Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: Appeals Lodged Against Optus Copyright Ruling

First off today, in a move that will likely surprise no one, the Australian football (soccer) leagues NRL and AFL have filed appeals in their case against local mobile service provider Optus. The case stems from Optus Now, a service that lets Optus customers stream television, including league matches, to mobile devices within minutes of them being aired and recorded on a DVR-like service. However, the leagues struck a exclusive deal with Optus’ competitor, Telstra, to stream the matches via their service, a deal they felt was jeopardized by Optus Now. However, a High Court judge ruled that Optus Now was a legal service since it was the user doing the recording. This has already prompted calls for copyright reform in the country but, in the meantime, the leagues are now appealing.

2: Government Denies Reviving Site-Blocking Law Plans

Next up today, in the UK, the government is denying recent claims that it was looking into new site blocking legislation. Though the Minister of State for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills said that such a proposal was in the works, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, which is handling the actual proposal, said it wasn’t. The reason is that a recent court ruling enabled copyright holders to get an injunction against ISPs to order the blocking of Newzbin2, showing that the legislation isn’t necessary and would be “duplicate”. The discussion comes as many are decrying what is seen as excessive influence by Google in the copyright reform process.

3: Music Labels’ Joint Venture, VEVO, Shows Pirated NFL Game At Sundance

Finally today, music video service VEVO, which is owned by Sony and Universal and is supported by EMI, has found itself the subject of criticism for illegally streaming a football game, specifically the Patriots vs. Raven playoff game, at a party during the Sundance Music Festival. According to reports, VEVO’s Powerstation event streamed the game illegally from the site tutele.tv, obtaining it from ESPN America, which is a UK-only channel. The incident comes at a time when the record labels have been deeply criticized for their anti-piracy efforts leading many to call this a case of hypocrisy.

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.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 5 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: Mobile Broadcast Ruling Prompts ALP to Consider Copyright Changes

First off today, in Australia the country’s Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, has vowed to “urgently consider” changes to the country’s copyright following a recent high court win by the mobile carrier Optus. Optus was sued by various sports leagues and competitor Telstra over its DVR service that allows users to stream TV to their phone within minutes of it being recorded. The verdict calls into question millions of dollars in licensing paid by Telstra to the leagues for the sole rights to stream matches via mobile devices. The move has caused legislators on both sides to seek changes to the law to protect mobile streaming rights, though opposition leaders seem to feel that any legislation should be extremely narrowly-focused.

2: New MEP Appointed to Head up ACTA Dossier

Next up today, British Labour MEP David Martin has been called to serve as the European Parliament’s rapporteur for the upcoming report on the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). The agreement, which was signed by the EU, US, Japan and over 20 nations, seeks to harmonize enforcement on copyright and other intellectual property matters. However, the treaty has been the subject of massive protests in the past weeks, prompting three nations in the EU to put on hold their internal ratification process. Martin replaces French Socialist Kader Arif, who resigned last week after blasting how the treaty was negotiated and handled.

3: Silicon Roundabout Asks For Copyright Overhaul

Finally today, the UK’s equivalent of Silicon Valley has sent an open letter to it’s government asking for broad copyright reform. The letter, which was signed by Computing Society (BCS), Coadec (The Coalition for a Digital Economy), TechHub, Bootlaw and the BIMA asks for adoption of various proposed reforms including enabling format shifting, enabling the licensing of orphan works, working with the European Commission to craft cross-border licensing schemes and more. The letter follows on the heels of the Hargreaves Report, which made many of the same recommendations.

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.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 5 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: RIAA IP Addresses Matched to Illegal BitTorrent Download

First off today, a series of articles from the blog Torrentfreak have connected IP addresses allegedly associated with the RIAA, Sony Pictures, NBC Universal, Fox Entertainment and even the palace of French President Nicholas Sarkozy with downloading files via Bittorrent. The blog used a new site entitled YouHaveDownloaded, which monitors some 20% of the Bittorrent traffic and records IP address information. Visitors can then see what the service has found that they’ve downloaded or check other IP addresses. There’s been no comment from any of the organizations involved.

2: Sony, Warner Join Suit Against Grooveshark Music Service

Next up today, in a move that was predicted last week, both Sony and Warner Music have joined Universal Music’s lawsuit against the streaming service Grooveshark. The lawsuit, which Universal filed in November, alleges that Grooveshark executives uploaded tracks to their streaming service in violation of copyright law. Grooveshark denies this and claims that its tracks are user uploaded and, as such, it deserves safe harbor protection from the DMCA. However, according to Universal, emails and other information obtained through an earlier lawsuit indicate otherwise. Sony and Warner joining the lawsuit now means that the three biggest record labels are involved and the fourth, EMI, which currently licenses its music to Grooveshark, is in the process of being sold to Universal.

