It is Friday again and that means that it is time for another episode of the Copyright 2.0 Show.

There’s a recurring theme this week of things either coming back from the dead, trying to come back from the dead or looking at issues that people thought were dead. A strangely fitting theme as we get closer and closer to Halloween.

This includes an appeal that could resurrect the Viacom/YouTube lawsuit, the U.S. Copyright Czar being “cozy” with copyright holders during a critical time and the Time Zone Database being brought back to life after being shutdown due to a lawsuit.

All in all, this is one episode that you do not want to miss!

This week’s stories include:

• Viacom and YouTube Have Appeal Heard
• Copyright Czar “Cozy” with Copyright Holders Leading up to “Six Strikes”
• Michelle Bachmann Joins Chorus Opposing PROTECT IP
• Jail Sentence Confirmed for Pirate Bay Founder
• Time Zone Database Returns Thanks to ICANN
• Much, Much More!

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: 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: White House Will Propose New Digital Copyright Laws

First off today, the Obama adminstration, through its intellectual property enforcement coordinator, Victoria Espinel, is preparing to début a set of laws regarding digital copyright. Though the laws haven’t been announced, a recent report by Espinel has shown what is widely considered a “pro industry” stance, hinting that the laws will likely be an attempt to clamp down on piracy through stronger legislation. According to reports, the law is due to be sent to Congress “in the very near future.”

2: Emma Thompson Battles Playwright Over ‘Effie’ Film

Next up today actress and screenwriter Emma Thompson is heading to court to make the case that her newest film, “Effie”, is not a plagiarism of Gregory Murphy’s earlier play “The Countess”. The producers of “Effie” sued Murphy and are seeking a declaratory judgment that the film is non-infringing because, according to them, Murphy’s lawyers have hounded the production of the film and interfering with it. According to the producers, this is the last step needed to secure financing for the flim and enable filming to start.

3: Mardi Gras Costumes Inspire Photographers – and a Copyright Claim

Finally today, in an update of a story that hits close to home for me, several Mardi Gras indians, individuals who work all year to create elaborate headdress-style costumes for Mardi Gras, have copyrighted their creations and are planning on pursuing those who sell photos or paintings of their artwork. Historically, costumes and dress items can’t be copyrighted but their attorney, Ashlye Keaton, has registered them with the Copyright Office, claiming them to be works of art, not costumes. It remains to be seen if this angle will be enough to stop the calendar makers and the artists who have sold reproductions and images of the costumers for years.

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 6 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: US Copyright Group Drops Cases Against Thousands of BitTorrent Users

First off today, the U.S. Copyright Group has dropped some 97% of the John Does in its case over the alleged file sharing of the movie Far Cry. This includes some 4,437 that were dismissed without prejudice, leaving only 140 in the suit. The reason was personal jurisdiction, meaning that most of the people in the suit either couldn’t be identified or they lived outside of the court’s jurisdiction. However, since the suit was dropped without prejudice, the U.S. Copyright Group is free to file again, including in another district, which is likely the next step.

2: White House to Continue Copyright Crackdown

Next up today, White House “Copyright Czar” Victoria Espinel has announced that the administration will be taking additional action to close down sites of counterfeiters and pirates. This comes after the seizure of some 82 domains by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement last week, hinting at the possibility of additional seizures in the near future. Specifically, Espinel promised additional announcements in the coming weeks and appears to be working with payment processors and other parties in a bid to stop counterfeit goods.

3: Single Software Licence Shared 774,651 Times

Finally today, computer security company Avast has announced that it discovered a 14-seat license for its antivirus product, sold to a business customer, was pirated over three-quarter a million times and used in over 200 countries, including the Vatican. The company decided to watch the license spread and not close the key down and has since used popups and other notices to try to nudge those using the key to either switch to their free software or pay for a full license. Though there is no indication as to how many customers have signed up, Avast seems pleased with the result saying things are going according to their plan.

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 6 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: Google Takes FTC to Task Over Journalism’s Future

First off today, Google has weighed in on an FTC discussion paper that offers several solutions to “save journalism” as the FTC puts it. According to Google, the problems faced by newspapers and other print publications is caused not by copyright issues, but by market forces and the loss of monopoly control over a territory. Google believes that newspapers should come up with business solutions, not rely on regulation and that “hot news”, a limited form of copyright on normally-uncopyrightable facts gathered at expense should not be a part of copyright law.

