Tag Archives: p2p

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IIPA Wants Italy on Piracy Watchlist for Having Privacy Laws

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By Drew Wilson

We’ve been covering the different countries the IIPA (International Intellectual Property Alliance) wants on their piracy watchlist. So far, the submissions were either demanding everything and the kitchen sink, had a host of problems in their logic or both. The submission about Italy is no exception to this. We explore why.

The biggest thing that stuck out for us when it came to why the IIPA wants Italy on the special 301 report is the fact that Italy has privacy laws. Enforcement of copyright laws can occur with user privacy – particularly with a notice-and-notice regime. Unfortunately, it seems that the IIPA wants to trash the privacy laws in favor of laws found in the United States. This is unfortunate, but considering who we’re dealing with, not entirely surprising. Here’s one mention of the privacy laws:

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Canadian Industry Groups Want to Legalize Spyware?

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By Drew Wilson

A recent submission made by a number of corporate organizations in the Canadian anti-spam initiative is raising alarm bells. The groups are demanding that certain kinds of software (like spyware) be exempt from provisions of the anti-spam law that could theoretically be used for the purposes of anti-piracy operations on the personal device level.

Michael Geist, a very well known Canadian law professor whose analysis of Canadian issues has become widely regarded around the world, has been following the Canadian anti-spam legislation for quite some time. While the initiative to stop spam was largely seen as a positive Canadian technology and law story, the story has recently taken a very disturbing twist recently. Language in a submission made by the Coalition of Business and Technology Associations which includes the Canadian Bankers Association, Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association, Entertainment Software Association of Canada and the Interactive Advertising Bureau of Canada appears to open the door to allow spyware to installed on a personal computing device for the purposes of blocking certain kinds of traffic or the blocking of entire websites that major industry types do not approve of which can include anti-piracy operations.

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RIANZ Spends $250,000 on Three Strikes Law to Reap $616.57

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By Drew Wilson

The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ) finally convicted its first file-sharer under the now tested New Zealand three strikes law. While RIANZ may be feeling satisfied it got a result, the money spent may raise some questions over the effectiveness of such a law.

We’ve been covering the developments of the New Zealand three strikes law for close to a month now. When we reported on the first conviction, one of the things we discussed is the possible similarities between the Skynet law and HADOPI – particularly how the balance sheet didn’t look pretty for HADOPI. Now, today, New Zealand media is reporting on exactly this topic. Apparently, in order to get to this point in time, RIANZ spent a quarter of a million dollars to send out copyright violation notices. Since RIANZ has only gotten one conviction, the rewards for spending that money came to a grand total of $616.57 in fines.

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RIANZ – Downloading P2P Software Proof of Wrongdoing

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By Drew Wilson

The day after New Zealand saw its first conviction under the so-called “three strikes law”, the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ) went on the airwaves to discuss the development. Managing director Chris Caddick said in a radio interview that the very act of downloading a file-sharing program in an and of itself is proof of wrongdoing.

We’ve been closely monitoring the situation in New Zealand where the three strikes law, sometimes referred to as the Skynet law, is making headlines. Earlier this month, Freezenet was one of the first this year to report on the developments that the first file-sharer would be convicted under the law that was financed and lobbied for by the United States.

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First File-Sharer Convicted Under New Zealand Three Strikes Law

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By Drew Wilson

New Zealand is the latest in a growing list of countries convicting alleged copyright infringers over so-called three strikes laws. The accused denies involvement in every single accusation, but received a fine under the now tested law.

Earlier this month, we reported that the New Zealand three strikes law was going to be tested. Now, reports have surfaced that the tribunal has handed down its first conviction.

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New Zealand Three Strikes Law to Be Tested

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By Drew Wilson

New Zealand is one of the very few countries in the world to actually put in place a three strikes law. Next month, the law will be put to the test as hearings are set to take place against 11 alleged repeat copyright infringers. While there was originally going to be 17, 6 of these users will not have their case heard in the tribunal.

While the United States is still in the process of trying to implement a so-called “6 strike policy”, some Americans might be grateful that they don’t live in New Zealand where there is a “3 strike law” which not only has disconnection as a consequence, but thousands of dollars in fines as well. There’s been a lot of controversy over the “3 strikes law”. Some of the criticism was directed at the fact that strikes are issued on mere allegations – not proof verified in a court of law. The fact that a mere IP address is used as evidence was also the subject of criticism given that it doesn’t take into account things like WiFi hacking.

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