google’s privacy invading SnoopMobile and Snoop-O-Ramas. p2pnet pix and Gargle Sneak Views aren’t even vaguely the same. This same-old same-old grizzling has become boring and over the last couple of weeks, I’ve been deleting the Google-hypes. Here’s what is said a couple of years ago when I was having troll-trouble > > > “An Internet troll, or simply troll in Internet slang, is someone who posts controversial messages in an online community, such as an online discussion forum, with the intention of baiting other users into an emotional response” ~ Wikipedia p2pnet went online in 2002 and when I started out, I was virtually by myself in constantly and consistently writing about what was then, and still is, going on with the entertainment cartels as they try to browbeat and terrorise people into becoming unquestioning corporate cash cows. I tolerated trolls. But that’s changed. These days A) they’re just trying to stir up trouble ‘for fun’; or B) , they’re corporate shills trying, and succeeding, to divert attention away from matters at hand. So from now on, I’ll delete all troll posts that I see, together with responses. One of them, Musico, said today , “Show you are truly for freedom and free speach [sic] like you keep saying and leave my posts alone.” I don’t need to ’show’ anything. I’m being sued by a very rich company and, in another separate case, by a very rich individual because I believe people should be allowed to say what they think, whether I agree with them or not. Freedom of speech doesn’t, however, include allowing fools free rein. As I said to Musico, “Disagreement is fine. Deliberate and repeated posts designed solely to create dissension, aren’t.” Cheers! Jon - … .. … 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 -? - Click here to learn what technologies might help you bypass censorship in your area.

Encyclopedia Dramatica and ‘racial hatred’

// March 19th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view Freedom | P2P:- Joseph Evers owns the Encyclopedia Dramatica Blog, a “look inside the lulz”. “Encyclopedia Dramatica is Wikipedia’s evil twin”, says ninemsn , going on, “It’s a site where almost every article is biased, offensive, unsourced, and without the faintest trace of political correctness. A search through its archives will reveal animated images of people committing suicide, articles glorifying extreme racism and sexism, and a seemingly endless supply of twisted, shocking views on just about every major human tragedy in history. “Very few of you know or care about me”, says Evers, going on > > > I’d apologize for that but it doesn’t make a lot of money. What we do at Encyclopedia Dramatica is a labor of love, and we all put in what we can. Largely, the great team of volunteers really makes things work for this website, and your donations and page views have been (barely) making ends meet lately. No matter what the current administration and news will tell you, we are in a worsening depression. The last depositors of my fund left 2 years ago despite year after year profitability with no losses and they haven’t come back. Most everyone I know is broke and unemployed. Things are hard, and if Encyclopedia Dramatica were still relying on my pocketbook it would have died when that particular well dried up. But that isn’t what Evers is writing about. “Among the articles on the website is one lampooning the death of Bundaberg schoolgirl Trinity Bates”, says ninemsn. “Another article, about Australian Aborigines, was deemed so offensive it was removed from Google’s search earlier this year.” And now he’s on the wrong end of a missive from the Australian Human Rights Commission. Encyclopedia Dramatica has been in a lot of trouble in Australia lately, he says, continuing > > > First ED was placed on the ACMA blacklist, a “secret” list of websites to be censored throughout Australia in their upcoming internet filter. After this list was leaked to the public, we all laughed about how we were put on a blacklist with “Wikipedia entries, euthanasia sites, websites of fringe religions, Christian sites, and even the websites of a tour operator and a Queensland dentist” . Meanwhile, Australia Communications Minister Stephen Conroy called for the arrests of Australians publishing the list . Next the “ Aboriginal ” article was recently removed from Google Australia’s search engine results. This was right after Google had done a large amount of grandstanding about fighting Chinese censorship. Which proves they’re a bunch of spineless hypocrites. Really, you have to admire the shrewdness of Google. China was a gigantic business failure, and a loss leader. With a bunch of CIA and shareholder money Google went in promising that their search technology was really so much better (FYI: from a perspective of pure technical achievement, Yahoo’s is best in the business right now, though they do poison their search results with paid entries) that the Chinese market would fall in a fortnight. Years and what is likely billions later, Baidu completely dominates the Chinese search market. By spinning an obvious business failure as a failure of RED POLITICS Google was able to pull out of China without losing face. Their idiot shareholders sat there and applauded them for wasting billions of their money. For that I give Google a lot of respect. They are some of the most brilliant marketers around, but as anyone who has used Google’s ad placement can attest, the only thing they really excel at selling is themselves. [Hear hear.] The Human Rights charge is  “an initial investigation into charging me, personally, with the violation of Australia’s Racial Discrimination Act”, says Evers, stressing while he’s in compliance with “both the civil and criminal codes of the US”, and is “assured the right of free speech according to our Constitution (which, if not the greatest political document in the entire history of law, is certainly on the top five)” he could be “jailed and fined for the violation of this law”. “Check out the court precedent they [the AHRC) cite, Dow Jones & Co Inc v Gutnick, where a United States paper had to pay 580k for publishing an article about a globalized company headquartered in Australia and its CEO whilst completely in compliance with United States civil precedence”, says Evers, adding: “This isn’t a far-fetched legal theory, they have used it before. Welcome to the one world government, folks. Is this what you wanted? Is this what you had in mind? Cause this is what you’re gettin’. “Encyclopedia Dramatica will never be censored in any way. We will keep publishing this content and our Australian users will be able to view it up until the point that your God-forsaken government blocks it with their soon-to-be-implemented secret list of banned material. ACMA’s child pornography blacklist is only one half child pornography. The rest is religious and political speech. You really want Soviet-style communism as your future? I know some people that had to escape from the GDR. Many of your children will be in that position. The house of cards is about to come down, and they’re making sure your mouths are taped shut first. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. “My counsel has advised me that I can never under any circumstances visit my family in Sydney again, nor otherwise make any appearances on Australian soil. Here’s to the hidden cost of freedom.” Stay tuned. (Cheers, RW ) - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi ninemsn – Interview: Encyclopedia Dramatica moderator, March 9, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? - Click here to learn what technologies might help you bypass censorship in your area.

