What We're Reading

Chilling Effects, May 06, 2013

Abstract: Here at Chilling Effects, we try to stay abreast of what’s going on in the world of takedown notices, copyright law, and related technology. So much is changing, and so rapidly, that it can sometimes be a real challenge. We’ll link to news stories we found especially interesting in our “News Feed” which you can find to the right of the home page.

That being said, there have been so many recently, on so m any important issues, that we wanted to call your attention to them en masse. Please consider this the cream off the top of what we’re reading on the web recently.

A Round-up of Some Great Recent Stories in the World of Copyright and Technology.

Pirate Bay and Antigua Explore Launch of Authorized “Pirate Site”
The Government of Antigua will soon start accepting bids for their WTO authorized pirate site, to punish the United States for refusing to lift a trade blockade. The new service will offer the public access to pirated movies, music and software without paying U.S. copyright holders. A source close to the Antigua Government has suggested The Pirate Bay as an excellent partner, and the world’s largest file-sharing site says it would love to get involved. . . .

“The U.S. refuses to lift a trade “blockade” preventing the Caribbean island from offering Internet gambling services, despite several WTO decisions in Antigua’s favor.”

Aereo sues CBS to preempt deluge of copyright suits
"Aereo, the startup that uses tens of thousands of tiny antennas to provide TV-over-Internet service, is getting tired of being threatened with constant legal attacks.The company was sued by broadcasters who said Aereo was essentially stealing their signal, refusing to pay the retransmission fees that cable companies pay. But Aereo's argument that it was just bringing legal "over-the-air" broadcasts to consumers via tiny antennas won in district court, and it won again at a key appeals court hearing. Since then, networks have made wild claims that they'll stop broadcasting, and they are now aiming to topple the key legal decision underpinning Aereo's business."

"Tor Books says cutting DRM out of its e-books hasn’t hurt business
"Early this week, Tor Books, a subsidiary of Tom Doherty Associates and the world's leading publisher of science fiction, gave an update on how its decision to do away with Digital Rights Management (DRM) schemes has impacted the company. Long story short: it hasn't, really."

Broad Coalition Of Public And Private Interests Call For Objective Data & Research Concerning Copyright Reform [A] new report from the US National Research Council that has begun the process of calling for more objective data to inform the upcoming copyright reform debate. You can get the full PDF via the National Academies Press for free. . . . The effort was funded by a broad coalition of organizations with a variety of different views on the issue, so it's not limited to just one particular view. For example, you've got copyright maximalist organizations like the MPAA and the BSA, but also Google and Pam Samuelson, who tend to take a different view on the appropriate level of copyright protection. There is also support from a number of different government and private foundations, including the National Science Foundation, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and the Ford Foundation.

Desperate Hyundai Is Trying To Make Its Suicide Video Disappear — And Failing
“Yesterday we told you about a new ad for the Hyundai ix35 which depicts a man trying and failing to kill himself in his garage (the exhaust pipe of the fuel cell car emits only water vapor).
For obvious reasons, people were upset about the ad and Hyundai apologized, promising never to run it in paid media again. . . .
Hyundai is apparently bringing multiple copyright challenges to YouTube citing anyone who tries to show the video, which was created by ad agency Innocean.”

Netflix Says It’s ‘Killing’ BitTorrent Traffic
"Video streaming giant Netflix believes that making content available is the best way to beat online piracy, and the company has data to back this up. Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos reveals that ISPs are noticing a drop in BitTorrent traffic every time they launch in a new territory. “The best way to combat piracy isn’t legislatively or criminally but by giving good options,” Sarandos says."

Busting World’s Biggest Movie Pirates Made Piracy Worse
"Just under two years ago authorities in the United States busted one of the most important movie piracy release groups on the planet. In recent months its members have been handed some of the harshest copyright-related sentences on record but immediately after the raids something interesting happened. Instead of running for cover, pirates regrouped and the piracy situation actually got worse."

Author Of To Kill A Mockingbird Sues Agent For Swiping Her Copyright
"[I]f the story presented by Harper Lee, the 87-year-old author of To Kill A Mockingbird, in a new lawsuit is accurate, it appears that she's one of the few actual victims of copyright theft. She's now sued her former literary agent Samuel Pinkus, claiming that he effectively tricked her into signing away her copyright on the work to Pinkus' company, Keystone Literary."

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