3 Count: 3 Strikes is Out

This is daily column on Plagiarism Today where the site brings you three of the days biggest, most important copyright and plagiarism news links. If you want to offer your feedback on the column, use the contact form or just follow me on Twitter at @plagiarismtoday.

1: IP minister rules out ‘three strikes’ disconnection law

UK IP Minister David Lammy has indicated that his government has done something of an about-face, taking the option of a three-strikes policy off the table. The policy, which would disconnect file sharers from the Web after two warnings, had been a hot topic in the UK, even leading to some voluntary agreements between ISPs and copyright holders.

Lammy said that this policy is not the right direction for the UK and encouraged companies to find commercial solutions to the piracy problem, ensuring that people pay for copyrighted works through technological and other means.

He also said that he wants to better educate the public not just as to what copyright is, but how it affects them so it is seen as less the domain of the professional.

2: U.S. rockers MGMT win piracy row with Sarkozy’s party

Speaking of three strikes, one of the biggest proponents of the law in France has been the country’s President Nicolas Sarkozy. However, his political party just settled a copyright dispute with U.S.-based rockers MGMT over their use of one of their songs in both an event and in online videos.

According to reports, the party agreed to pay approximately 30 thousand Euros to settle the matter, which Sarkozy had dismissively offered to settle for one dollar previously.

All of this takes place as the parliament in France is preparing to vote again on tough new anti-piracy legislation.

3: Lawrence Lessig’s Twitter

Finally today, in a classic case of copyright fail, Warner Music filed a DMCA takedown notice against one of Professor Lawrence Lessig’s presentations. Lessig, who talks routinely on the issue of fair use, is a copyright attorney, is one of the founders of Creative Commons and, until recently, one of the most active members of the copyleft movement, regularly used snippets of music in his presentations under fair use.

Obviously, Lessig has promised to fight the takedown notice, presumably by filing a counter notice in short order.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today, we’ll be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.

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