3: Court Will Test Time-Shift Drift

Finally today, the Federal Court of Australia is taking up a case that could have a major impact on the nation’s copyright laws as it pertains to time shifting. The case centers around Optus, a local cell phone carrier, being sued by a slew of sports leagues and TV networks. According to the plaintiffs, Optus is illegally enabling users to record and stream live TV, including football (soccer) and Rugby matches on their phone. According to Optus, this is completely legal as time shifting, recording TV for viewing at a later date, is legal. However, the lawsuit alleges that, since the act is done via the cell network, those rules don’t apply and that since there is such a small delay between when a work is recorded and available, that it isn’t true time shifting and is instead just moving the media to a more convenient platform. Many, however, are predicting that this is an area of Australian copyright law that is ripe for legislative action, possibly making any impact from this case short-lived.

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.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 5 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

With the holiday in the U.S. there wasn’t a whole lot of local copyright news to talk about but, fortunately for this podcast, other countries rushed in to fill the void and bring us yet another packed episode of copyright news, views and abuse.

This includes a major ruling in the EU on the issue of ISP filtering, a plan from Australian ISPs to tackle piracy and concerns that Spotify may be heading for a day of reckoning as labels start to back out. All of this and much, much more!

This week’s stories include:

• Grooveshark Emails Released, Show Company Aware of Infringement
• EU Says ISPs Can’t Be Forced to Filter Infringing Material
• EU Advocate General Says You Can’t Copyright a Programming Language
• Australian ISPs Propose Anti-Piracy Plan, Copyright Holders Unhappy
• New Anti-IP Infringement PSA Campaign Launches in U.S.
• 200 Labels Leave Spotify
• Bittorrent Defense Attorney Switches Sides

You can download the MP3 file here (direct download). Those interested in subscribing to the show can do so via this feed.

Show Notes

About the Hosts

Jonathan Bailey

Jonathan Bailey (@plagiarismtoday) is the Webmaster and author of Plagiarism Today (Hint: You’re there now) and works as a copyright and plagiarism consultant. Though not an attorney, he has resolved over 700 cases of plagiarism involving his own work and has helped countless others protect their work and develop strategies for making their content work as hard as possible toward their goals.

Patrick O’Keefe

Patrick O’Keefe (@iFroggy) is the owner of the iFroggy Network, a network of websites covering various interests. He’s the author of the book “Managing Online Forums,” a practical guide to managing online communities and social spaces. He maintains a blog about online community management at ManagingCommunities.com and a personal blog at patrickokeefe.com.

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: High Court Day 2: iiNet Says AFACT Lawsuit Inevitable

First off today, yesterday was day 2 in the Australian High Court trial between AFACT and iiNet. AFACT, a consortium of copyright holders, had sued local ISP iiNet claiming they had not done enough to stop infringement. Though iiNet won in both of the lower courts, the appeals court ruling opened the door to a “three strikes” system in the country. AFACT appealed the case to the High Court. The second day focused more on iiNet’s ability to control its customers actions and on AFACTs demands, with iiNet claiming that nothing short of terminating suspected repeat infringers would have been adequate to avoid a lawsuit. The case enters its third day today and is likely to continue next week.

2: Copyright Corruption Scandal Surrounds Anti-Piracy Campaign

Next up today, the Dutch anti-piracy group BREIN has found itself in the center of a controversy as composer Melchior Rietveldt is claiming that the group used his song without permission on various DVDs for the anti-piracy warnings. According to Rietveldt, he was paid to compose a song for an anti-piracy ad to be played at a film festival. However, BREIN (or another party) went on to use the work for warnings distributed on DVDs without any compensation. To make matters worse, a board member of Buma/Stemra (a royalty collection agency), Jochem Gerrits, offered to help but only if he could collect 33% of the earnings. Gerrits has since said his words were misinterpreted but has offered a temporary resignation. That being said, according to BREIN director Tim Kuik, the contract dispute does not actually involve the organization as it is not the distributor nor the client involved.

3: EFF to Copyright Office: Let my Tablets, Consoles, and Phones Go!

