Hell Is Frozen

Hell is frozen or soon will be. Paramount Pictures is distributing the DVD of a film that will also be distributed via BitTorrent. The Tunnel is a horror film set in the tunnels below Sydney, Australia. I didn't know there were tunnels under Sydney, so I learnt something new today. But apart from that, it is creeping me out that Paramount is involved with anything remotely connected to file sharing. Anyone want to bet the MPAA will sue someone for downloading the film? Right hand, left hand, not knowing, you know what I mean.

Sharing

This article makes excellent points about the importance of file sharing to a healthy culture. Unfortunately the law makers are so thoroughly brain washed by the content industry's lobbyists, that I fear it may very well take a hundred years before the copyright laws recognise the legitimacy of non-commercial file sharing. In the meantime the laws will become even more draconian, if ACTA represents the future.

UK ISPs On The Hook

UK ISPs are on the hook for 25% of the cost of chasing after their file sharing customers. Effectively, the ISP is spending its own money on a process that will cost them a customer no matter what happens, just to satisfy the rights holders.

And let us not forget that those rights holders are billion dollar companies. Show me an ISP that earns that kind money.

Of course, the ISPs can pass the cost on to all their customers. That is even less fair. Why should the average Internet user support these billion dollar corporations?

And it's all a complete waste of money as this won't stop users from downloading. It might stop them from using peer-to-peer file sharing, but there are plenty of other options available. And that's not including new methods that haven't even been invented yet.

In the downloading arms race, the rights holders have already lost. They are just too blind (or stupid) to realized it yet.

You Needed A Study?

So another study shows that most of the stuff shared on BitTorrent, is illegal. Well, duh! You needed a study to know that? Of course, studies are important when you are demanding "three strikes" and other draconian legislation to solve this problem. Sorry guys but a few studies won't help you put the file sharing genie back in the bottle. Instead of stomping on Napster, if you'd looked upon this new distribution model as an opportunity, you'd be making money from file sharing by now. But you lost your chance and it's too late to do anything about it.

How Do They Do That?

It is actually impressive how copyright holders are able to influence politicians to draft bad laws. The UK's Digital Economy bill is a great example. If this thing passes as is, ISPs would be required to forward notices of infringement to their customers and retain an anonymous list of the customers that received notices.

But it gets better! The rights holders can demand to see the list at any time and use it to get a court order that will reveal the actual customer information. Now isn't the the most perfect setup you've ever seen. Lets declare open season on suing a lot of Britons for non-commercial infringement.

While the bill is a long way for becoming law, the fact that it got drafted in the first place is far more worrisome and even a little terrifying. This Ars Technica artical looks the bill in more depth.

A2f2a

There's a new site, a2f2a.com, that is trying to get artists and fans talking to each other without the middle men, who have an agenda that is not in the best interests of either artists or fans. The founders of a2f2a.com are well known and credible: Billy Bragg and Jon Newton of p2pnet.net. A2f2a.com is very new but the most interesting discussion so far is here.

The main problem will be is getting other signed artists to join the debate because they may not be able go against the record company. Bragg is the only well known artist who is posting under his own name, so I wonder how bridges he has set on fire with this. The success of a2f2a.com depends on getting more artists involved, but it won't be easy. The fans are already well represented and Bragg could use some help!

The Music Universe

See if you can spot what is wrong with this image of "The Music Universe."

Did you get it? There's no customers in the diagram! It just shows how unimportant the people who buy its product, are to the music industry. Thanks to p2pnet.net for pointing that out. The other problem is it assumes that artists need all that middlemen in the digital age.

There Ain't No Justice!

Only two file sharing cases have ever gone to trial. In the first case, the jury awarded US$222,000 in damages for 24 songs, but a mistrial was declared. At the retrial, the jury awarded US$1.92 million(!) for the 24 songs. In the second case, which just concluded today, the damages was pegged at US$675,000 for 30 songs.

So, let's get this straight. A billion company sues an ordinary individual for completely non-commercial copyright infringement. Why do the courts allow such trivial cases to proceed at all? That's not justice. No one is looking out for the little guy at all.

In each case the defendant eventually admitted sharing files online. I say, so what? Sharing is a natural human right, just like freedom of speech. Copyright is a granted privilege. A natural right should trump a granted right, should it not?

Pirate Bay Is No More?

It's old news by now but The Pirate Bay has been bought by Global Gaming Factory. So what will be next for the Pirate Bay crew? Should be interesting.