Fess ‘Davy Crockett’ Parker dies

// March 19th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view TV:- Fess Parker, the man who became famous as Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone on TV, has died at the age of 85. Once the ‘King of the Wild Frontier’, he “went on to become a Santa Barbara hotel developer and Santa Ynez winery owner”, says a Los Angles Times obituary, going on “A longtime presence — and sometimes controversial figure — in Santa Barbara County, Parker had numerous real estate holdings in the area, including Fess Parker’s Doubletree Resort in Santa Barbara and the Fess Parker Winery & Vineyards and Fess Parker Wine Country Inn & Spa, both in Los Olivos. Building of an “as-yet-unnamed new beachfront hotel in Santa Barbara is also underway.” James Arness was one of the many actors considered for the role “But although Disney watched Arness during a screening of the science-fiction thriller ‘Them!’ another young actor in a small part caught his eye: the 6-foot-6 Parker”, says the obit. - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi Los Angles Times – Actor played Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone on TV, March 19, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? - Click here to learn what technologies might help you bypass censorship in your area.

NDP iPod tax: ‘misleading blog commentary’

// March 18th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view P2P | Politics:- James Gannon again. That’s him on the right and in a promo piece thinly disguised as a genuine news item and prominently linked to, not at all coincidentally, by the Big 4’s IFPI (International Federation of Phonographic Industry), “I was dismayed, but really not surprised, to see how quickly the Haiti benefit album ‘Hope for Haiti Now cropped up on all the popular BitTorrent indexing sites like ThePirateBay and Torrentz” he wrote recently. “Not only that, but out of the 9 front-page Google results for ‘Hope For Haiti Now torrent’, a dismaying 5 out of the 9 results (Torrentz, IsoHunt, BTJunkie, Monova, TorrentZap) are hosted or have some connection to Canada”, he said, adding: “Looks to me like the Pirates of the Caribbean can be found right here in Canada.” Now his name has cropped up vis-a-vis Michael Geist ’s post on the Charlie Angus private copying levy bill. “It seems necessary to dispel certain inaccurate and misleading blog commentary about what actually happened in the Heritage Committee yesterday concerning the NDP’s proposed iPod ‘tax’,” Howard Knopf says in Excess Copyright , quoting Gannon as stating in his blog : “To be clear, the MPs who voted in favour of this motion were not voting ‘for’, or signalling any kind of ’support’ for, this amendment to the Copyright Act, but merely voting for the Committee to consider the amendment at a later time.” But, “That’s not what happened”, says Knopf. Rather, “according to the official source, which is Parliament itself” and “according to the Committee’s official website ” the Heritage Committee actually said: “Pursuant to Standing Order 108(2), that the Committee report the following to the House as soon as possible: “That the Committee recommends that the government amend Part VIII of the Copyright Act so that the definition of ‘audio recording medium’ extends to devices with internal memory, so that the levy on copying music will apply to digital music recorders as well, thereby entitling music creators to some compensation for the copies made of their work.” (Emphasis added by Knopf.) “That seems pretty clear to me and quite clearly contradicts Mr. Gannon’s speculation”, he says, noting: “Mr. Gannon, who was called to the bar in 2009, is an associate at McCarthy, Tétrault, working under Barry Sookman , a well known lawyer/lobbyist for some very politically savvy clients, i.e. CRIA, CMPDA, and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce. While Mr. Gannon may very well have been speaking on his own, Mr. Sookman was very quick to tweet  a link to his blog.” - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi genuine news item – Big Music plugs RIAA into Haiti tragedy, March 6, 2010 Michael Geist – Angus Introducing Private Copying Levy Bill, Flexible Fair Dealing Motion, March 16, 2010 Excess Copyright – The iPod “Tax”: Misinformation re Heritage Committee’s Report, March 17, 2010 blog – Depoliticizing the iPod levy, March 17, 2010 working under Barry Sookman – Bazza Sookman and the 3 Strikes Plan, January 22, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? - Click here to learn what technologies might help you bypass censorship in your area.

UK Digital Economy Bill ‘legislation on the hoof’

