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

Outside the weather is getting cooler, the leaves are turning and so too the seasons change for copyright. With an insane week of for copyright news we have an update on ACTA, after a nearly year-long period of silence, a possible “one strike” law in Italy and a guilty pleas from one of the NinjaVideo admins.

All in all, this is an episode you do not want to miss, especially if you’re interested in international copyright news.

This week’s stories include:

• ACTA to Be Signed Tomorrow in Japan
• New Italian Law May Mean “One Strike” for File Sharers
• Former NinjaVideo Admin Pleads Guilty
• Oracle Says Damages in Google Case May Reach $1.2 Billion
• Righthaven Loses in Colorado Too
• $10 Copyright Settlements?

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: Italy Prepares ‘one Strike’ Anti-piracy Law

First off today, several copyright groups are warning that a new law proposed in Italy could result in the banning of Internet users after just one allegation of copyright or other intellectual property infringement. The law, which is currently before committee, is backed by the party of Italy’s President and could require ISPs to blacklist alleged infringers and to install filtering applications to block infringing content. Reports also indicate that the law is on a fast track through the legislature though it’s still in the very early stages.

2: Oracle Says Damages in Android Dispute May Be $1.2 Billion

Next up today, Oracle has clarified the damages it’s seeking in its case against Google, saying that Google was wrong in its claim that they were seeking $2 billion and indicating instead the actual amount is $1.2 billion. According to Oracle, which sued Google over alleged copyright and patent violation of their JAVA language in Google’s Android operating system, Google’s liability is approximately $202 million in patent damages, $136 million in copyright damages and some $823.9 million in profits from copyright infringement. Settlement negotiations have been taking place between the companies but it is unclear if they will be continuing.

3: Usher Seeks To Avoid Trial By Jury For Copyright Lawsuit Over “Burn”

Finally today, lawyers for Usher, Jermaine Dupri, and Bryan-Michael Cox are making a final effort to avoid going to a jury trial over a lawsuit involving Usher’s 2004 single “Burn”. According to the plaintiff in the case, Ernest Lee Straughter, Usher’s song is based on the 1999 track “No More Pain”, which in turn is based on alleges that Usher’s 2004 #1 single “Burn” copies “No More Pain,” a 1999 song that is in turn based on Straughter’s “The Reasons Why.” Though Usher and his fellow defendants likely will prevail, they filed a motion disputing exposure to the song saying that, “The fact that the song had virtually no radio airplay forecloses any inference that it was widely disseminated, let alone remotely popular.”

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.

1: U.S. Top Court to Hear Costco-Swatch Copyright Case

First off today, the U.S. Supreme Court has decided to hear the ongoing case between warehouse retailer Costco and watch maker Swatch. At the heart of the case is Costco’s importation of Swatch products, which included a small logo. According to copyright law, copyright holders can object to the importing/exporting of copyrighted works. Swatch claims that Costco’s buying and selling of its products is a copyright infringement but Costco claims that the watches, which were obtained through intermediary sellers, are covered under the right of first sale, which guarantees a buyer the opportunity to resell a copyrighted work provided no copies are made. Costco lost the case in the Appeals Court and the Department of Justice had encouraged the Supreme Court not to take the case.

2: Both Sides Claim Victory in Rome Court’s Privacy Ruling

Next up today, a court in Rome has ruled that Italian ISPs are not obligated to disconnect file sharers but are obligated to pass along information to prosecutors and the communications ministry. While this seems to be a split verdict, and both sides are claiming victory, the practical results are less clear as copyright holders are free to give the information themselves, with out the ISPs working as a middle man. However, the ruling could become moot if Italy adopts more stringent copyright laws, including some of the provisions being proposed in ACTA.

3: Canadian Artists Call on Federal Government to amend Copyright Act

Finally today, Canadian musicians are encouraging the government to amend the country’s copyright law to include a levy on MP3 players and other music devices. The levy they are requesting is one that has been specifically declined in the upcoming changes to copyright law, despite having been mentioned previously. Canada currently has such levies on blank CDs and DVDs.

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: Judge: ‘HOPE’ Artist Under Criminal Investigation

First off today, Shepard Fairey, the artist who created the iconic Obama “Hope” poster is now being investigated by a grand jury over his admitted lies to the court about which photograph was used and for allegedly falsifying evidence. It is unclear the exact charges Fairey may face, if any, but the judge has said that it will not affect is ongoing civil proceedings with the AP, who sued him for copyright infringement over the poster.