2: IP Czar Targets Overseas Pirate Sites

Next up today, Victoria Espinel, the U.S. Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator or “Copyright Czar” as she’s often known as, had a hearing before the House of Representative’s Committee on Foreign Affairs where many of the Congressmen were eager to get “meat and potatoes” solutions for copyright enforcement with problem nations but Espinel was forced to admit that “There are no new simple answers” as she put it. Instead, she focused on existing diplomatic options, including the WTO, and other proposals, such as blocking visas for some students, fell flat.

3: Draft Filesharing Code Flawed, Says Open Rights Group

Finally today, Ofcom, the regulators responsible for drafting much of the codes for enforcing the Digital Economy Act in the UK, has been told by the Open Rights Group that their most recent draft doesn’t meet the standards set forth by the law, specifically in outlining the standards of evidence used to target file sharers. According to the ORG, this could mean subpoenas being sent out on insufficient evidence and users being targeted without proper cause.

Special Thanks

You may have noticed the snappy new logo for the 3 Count today. It comes from Justin Goff over at Cloud Junkies. Many thanks to him for his efforts and for licensing the logo under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. (Though he did wave attribution rights for me, I’m going to use it under the CC license moving forward.)

Many thanks to Justin for the cool new logo! It is exactly what the 3 Count needed.

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 6 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.

1: Beyonce’s Record Company Puts a Ring On Her YouTube Channel

First off today, Beyonce’s official YouTube channel suffered a blow as Sony, Beyonce’s label, ordered the removal of her video for “Put a Ring on It”. The takedown appears likely to have been in error though the video remained down all weekend. However, contrary to the article’s title, the majority of Beyonce’s channel appears to be unaffected, including other music videos, as it is just the one video that is down. Unfortunately though, it happens to be the most recent one.

2: Big Content: Stopping P2P Should be “Principal Focus” of IP Czar

Next up today, the day before the deadline, the RIAA, MPAA, Directors Guild, Screen Actors Guild, and other groups filed their recommendations to Victoria Espinel, the Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator for the Obama administration at the request of her office. According to their filing, the “principle focus” of the new office should be to “turn the tide” against P2P file sharing. The relatively thin filing, only two pages, cites four studies, which are viewed as dubious the author of the article, and gives each industry a chance to report its own loses due to P2P file sharing.

3: Economists Urge Government to Stop War on Piracy

Finally today, even as the major content players in the U.S. were filing a petition for greater enforcement of P2P, two economists in Spain were publishing a report calling for eased restrictions on copyright and an end of the war on file sharing. According to the report, such a clampdown benefits major copyright holders “at the expense of users and lesser-known artists” and time would be better spent developing new business models. The report comes as Spain, which has legal non-commercial file sharing, is considering new legislation to clamp down on file sharing sites.

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 Saturday morning for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Monday morning right here on Plagiarism Today.

Victoria Espinel, the United States Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator, sometimes referred to as the “Copyright Czar”, has announced a round of public comment on copyright and copyright-enforcement related issues.

Specifically, Office of Management and Budget (and the Executive Office of the President) are seeking feedback on the following topics:

• “Identifying the costs to the U.S. economy resulting from infringement of intellectual property rights, both direct and indirect, including any impact on the creation or maintenance of jobs.” As well as health and safety issues created by the infringement of copyright, both in the U.S. and abroad.
• “Recommendations for accomplishing one or more of the objectives of the Joint Strategic Plan.” Those objectives include, among others, reducing the supply of infringing goods, reducing the number of countries that fail to enforce intellectual property, disrupting infringement networks and increasing the efficiency of U.S. enforcement.

The requests also lists some 20 supplemental topics for comment, including many that deal with ways to improve IP enforcement coordination between various government agencies and information about new technologies that may help the government enforce intellectual property better.

The deadline for comments is March 24, 2010 at 5 PM. Submissions should be sent via email to intellectualproperty at omb.eop.gov. Please note that all submissions will be published online so do not provide any confidential information in any submissions you file.

You can view the full call for submissions here (PDF) and for further information you can call Thomas L. Stoll, Office of the
Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator. His contact information is in the full PDF.

Personally, I am debating whether I should submit a comment or not. Though much of the information requested lies outside of my particular area of work, there are some questions, including many of the supplementary questions, that I have thoughts on that might be of use. If I do file such a submission, I will post it here as well.

In the meantime, I highly encourage anyone who has something to say on these topics and can provide the required information to consider writing in. This is a very rare moment for U.S. Copyright Law where public opinion is being so openly sought and I encourage those interested in these topics to take advantage of the opportunity.

Have a suggestion for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: Senate Confirms Espinel as First IP Enforcement Coordinator

First off today, Victoria Espinel has been confirmed by the U.S. Senate to be the country’s first copyright czar. She is the first person to fill that position, created in the PRO-IP act, which was passed in 2008 under the Bush administration, and was also Obama’s first choice for the job.

