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

1: Megaupload Data Could be Deleted Starting Thursday

First off today, according to government sources, Megaupload’s data, including the files of its millions of users, could be deleted by Thursday. The move comes as the government says that it is done accessing the data that formerly made up Megaupload’s site and the contractors that were helping host the site can not be paid as the company’s assets are frozen. As such, they’ve asked permission to delete the data to make room for other customers. However, Megaupload’s attorney is hoping to find a way both use the files in Megaupload’s defense and to make the files available again to the users who uploaded them, so they won’t be lost forever.

2: Copyright Industry Calls For Broad Search Engine Censorship

Next up today, in the UK, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport gave a proposal to the major search engines including Google, Bing and Yahoo to ask them to de-rank or remove search results for sites that routinely infringe copyright and to bolster the ranking of legitimate sites. According to the proposal, such an effort would already be in line with their existing policies on favoring sites meet certain quality standards. Critics of the proposal, however, are calling this a form of search engine censorship. However, the proposal is non-binding at this time and is merely a suggested set of guidelines for the search engines to follow.

3: Triple Town developer Files Copyright Infringement Suit Over Yeti Town

Finally today, the gaming company Spry Fox has filed a copyright infringement suit against competing game maker 6Waves LOLAPPS over a case of alleged plagiarism. According to Spry Fox, they were in talks with 6Waves LOLAPPS to have the latter publish a game created by Spy Fox named “Triple Town”, which was already a popular Facebook game. However, according to Spry Fox, 6Waves LOLAPPS took the opportunity to develop a clone of the game named “Yeti Town” and then publish it to the iOS App Store, beating Spry Fox to that market. Finally, also according to Spry Fox, 6Waves LOLAPPS sent a message via Facebook to break off negotiations about Triple Town the day Yeti Town was published.

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: Yahoo! Counter-sues SPH in Copyright Lawsuit

First off today, U.S. search engine Yahoo! has filed a counter-suit against Singapore publisher SPH. SPH had previously sued Yahoo over some 23 articles that it claims were reproduced substantially on Yahoo!’s sites. However, Yahoo! has now countered saying that the amount copied only extends as far as facts and information, which are not copyrightable, but also cited two articles and an image that appeared on an SPH citizen journalism site though they originated from Yahoo!. Yahoo! also said that the two sides tried to work out a licensing agreement in 2009 but were unable to come to an agreement.

2: File-Sharing Company Sues Record Label, for a Change

Next up today, Megaupload has filed a lawsuit against Universal Music claiming that the record label filed unlawful takedowns of a music video posted to YouTube by the cyberlocker service. The video, which had several big name artists coming out in support of the controversial service. However, Will.i.am, one of the artists in the video, claims he didn’t give his authorization to appear and Universal claims to have filed the takedown over the unauthorized reproduction of a performance by one of their artists, likely Will.i.am. However, Megaupload claims to have gotten releases from all of the artists involved and is seeking damages from Universal over the takedown.

3: YouTube Pulls Official The Last of Us Trailer Due to ‘Copyright Claim’

Finally today, in another case of a questionable YouTube DMCA takedown, the official trailer for the upcoming game “Last of Us” was taken down due to a copyright complaint, even though it was uploaded by Sony. However, even though the takedown was reportedly from Viacom, it appears that it may have been a mistake from Sony who, after being notified of the issue, apologized for it and had the video restored. No word if it was Sony who filed the takedown and, if so, why Viacom was listed as the filer.

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 a search engine marketshare of less than 10%, Yahoo! is already largely seen as irrelevant when it comes to general search, especially since it began outsourcing its search results to Bing!

However, there is at least one area where Yahoo! has remained a critical player: Plagiarism detection.

Simply put, many of the most popular plagiarism detection services take advantage of Yahoo! Search Boss API (Application Programming Interface), which has made creating a plagiarism detection service both affordable and relatively simple.

So, as Yahoo!’s future hangs into balance, so does the future and capability of many of the Web’s best-known plagiarism detection services including Copyscape, Plagium, PlagScan and PlagAware, all of which use Yahoo! either exclusively or in part to find their results.

To be clear, there’s no immediate threat to Yahoo! BOSS and its closure has not even been mentioned. This is purely an academic exercise.

However, with such uncertain times ahead for Yahoo!, the question gets raised, what would a Yahoo!-less plagiarism detection landscape look like? The answer isn’t very clear.

