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Massive Protest Against UK Anti-Piracy Bill
The UK Government continues to push forward the Digital Economy Bill (DEB) that aims to protect copyright holders from online pirates. On 15th March the House of Lords approved the bill and handed it over to the House of Commons. To the absolute dismay of most outside the music and movie industries, some of the most controversial elements of the Bill are unlikely to receive any major scrutiny and will be dealt with quickly under the so-called “wash-up”, a short period between the announcement of an election and parliament being closed down.
Continue reading »Congress wants big NatSec exemptions for spectrum inventory
A newly revised version of a House bill requiring the government to inventory the nation’s radio spectrum would give Federal agencies and private license owners a national security pass on publicly disclosing information about their spectrum holdings or related data. The proposed bill, as now amended by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce , would let government agencies duck out on releasing such intel if they can prove that doing otherwise “would reveal classified national security information or other information for which there is a legal basis for non-disclosure and such public disclosure would be detrimental to national security, homeland security, or public safety.” Read the comments on this post
Continue reading »"PowerPoint is evil" author to monitor stimulus spending
Government and industry bureaucrats addicted to spewing out mind-numbing PowerPoint presentations, be very afraid; Edward Tufte is coming to Washington, DC. The Obama administration has appointed Tufte to serve on the Recovery Independent Advisory Panel, which will suggest ways that the $787 billion stimulus program’s watchdog accountability board can do its job. “I’m doing this because I like accountability and transparency, and I believe in public service,” Tufte explained on his website on Sunday.
Continue reading »Congressman Compares Lack of Radio Performance Tax to Slavery
House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) takes the fight over terrestrial radio’s refusal to pay performer royalty fees to the next level. It seems the debate over terrestrial radio performance royalty fees is heating up these days with news that House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers Jr.
Continue reading »UK MPs Blast “Extraordinary Lobbying” to Quickly Enact “3-Strikes”
Several members of the House of Lords criticize “extraordinary degree of lobbying” by copyright holders to get “three-strikes” legislation passed as quickly as possible, but the MPs warn it’ll only mean years of trying to the fix “deficiencies of the present bill.” The UK govt’s controversial plans to disconnect file-sharers from the Internet is coming under increasing fire from members of the House of Lords, due in part, it seems, to claims of a concerted effort by copyright holders to hurry the Digital Economy Bill’s passage into law. Lord Puttnam is one of the critics, angry that some would even consider hurrying to enact such sweeping legislation without proper debate, and notes that a poorly written bill will just mean they’ll wind up having to revisit the “deficiencies of the present bill” in the future. “What will end up leaving this chamber… and going to the Commons is a bill that none of us is particularly proud of,” said Lord Puttnam.
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