Espinel was a fairly non-controversial choice, well-respected by both copyright industry heads and copyright reform groups as a balanced candidate for the job. She previously served as an advisor on intellectual property issues to the staff of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senate Finance Committee, House Judiciary Committee and House Ways and Means Committee according to the article.

Her confirmation had been widely expected and is now official.

2: Coyote System Condemned for Copyright Infringement

Next up today, a French court has ordered Coyote Systems, makers of “speed alert” GPS systems that notify users when they are traveling too fast and speed cameras are nearby, to pay rival manufacturer GPS Prevent €75,000 for copying and selling a database owned by the company to a third party.

What is interesting about the case is how GPS Prevent proved its arguments, namely by including three false GPS coordinates for cameras that didn’t exist, a copyright easter egg of sorts.

The third party company was not held liable for any infringement and the ruling does not affect any of Coyote’s current products.

3: Creasing up: Banking on a Funny Photo with the ‘Moneyfacing’ Craze Sweeping the Web‘

Finally today, The Daily Mail seems to have kicked up some controversy after an article printed regarding “Moneyfacing”, which is where half-folded bank notes are placed in front of real faces and photographed, used images from Flickr user Thom Shannon’s profile without his permission and without attribution.

Shannon posted a comment to the article objecting to his photos use but Daily Mail has not taken any action. Shannon has reuploaded his images to now include a watermark, which provides a URL to the original source.

Six of the nine demonstration images used in the Daily Mail article are Shannon’s and all are available either at or near full-size. I am going to research this issue further and write a more complete article next week.

Hat tip: ap4a (Thanks!)

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 Saturday morning for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Monday morning right here on Plagiarism Today.

It is Monday again and that means that it is time for another episode of the Copyright 2.0 Show.

It was a busy week for copyright news with tons of great stories from around the world including a major update to the Google Book Search settlement, a new Copyright Czar, four stories from the rap world and a rather shocking lawsuit against Scribd.

All in all, there were thirteen stories this week including news from all over the copyright world including our “Weird Story of the Week”.

This week’s stories include:

• Google Book Search Settlement to Drawing Board
• Copyright Czar Appointed
• Eminem’s Publisher Squares Off with Apple
• More Bias Accusations in Pirate Bay Appeal
• Guess Who Sued Scribd?
• And Many more…

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.

1: Study finds pirates 10 times more likely to buy music

First off today, a new study from Norway found that those who pirate music are ten times more likely to purchase music than their non-downloading counterparts. The study, which only looked at Internet users over the age of 15, examined whether a user had downloaded free music, legally or illegally, and then asked for proof of any purchases.

If this study is accurate, then it is possible that pirates are actually a major buying force for the record labels. It also comes hard on the heels of the verdict in The Pirate Bay trial as well as new decision in Norway that will make it easier for copyright holders to get information about file sharers.

2: Biden promises ‘right person’ as new U.S. copyright czar

At a recent event Vice President Joe Biden said that the administration, “Will find the right person for intellectual property czar.” While what he said isn’t very controversial, the fact that he said it at a Hollywood gala seems to indicate what he means by the “right” person.

The Obama administration, already signaling a much more industry-friendly approach to intellectual property than many had hoped, has the duty of appointing someone to coordinate the administrations IP policy and it seems likely, much like with the RIAA-friendly DOJ attorneys, that this person will be very sensitive to the needs of large copyright holders and very controversial among copyright reformers.

3: Sorting out the Pirate Bay verdict

Finally today, we get a bit of extra commentary today on The Pirate Bay verdict and several things become a bit more clear.

First, the the four men were convicted due largely to the very relaxed standards for conviction of “assisting” in a crime in Sweden. In a previous Swedish case, a person was convicted of assisting in mayhem solely for holding the perpetrator’s coat.

The prosecutor was able to easily meet the standard set forth by the law, backed up by The Pirate Bay’s own emails and public statements. They were able to show that The Pirate Bay had knowledge of infringing torrents, were in a position to act and did nothing. This, combined with the providing of the search engine and the bitorrent tracker, was enough for the courts.

We also get the opinions of Swedish legal experts who say that, though there will likely be two appeals, it is highly unlikely that the verdict will be altered over overturned in any meaningful way. Apparently, legal experts feel that the verdict is solid enough to stand up to the appeals, or that simply few cases get overturned on appeal.

If this is true, the case could drag on for many years without much in the way of major developments.

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.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Saturday morning for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Monday morning right here on Plagiarism Today.