Finally today, the EFF is preparing for the next round of Copyright Office hearings on DMCA exemptions and is hoping to expand on exemptions that it helped fight for in the last round. The DMCA prohibits the circumvention of DRM and other digital locks but provides exemptions where it is acceptable. To determine what exemptions are appropriate, the copyright office holds hearings every three years and rules on what new exemptions should be added. Last year, the EFF and other groups argued for an exemption to jailbreak phones and received it. However, the exemption didn’t cover the trafficking of the software to perform the jailbreak nor did it cover other commonly-jailbroken items such as tablets, video game consoles, etc. The EFF is hoping that, with this round, it can earn those exemptions as well.

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.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 5 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: High Court day 1: iiNet’s Control Over Choice

First off today, yesterday was the opening day for the Australian High Court trial between AFACT, a local organization representing rightsholders, and iiNet, a local ISP. The suit came about after AFACT sued iiNet claiming that it wasn’t doing enough to stop infringement by its customers. Though AFACT lost on both the lower and appeals court levels, the latter left a door open for ISPs to be compelled to take action. AFACT appealed that ruling as well and now the case is before the high court. On day one, the testimony centered around how much control (or lack thereof) iiNet had over its customers and what it could do to stop infringement. Testimony continues today and is expected to go on for at least the rest of the week.

2: Fiat Appeases Tats Cru For Showing Copyrighted Bronx Street Art In J.Lo Ad

Next up today, a recent ad for Fiat has caused some copyright controversy. The ad, which showed J.Lo driving through the Bronx in a Fiat car, already caused controversy when it was learned that J.Lo used a body double for the parts taking place in the Bronx. However, the ad became a copyright issue after a group of Bronx street artists named TATS Cru learned that one of their murals appeared in the commercial without permission. Fiat and TATS Cru, however, have since settled that dispute and Fiat put the blame squarely on the ad agency saying, “It is the Company’s standard protocol to require that its ad agencies conduct the necessary due diligence to ensure that all trademarks and copyrights are respected in the course of producing our advertisements.”

3: Patient Sues Dentist Over Gag Order, Gets Medical Justice to Backtrack

Finally today, Medical Justice, an organization that works to protect the reputation of doctors, dentists and other physicians on the Web, is ceasing use of its controversial contracts that would require patients to sign over all copyright to any reviews they wrote about the doctor. This way, they can remove negative reviews using DMCA notices. The move comes after one patient, Robert Lee, filed suit against a dentist, Dr. Stacy Makhnevich, who used a Medical Justice contract to try and force him to remove negative reviews he posted about her. Medical Justice has said that it’s taking the opportunity to retire those contracts and will be discouraging its clients from using them. However, the lawsuit against Makhnevich, which is a class action suit, will continue though it is unclear if Medical Justice will provide any legal assistance.

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.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 5 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: ISPs Can’t Be Forced to Monitor Traffic for Copyright Infringement, ECJ Rules

First off today, the European Court of Justice, the highest court in the EU on matters of EU law, has ruled that member nations can not force ISPs to monitor Web traffic for the purpose of filtering copyright infringing material. The case stems from SABAM, a Belgian rightsholder organization, which sued local ISP Scarlet over alleged copyright infringement by its users. A lower court ordered Scarlet to prevent its users from accessing SABAM’s library but Scarlet appealed and won at the European Court of Justice. SABAM has not decided what its next action will be in its lawsuit.

2: EU Advocate General: You Can’t Copyright a Programming Language

Net up today, the Advocate General in a European Court of Justice has issued a statement that a software language does not qualify for copyright protection. The case centers around U.S. firm SAS, which is suing UK-based World Programming Ltd. (WPL) claiming the compay built a programming language similar to one they developed. In 2007, in a similar case, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that programming languages themselves don’t meet the qualification for copyrightability. However, the opinion of the Advocate General still needs to be ratified by the judges in the European Court of Justice to be legally binding. However, the position of the Advocate General makes that very likely to happen.

3: Copyright Holders Unhappy with Piracy Plan

Finally today, Australian ISPs have released a proposal for dealing with copyright infringement. The system works by having rightsholders forward information about potential infringement to the ISPs, which would then send “educational notices” to their customers. After 3 warnings, the ISP would then work with the rightsholder to help tackle the matter via the courts. However, rightsholders, through various groups, have come out against the plan saying that it doesn’t go far enough and isn’t “balanced”. Rightsholders, however, did not speak as to what their preferred plans were but one such group, AFACT, is currently appealing a ruling in their case against Australian ISP iiNet, in which it hopes to compel the ISP to disconnect repeated file sharers.

