3 Count: Penny Thoughts

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1: French Copyright Crackdown Claims First Victim

First off today, David Meyer at ZDNet reports that, in France, the HADOPI system has handed out its first fine. HADOPI is France’s “Three Strikes” system that notifies suspected file sharers that an infringement has been detected and, after two warnings, can issue punishments including fines and possible disconnection from the Web. The first case involved a 40-year-old man who had not downloaded the infringing material himself but, instead, his soon-to-be-ex-wife was the infringer. However, since it was his connection and he did nothing to stop her, he received the punishment. However, the court did not disconnect him from the Internet and instead opted to hand him a €150 ($195) fine. According to the most recent statistics, about 736,000 people had received their first warning, 62,000 their second and 165 were on their third. However, the system may be stopped as the new government is investigating it for possible closure.

2: Mint Drops Penny-Pinching Move Against Folksinger

Next up today, Melanie Patten at The Globe and Mail reports that a Canadian folk singer has resolved a dispute with his country’s mint. The singer, Dave Gunning, had faced $1,200 in royalties if he produced more than 2,000 copies of his new album “No More Pennies” because the cover featured the design of the penny. THe Canadian Mint has backed away from that royalty request and is reevaluating its intellectual property policy. Unlike in the U.S., the Canadian government can hold copyright in its work and the mint has historically demanded royalties for using their designs in commercial products.

3: Microsoft Fights Chinese Nitol Virus Found in Counterfeit OSs

Finally today, Digital Forensic Investigator News writes that, in China, the battle against counterfeit operating systems has become more than just a copyright battle, but also a security issue as well. According to a lawsuit filed by Microsoft, many fake versions of Microsoft Windows being shipped with new computers is also being used to distribute teh Nitol virus, which is now being used to spread to other machiens across the world. This has prompted Microsoft to take legal action against those it believes are responsible for the virus and the distribution of the counterfeit versions of Windows in the country. The owner of one of the domains involved in the lawsuit, Peng Yong, has denied any wrongdoing.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will 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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