// March 17th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view P2P | Politics:- “The fear is that no one will know what is being cooked-up before it becomes law. It’s legislation on the hoof.” That’s a senior ISP executive quoted by the Guardian on the news that the House of Lords has passed Britain’s Digital Economy Bill. ACTA (Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement) and its Three Strikes and You’re Off The Net element comprise the entertainment industry’s last-ditch effort to gain global control of the internet, how ‘product’ is distributed, and direct power over users. It would make governments taxpayer funded copyright agents, turn ISPs into enforcement units working against their own customers, and make way for supposed file sharers to be disconnected from the internet on entertainment industry say-so. In Britain, the Three Strikes section is being shoe-horned in via the Digital Economy Bill, which gives “effective control to the House of Commons with regards to various controversial clauses within the bill”, says Financial Advice , going on > > > Many believe that the bill has been passed with indecent haste as we approach the next general election and many are mystified as to why the government seems so determined to push through this revolutionary and controversial bill. But there’s no mystery. It’s acting on orders from Vivendi Universal, EMI, Warner Music and Sony Music, and Disney, News Corp, Time Warner, Viacom, NBC Universal and Sony Pictures, as are France and other similarly weak-minded administrations which lack the courage or will to stand up to the cartels on behalf 0f their voters. If there’s any doubt about that, consider that the Big 4 organised music gang’s BPI actually wrote part of the bill . In another element of the operation BASCAP, the vested-interest Business Action to Stop Counterfeiting and Piracy coalition, has issued a ‘report’ claiming illegal downloading of music, films and television programmes cost Britain 39,000 jobs and retail losses of £1.4 billion in 2008. And across Europe, “the growing impact of ‘digital piracy’ could add up to 1.2 million lost jobs and £215 billion in lost revenue” it says. Controlling members include the MPA, the offshore version of Hollywood’s MPAA, Big Music’s IFPI, Holland’s BREIN,  the BSA (Business Software Alliance) and the Interactive Software Federation of Europe, with a few organisations such as Toy Industries of Europe included for effect. Using Virgin Media as the messenger, BASCAP says the document “comes ahead of a European Parliament vote on a report enforcing intellectual property rights in the EU single market”. However, the European parliament has already throw ACTA out, voting 663 to 13 against . “This Parliament will not sit back silently while the fundamental rights of millions of citizens are being negotiated away behind closed doors”, said Stavros Lambrinidis (GR, S&D) who, with Zuzana Roithova (CZ, EPP) , Alexander Alvaro (DE, ALDE) and Françoise Castex (FR, S&D), made the message clear in their earlier written declaration opposing ACTA. “We oppose any ‘legislation laundering’ on an international level of what would be very difficult to get through most national legislatures or the European Parliament,” he said. And “MEPs will go to the Court of Justice if the EU does not reject ACTA rules, including cutting off users from the Internet ‘gradually’ if caught stealing content”, European parliamentarians told Vivendi Universal, EMI, Warner Music and Sony Music, and Disney, News Corp, Time Warner, Viacom, NBC Universal and Sony Picture, said EurActiv . Meanwhile, in a move “that will dismay privacy campaigners and ISPs, websites with pirated content could be blocked as Tories collaborate with government to rush bill into law before election”, says the Guardian, continuing > > > The government is planning to introduce controversial measures, backed by the Conservatives, that would force internet companies to block websites that host substantial amounts of pirated content as it scrambles to get its digital economy bill through parliament. But because of the truncated timetable for getting the bill into law before a looming general election, the government’s as-yet unwritten clause is unlikely to face any major scrutiny before coming into force. It will be the product of a deal done behind closed doors between the government and opposition in the so-called “wash-up” of legislation hurried through before the dissolution of parliament. Its progress into law, however, seems assured after the shadow culture secretary, Jeremy Hunt, said yesterday that he had spoken to Stephen Timms, minister for digital Britain. “We are trying to find a policy that allows the blocking of websites set up to promote illegal downloading of copyrighted digital content but does not impact on the vast majority of legitimate web users,” he said. He said the new legislation should encourage firms to find new business models “rather than look to legislation to protect their current business models”. But the news will dismay privacy campaigners, as well as internet companies, who thought they had managed to defeat many of the more draconian measures in the bill. “It’s a deeply unsatisfactory and very worrying development,” said one senior executive from the internet service provider (ISP) industry tonight. And no one in Britain seems to care. So what’s it all about? The BBC ’s Rory Cellan-Jones offers his break-down of ‘Technical Measures’, to wit > > > 1) The Secretary of State may direct OFCOM to– (a) assess whether one or more technical obligations should be