2: Baidu Cleared in Copyright Infringement Case Brought by IFPI

Next up today, the Chinese search engine Baidu has been cleared of copyright infringement in a Chinese court in a case brought by the IFPI for Baidu’s deep linking to illegal MP3 files. According to the ruling, there is nothing illegal under Chinese law about linking to infringing material. The IFPI filed a similar suit in 2005, where it was ruled that the files were not infringing.

3: Internet Companies Voice Alarm Over Italian Law

Finally today, a new law from Italy that is scheduled to be approved next month would make it the responsibility of ISPs and sites, including those like YouTube, to monitor for copyright infringement by their users and hold them liable if they fail to do so. Concerns are being expressed that this could negatively impact Italy’s already-struggling digital economy.

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.

1: Pirate Bay attorney outlines arguments for appeal

First off today, one of The Pirate Bay attorneys has outlined his arguments for the appeal. At the forefront is the alleged conflict of interest regarding the judge. However, they are also arguing that the site does not actually encourage anyone to commit a crime and, therefore, should no one should be guilty of assisting in copyright infringement.

Swedish law, however, makes the bar for assisting in a crime very low so it remains to be seen if the latter argument will fly and the judge, whose bias has been called into question due to memberships with several pro-copyright organizations, claims he was only a member to share his knowledge. However, it does seem that argument has a much better chance of working.

The attorney involved, who is representing Peter Sunde, is also arguing that his client was just a spokesperson for the site and did not provide any technical assistance. All four of the defendants are filing separate appeals though each will likely touch on many of the similar issues.

2: Music Piracy Controversy Surrounds Charity Fund Raising

Next up TorrentFreak is reporting on two conflicting stories involving music and charity.

The first takes place in Italy, where a severe earthquake killed hundreds earlier this year. Artists banded together and produced a for-charity song entitled “Domani 21/4.09″ that is going to help victims of the quake. However, the song leaked onto P2P networks and this has been used as a publicity opportunity by an Italian music lobbying group to accuse the file sharers of trying to deprive the charities of money.

The second takes place in Spain, where a charity concert we held to send a young man with a degenetive brain disease to the U.S. for treatment. The concert raised approximately $75,000 but the SGAE, a royalty collection agency in the country, sought to collect 10% of the royalties. Though the organization eventually agreed to donate the money back to the cause, essentially negating the amount given, it was only done so after intense public pressure.

It is worth nothing that these two organizations, apart from being in two different countries, play very different roles. One is a lobbying and representative firm while the other collects royalties on behalf of rights holders, which has been accused of overly-aggressive tactics in the past.

3: Music Industry’s Plea for Pirate Bay Damages Backfires

Finally today, the plaintiffs The Pirate Bay case have begun to file for collection of amounts awarded to them in the trial, this even though the case is currently under appeal. The defendants have already filed saying that they should not be able to use the Swedish Enforcement Authority at this time as the appeal is ongoing.

However, in the meantime, a site has sprung up asking people to make very small donations to the law firm instigation the collections and then request a refund citing wrongful payment. The idea is to drive up the accounting charges at the law firm so the collection is unprofitable.

If is unclear what, if anything the law firm can do to stop these tactics should they become common, but the law does grant people the right to demand their funds be returned in this manner. Many are calling this a DDO$ attack, named after a form of Internet-based attack that locks out service by overwhelming it with meaningless traffic.

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.

It was once again another big week for copyright news as Chris and I struggle to condense it all down into a bite-sized one-hour podcast for your listening pleasure.

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

This week’s stories include:

• DVR as a Service Gets Reprieve
• Plagiarizing Newspaper Gets Shut Down
• Italy Blocks The Pirate Bay
• The Record Industry Explores New Models
• Bavarian Mayor Gets Caught Plagiarizing
• 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

It was once again another big week for copyright news as Chris and I did our best to condense a massive linkroll down into a one-hour show filled with our usual mix of news, view and abuse.

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

This week’s stories include:

• The Controversial College Funding Bill Passes Congress
• Scrabulous Morphs into WordScraper
• “Italian Pirate Bay” goes Down
• Oink Uploaders Go Free
• Buckcherry Slips Up
• 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

It seemed even most of the serious news came with a lighthearted spin as even The Pirate Bay, indicted this week by Swedish prosecutors, didn’t take the news heavily.

Remember, as usual, this week’s linkroll is a “raw” link list. Some stories are duplicated, some do not point to their original sources and some may not be accurate. A great deal of refining goes into producing the show notes for the Copyright 2.0 Show.