Why Yahoo! is Important

Without using a search API of some sort, a plagiarism detection service would have to crawl websites and create its own index, a time-consuming and expensive process that would cause the services to be prohibitively expensive. Fortunately, most major search engines offer APIs that enable plagiarism checkers, as well as other services, to tap into their indexes for a relatively easily and cheaply.

Many plagiarism detection services began using Yahoo! BOSS over competing offerings for a simple reason: Cost.

Historically, Yahoo! BOSS was a free service. But, even after Yahoo! began to charge for the service (shortly after it began to use Bing for search results) the cost of using Yahoo! BOSS was still many times cheaper than using Google’s Search API.

This is why many of the best-known plagiarism detection services are built either in whole or in part on Yahoo! BOSS.

This cost is important because performing a single plagiarism check, usually, requires multiple API queries (the exact amount depends on how the service handles queries, the length of the work involved and other factors). As such, these API costs often become a major expense for these services.

But more than just a cost issue, the presence of a competing API to Google also offers a different perspective. Being able to tap multiple indexes of the Web rather than just one has the potential to ensure the maximum number of results are returned, especially since the different indexes often catch different content.

In short, without the Yahoo! Boss API, we are likely looking at a much more expensive and more limited future for plagiarism detection.

What Does a Yahoo!-less Future Look Like?

If Yahoo! BOSS were to go away, the future is definitely a difficult one for many plagiarism detection services.

Some, such as Copyscape and Plagium, already mix results from multiple sources (Google/Yahoo! and Yahoo!/Bing respectively) and would likely just lose some of their fidelity in their results. Copyscape would, arguably, be in a better position than most as it began life using the Google API.

Others, such as PlagAware and PlagScan, both of which use (or seem to use) Yahoo! exclusively would be forced to write a completely new backend for their service. This could have a drastic impact on how they detect duplicate content and how effective they are (better or worse).

Higher-end services, like Attributor, which use their own index of the Web would be unaffected by any change or closure of Yahoo! BOSS and may even have their position strengthened.

All in all though, there would be a major shuffle ahead for plagiarism detection services as they looked to fill the void left by Yahoo! BOSS.

Where Would the Refugees Go?

Those who depend on Yahoo! BOSS, if they wanted to stay open, would have a tough choice ahead of them as there are only two (major) providers who would remain.

1. Google: Google’s API is definitely robust, as is Google’s index, but is also much more expensive than Yahoo! BOSS.
2. Bing: Bing’s API is much less established and not as well regarded as Google’s but it is free for unlimited queries, just as Yahoo! BOSS was. However, the API’s TOU may pose challenges in some cases, specifically related to advertising requirements.

In short, for developers it’s a choice between an established and robust API that is more expensive and a newer one that comes with limitations on how the results can be used.

Most would likely go with Bing as it is the most natural replacement (especially since Yahoo! results come from Bing) but it remains to be seen if Bing’s results can compare with Yahoo! or Google’s for this purpose.

That would be something very interesting to test in the future.

Bottom Line

To reiterate the good news, there’s no immediate threat to Yahoo! BOSS at this time so all of the above is merely hypothetical. There has been no talk of closing Yahoo! BOSS and, given that it currently is a revenue generator for Yahoo!, it isn’t likely to be first on the chopping block.

That being said, the turmoil at Yahoo should give cause for concern to those who rely on the Yahoo! BOSS and the time may well be now to start looking at alternatives.

After all, if the end of Yahoo! BOSS does come, it will likely be sudden and it may be difficult for companies that rely on it to quickly reconfigure their products.

Even if it seems unnecessary at this time, preparing for the possibility may be the best move these services can make.

1: Time Warner Facing Copyright Infringement Charges?

First off today, Time Warner Cable is facing accusations that it is committing contributory copyright infringement by the U.S. Copyright Group. The USCG is filing a series of massive lawsuits against alleged file sharers and has sent a subpoena request for some 809 IP addresses, which Time Warner says is burdensome and should require separate filings for each suit. The USCG has said that Time Warner’s lack of cooperation is an attempt for the company to bill itself as a safe haven for piracy and, as a result, it is committing contributory copyright infringement.