imposed on internet service providers; (b) take steps to prepare for the obligations; (c) provide a report on the assessment or steps to the Secretary of State. (2) A “technical obligation”, in relation to an internet service provider, is an obligation for the provider to take a technical measure against some or all relevant subscribers to its service for the purpose of preventing or reducing infringement of copyright by means of the internet. (3) A “technical measure” is a measure that– (a) limits the speed or other capacity of the service provided to a subscriber; (b) prevents a subscriber from using the service to gain access to particular material, or limits such use; (c) suspends the service provided to a subscriber; or (d) limits the service provided to a subscriber in another way. Clause 18 (this is the one that the government has promised to amend) 18 Preventing access to specified online locations for the prevention of online copyright infringement In Part 1 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, after section 97A insert– “97B Preventing access to specified online locations for the prevention of online copyright infringement (1) The High Court (in Scotland, the Court of Session) shall have power to grant an injunction against a service provider, requiring it to prevent access to online locations specified in the order of the Court for the prevention of online copyright infringement. (2) In determining whether to grant an injunction under subsection (1), the Court shall have regard to the following matters– (a) whether a substantial proportion of the content accessible at or via each specified online location infringes copyright, (b) the extent to which the operator of each specified online location has taken reasonable steps to prevent copyright infringement content being accessed at or via that online location or taken reasonable steps to remove copyright infringing content from that online location (or both), (c) whether the service provider has itself taken reasonable steps to prevent access to the specified online location, (d) any issues of national security raised by the Secretary of State, (e) the extent to which the copyright owner has made reasonable efforts to facilitate legal access to content, (f) the importance of preserving human rights, including freedom of expression, and the right to property, and (g) any other matters which appear to the Court to be relevant. (3) An application for an injunction under subsection (1) shall be made on notice to the service provider and to the operator of each specified online location in relation to which an injunction is sought and to the Secretary of State. (4) Where– (a) the Court grants an injunction under subsection (1) upon the application of an owner of copyright whose copyright is infringed by the content accessible at or via each specified online location in the injunction, and (b) the owner of copyright before making the application made a written request to the service provider giving it a reasonable period of time to take measures to prevent its service being used to access the specified online location in the injunction, and no steps were taken, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45 Digital Economy Bill [HL] 23 the Court shall order the service provider to pay the copyright owner’s mcosts of the application unless there were exceptional circumstances justifying the service provider’s failure to prevent access despite notification by the copyright owner. (5) In this section– “copyright owner” includes a licensee with an exclusive licence within the meaning of section 92 of this Act, “infringing content” means content which is produced or made available in infringement of copyright, “online location” means a location on the internet, a mobile data network or other data network at or via which copyright infringing content is accessible, “operator” means a person or persons in joint or sole control of the decisions to make content accessible at or via an online location, and “service provider” has the meaning given to it by section 97A(3) of this Act. (6) Subsections (1) to (5) shall come into force on such day as the Secretary of State may by order appoint not less than 3 months and not more than 12 months after subsections (1) to (5) have been notified to the Commission of the European Communities (”the Commission”) in accordance with the obligations of notification imposed by Directive 98/34/EC. (7) If any comments are received from Member States of the European Union or the Commission after subsections (1) to (5) have been so notified and the Secretary of State reasonably considers amendments are necessary to give effect to such comments, he may make the necessary regulations within the period referred to in subsection (6)(a), to amend subsections (1) to (5).” Stay tuned. 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 Guardian – Digital economy bill: Online piracy law unlikely to face major scrutiny, March 16, 2010 ACTA – ACTA transparency score card, February 27, 2010 Financial Advice – House of Lords passes Digital Economy Bill, March 17, 2010 wrote part of the bill – Intriguing new BPI Three Strikes leak, March 13, 2010 Virgin Media – Illegal downloading ‘cost £1.4bn’, March 17, 2010 663 to 13 against – EU parliament trashes secret ACTA treaty, March 11, 2010 EurActiv – Parliament threatens court action on anti-piracy treaty, March 10, 2010 BBC – Do we need a digital Parliament?, March 17, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? - Click here to learn what technologies might help you bypass censorship in your area.

