copyright-laws
Big Content condemns foreign governments that endorse FOSS
In accordance with US trade law, the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) is required to conduct an annual review of the status of foreign intellectual property laws. This review, which is referred to as Special 301, is typically used to denounce countries that have less restrictive copyright policies than the United States. The review process is increasingly dominated by content industry lobbyists who want to subvert US trade policy and make it more favorable to their own interests.
Continue reading »Google book digitization prompts the EU to rethink copyright
The legal settlement that would sanctify Google’s book digitization efforts may be on hold, but that hasn’t stopped the sniping over digitization in general, and Google’s specific role in vending e-books. The Frankfurt Book Fair , a major publishing event, is playing host to the latest skirmishes over what role Google and other organizations should play in controlling access to digitized material. Google continues to insist that it’s doing the world a favor by preserving knowledge and bringing lost books back to the public, but at least some European academics are blasting the company’s statements as propaganda.
Continue reading »Guns N’ Roses Sued for Copyright Infringement
Accused of unauthorized usage of two songs by German electronic musician Ulrich Schnauss. I get no greater pleasure than when I read of either record labels or mega rock star bands getting accused for copyright infringement, especially since they profit from the theft unlike the file-sharers they routinely target. According to the lawsuit , the band illegally used parts of two songs by German electronic musician Ulrich Schnauss, “Wherever You Are” and “A Strangely Isolated Place,” in the song “Riad N’ the Bedouins” for its recent album.
Continue reading »UK Petition to Legalize Not-for-Profit P2P
Must be a British citizen or resident to sign. A person by the name of Zoe Blade has created an e-petition to legalize the not-for-profit sharing of copyrighted media, aka file-sharing. It comes in the wake of efforts by UK Business Secretary Lord Mandelson and his Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), backed by by copyright holder groups like UK Music, to disconnect repeat file-sharers from the Internet.
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