2: Columbia GS Grad Speaker Stole Patton Oswalt’s Joke

Comedian Patton Oswalt is well-known for not taking plagiarism of his work lying down and when Columbia University valedictorian Brian Corman gave a graduation speech that lifted one of his jokes almost word-for-word, he didn’t back down. He not only received an apology from the student but also caused the school to add a disclosure to the YouTube clip of the speech, indicating that the content was misused and the school does not approve of the use. This is almost certainly not how Corman wanted his graduation speech to be remembered.

3: Yahoo, Facebook Others Back YouTube In Copyright Lawsuit

Finally today, Google has gained some new allies in its fight against Viacom over alleged infringement at YouTube. Many of the company’s rivals, including Facebook and Yahoo have signed on to an amicus brief supporting the company in its fight. According to Viacom, especially in the early “pre-Google” days of YouTube, the site turned a blind eye to infringing material uploaded to the service and established a business on the misappropriated content. Google, the new owners of YouTube, claim that the site is protected by the DMCA safe harbor protections and is not liable.

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.

As I mentioned last week, the “Stopping Internet Plagiarism“, has been a cornerstone of the site since day one, explaining the ins and outs of fighting plagiarism and other misuse of your content, but it has also fallen into disrepair due to age and neglect.

Last week, I began the process of overhauling and repairing the damage. I fixed the main SIP page as well as the first three chapters. Today I’ve gone through and done the same for the last three, namely the Contacting the Host, When All Else Fails and The Long Haul pages.

In these chapters the changes were much more minor than in the first as there hasn’t been many significant changes in the law or technology in these areas. Instead, most of the changes were to the formatting, grammar and for clarification.

As with the first round, I wouldn’t call these updates a complete rewrite, most of the original text is still there, even more so in this case.

The changes included in this update are:

1. Updated the Contacting the Host page to better integrate in the stock letters.
2. Removed the section about “Causing a Ruckus” from the “If All Else Fails” as it is no longer a policy I agree with.
3. Updated search engine statistics and links in the “If All Else Fails” page.
4. Added information about Zoho Creator to the “The Long Haul” page.
5. Edited for styling and added images to every page.

Please let me know if you have any thoughts of suggestions for this section as these pages are easily among the most popular on the site and I want to make sure they are some of the best Plagiarism Today has to offer.

Sometime soon, I plan on doing the same to the Your Copyrights Online section but I have no definite timetable now. I’ll post more information as I come up with a more firm plan.

1: French Solution to Illegal Download and Copyright Infringement – Tax Google and Yahoo

First off today France, who is no stranger to controversial proposals for dealing with piracy on the Web, has recommended the taxing of search engines such as Google and Yahoo! to help fund legal alternatives for obtaining copyrighted works. This comes as from a panel that was commissioned to study the issue of online piracy and devise solutions for the issue.

The tax would be similar to taxes in other countries on VCR tapes, blank CDs and other media. Surprisingly, according to the article, Google seems fairly comfortable with the idea though it is unclear what the record and movie studios will say about it.

In addition to this proposal, France is also at the forefront of the “3 strikes” debate, recently having passed its second law that would disconnect file sharers repeatedly accused of infringement. The first one was stricken for constitutional reasons and the second includes judicial oversight.

2: Report: Google/Viacom Case Set For Ruling

Next up today, there are rumors that the Viacom v. Google case is possibly heading for an early conclusion. There are reports that both sides are requesting a meeting about their motions for a summary judgement, hinting that the judge may issue such a judgement, avoiding a trial completely.

Viacom sued Google over YouTube, citing over 60,000 clips that it accused of infringing their copyright and later claimed to have found evidence that YouTube employees were aware of the infringement and/or had uploaded the clips themselves. Possibly eroding their safe harbor status under the DMCA and exposing them to potential liability.

But while the case is possibly heading to an end soon, what is unclear is which side is the likely victor as both have elements of their case that are pretty strong. Needless to say, we will be following this closely over the next few days/weeks to see what happens.

3: Senator Demands IP Treaty Details

Finally today, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon), has sent a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk asking him to confirm or deny leaks about the ACTA treaty, which is being negotiated by the U.S., EU and other major copyright nations.

Those leaks have included concerns that the treaty may force ISPs to disconnect alleged file sharers, similar to France’s three strikes regime, as well as other restrictions on copyright.

The treaty, however, does not need congressional approval, meaning its impact on U.S. law should be almost nil (changes to law must have congressional approval) but the Senator still wants to know what is in the treaty, especially considering it has been shared with private citizens and corporations, including those on all sides of the copyright debate.