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.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 5 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: Govt Cuts ‘Streamlined’ Piracy Discussion

First off today, in Australia Federal Attorney-General Robert McClelland has quietly amended a posted document for discussion to remove all references to a controversial “streamlined” system by which copyright holders would be able to gain access to information about alleged infringers. The proposal, which outlines expanding safe harbor protections to ISPs, previously mentioned such a system as a requirement for protection but, currently, the document only makes reference to the broader issue. McClelland’s office stated that the document was posted by mistake and that a clarification will be posted soon.

2: Time Zone Database Has New Home After Lawsuit

Next up today, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the organization that oversees domain names on the Web, has agreed to host The Time Zone Database. The database was recently shut down following a lawsuit from astrology software maker Astrolabe, which sued the database’s former administrator, David Olson, claiming that there was copyrighted information in it. The database is used by many sites and operating systems, including all Unix-based system, which in turn includes Mac OSX and Linux, to help set time and adjust for time zone differences. ICANN has said that it will deal with any legal issues as they arise.

3: Labour Unveils ICT Policy

Finally today, in New Zealand, the Labour Party has released its ICT policy statement and, according to it, if elected, the party will remove the “three strikes” clause recently passed in the country and do a complete review of the Copyright Act with an eye on introducing a completely new copyright bill in 18 months. The Labour Party has been a long-standing opponent of the law but currently only holds a minority in the House of Representatives.

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.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 5 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: U.S. Copyright Czar Cozied Up to Content Industry, E-Mails Show

First off today, a Freedom of Information Act request by researcher Christopher Soghoian has unveiled that administration representatives, including the current Copyright Czar, Victoria Espinel, worked in tandem with both the entertainment industries and ISPs to broker the recent “six strikes” deal. That deal has ISPs volunteering to forward notices and possibly cut access of those accused repeatedly of copyright infringement. The involvement was widely speculated on, but the emails reveal both exactly how close the ties were and how little involvement was seen from public interest groups, such as Public Knowledge, who seem to have been brought into the discussion as an afterthought. The deal, which was struck in July, was an agreement between the nation’s largest IPSs and largest copyright holders and is not binding under law.

2: Govt Considers ‘Streamlined’ Piracy Policy

Next up today, in Australia Federal Attorney-General Robert McClelland is calling for a streamlined process for copyright holders to obtain information about potential infringers from their ISPs. McClelland wants to amend the Copyright Act to alter the safe harbor protections so that ISPs have legal motivation to provide the information under a copyright-holder pays system. The system would according to McClelland, would come with judicial oversight and legal safeguards against misuse of information. Submissions for discussion on the proposal are being accepted until November 22nd.

3: Artists Battle Over Credit for Jobs Tribute Logo

Finally today, the dispute over the Apple logo with Steve Jobs silhouette, which became very popular shortly after his death, is starting to get more interesting. At least three designers are reporting to have created the logo and, as reported earlier, one has already filed a registration with the U.S. Copyright Office over it. Though it was originally credited to Jonathan Mak, two others, Chris Thornley and Farzin Adell have also claimed to have created it (the latter being the one who registered it). However, all three seem to acknowledge that it was a likely coincidence the others came up with the same idea and there seems to be no actual animosity.

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.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 5 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: CommsAlliance Joins iiNet Copyright Case

First off today, the Australian communications trade group Communications Alliance has petitioned the High Court to participate in the iiNet vs. AFACT case. iiNet, a major ISP in Australia, was sued by the Australia Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT), which alleged that the ISP had enabled and encouraged piracy on its network. Lower courts refused to hold iiNet liable but the appeals court laid out a set of rules by which an ISP could, at least in theory. CommsAllicance is hoping that an industry solution to the issue can be in place sometime in early 2012.

2: Former Marin Man Files Copyright for Jobs Image

Next up today, a Los Angeles man named Farzin Adeli has filed a copyright application with the U.S. Copyright Office for an image of Steve Jobs silhouetted in the Apple logo. The image, created in remembrance of Steve Jobs after his death became a viral sensation shortly after it was uploaded to Facebook. However, there are serious questions about the application as it is unclear if Adeli owns or has clearance on the rights to the elements of the images and other artists created similar works at the same time and before. Adeli has also set up an eBay store to sell items with the image, wich all of the profits going to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.

3: China’s Angry Birds Tablet is 7 Inches of Copyright-Infringing Fun

Finally today, Shenzen Technology Company, a Chinese manufacturer, has released a seemingly-unlicensed Angry Birds Tablet. The 7-inch tablet not only features the Angry Birds imagery on the box but also includes all, or nearly all, of the existing Angry Birds games, including many knock-offs. Roxio, the makers of Angry Birds, have not released a statement about the tablet though it seems unlikely the company authorized its creation.

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.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 5 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.