CAP internet cash cuts a ‘misunderstanding’

// March 17th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view P2P | Politics:- Stephen Harper’s government was  “quietly cutting funding to hundreds of community groups and even hospitals that provide free Internet access to Canadians who might not otherwise have a chance to get online”, said the Canadian Press on Tuesday. “Organizations that benefit from Industry Canada’s 16-year-old Community Access Program began receiving letters last week informing them that sites located within 25 kilometres of a public library would no longer be eligible for cash”, it said, going on: “Groups had been receiving between $4,000 and $5,000 a year to buy computers and other hardware, such as printers and wireless routers; to pay for technical support and skills training; and sometimes to pay for the connection bills.” But “Reaction to the funding-cut notice was swift,” says the Nova Scotia Chronicle Herald . The Conservative government “now says it was all a misunderstanding” it says, continuing: “Industry Minister Tony Clement told reporters Tuesday that $13 million in funding for the gutted Community Access Program will survive under a different name, at least for this year. “We certainly regret any confusion that has been caused to some of the recipients of this money,” said Clement. “It is being funded through a different program, and it is in fact continuing.” Says the CAP site : “Industry Canada’s Community Access Program ( CAP ) gives thousands of Canadians affordable access to the Internet in places like schools, community centres and libraries. It provides access to those people who might not have computers or Internet access in their homes or workplaces.” CAP sites active as of December 31, 2007: Newfoundland and Labrador (Excel format, 38.5 KB) New Brunswick (Excel format, 26.0 KB) Nova Scotia (Excel format, 47.5 KB) Prince Edward Island (Excel format, 22.0 KB) Quebec (Excel format, 101.0 KB) Ontario (Excel format, 135.0 KB) Manitoba (Excel format, 47.0 KB) Saskatchewan (Excel format, 64.0 KB) Alberta (Excel format, 70.5 KB) British Columbia (Excel format, 80.0 KB) Yukon (Excel format, 20.5 KB) Northwest Territories (Excel format, 20.0 KB) Nunavut (Excel format, 19.5 KB) Stay tuned? - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi Canadian Press – Tories cut funding for library Internet access, March 15, 2010 Chronicle Herald – CAP program to continue , March 15, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? - Click here to learn what technologies might help you bypass censorship in your area.

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