Kirk’s office has said that they are looking forward to responding to Sen. Wyden’s letter and will do so shortly.

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 hectic week for copyright news last week with both a major merger and a mega lawsuit getting the Web buzzing. We also have a surprise from The Pirate Bay, a potential blunder from Yahoo! and much, much more. It’s definitely an episode you don’t want to miss.

Please note that there were some minor technical difficulties this week. I was recording in the middle of a very strong thunderstorm that can be heard during parts of the podcast as a hiss on the mic. It does clear up (as the skies did) later in the podcast.

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:

• Apple Buys Lala
• Canadian Record Labels Face Multi-Billion Dollar Lawsuit
• Yahoo! Files a Controversial Takedown Demand
• Bratz Get a Reprieve
• Google Makes Nice with the Record Industry
• 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.

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

1: The Pirate Bay Will Not Appeal Order to Remove Torrents

First off today, for reasons not completely clear, The Pirate Bay admins have decided not to appeal a Dutch judgment requiring them to remove certain infringing torrents and block access to Dutch users. This comes one month after a similar ruling was handed down against Mininova, which forced the site to go “legit” and limit its torrent activity to those uploaded by users.

However, this does not mean that The Pirate Bay will meet the same fate as enforcement may prove difficult in this case. Not only does BREIN nor even The Pirate Bay’s own attorneys know where they are located right now, thus why BREIN notified them of the ruling via Twitter, but the three men sued claim to no longer operate the site.

The ruling gives The Pirate Bay a deadline of March 1, 2010 to remove the infringing torrents, list to be provided by BREIN, so we will have to wait and see what comes of it.

2: Yahoo Issues Takedown Notice for Spying Price List

Next up today, Yahoo! may have stepped into the Streisand Effect. The company has filed a DMCA takedown notice against Cryptome, saying that the site’s posting of their 17-page data retention policy, which outlines what user data is retained, for how long and how much the government is charged for access to it when required, is an infringement of their copyright.

Cryptome responded saying that they could not find “a grant of copyright” from the Copyright Office for the document. However, this is a clear misunderstanding of U.S. Copyright law as no such “grant” is required for any purpose other than suing and collecting statutory damages. Yahoo! counsel responded, calling the delay “unwarranted”.

But even though Yahoo! may have the right to demand such removal, what is less clear is if it is a wise move. Other ISPs on the site have taken no such action and the move seems to have only drawn more attention to Yahoo!’s practices in this area.

Cryptome is yet to respond to Yahoo!’s latest letter, which is dated December 3rd.

3: Could Copyright Reform Win Buy American Battle?

Finally today, Scotty Greenwood, the executive-director of the Washington-based Canadian American Business Council, has an interesting theory that connects sewage pipes and copyright policy, at least in terms of trade agreements.

Part of President Obama’s $800 billion stimulus package included a controversial “Buy American” clause that required goods and services to be purchased from within the country when stimulus money was spent. This has been a major headache for Canada, the U.S.’ largest trading partner, and has even resulted in sewer pipes made in Canada being ripped out of the ground to be replaced by U.S.-made ones.

However, Greenwood thinks that the entire matter can be resolved “tomorrow” if Canada passes copyright reform that grants more protection to copyright holders, especially U.S.-based industries. Canada was recently added to a blacklist of countries with lax laws preventing the piracy. He thinks that, with real copyright reform, the U.S. may be willing to negotiate on its Buy American rules.

Greenwood, however, does not represent his counsel or anyone else in saying that. Still, his opinion does carry clout with many in the field. However, with the Canadian Parliament due to recess shortly, no new copyright legislation seems imminent.

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 including a receont controversy at Flickr, updates on the potential sale of The Pirate Bay and a new study from the EU that paints a very bleak picture of the future of content industries.

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:

• Flickr Removes Obama Photo, Creates Controversy
• The Future of the Pirate Bay is Spelled Out
• Yahoo! Gets a Win on Royalties
• China Puts “Tomato Garden XP” Pirates in Jail
• The “RIAA Approved” Tenenbaum Mixtape
• 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: Coalition to challenge Google Books settlement

First off, opposition to the Google Book Search settlement continues to grow but now we’re seeing not just authors in other countries, but heavy hitters right here at home. Microsoft, Amazon, and Yahoo are joining up with the Internet Archive and several library associations to oppose the settlement. All of this is taking place under the co-helm of antitrust lawyer Gary Reback. This is according to Peter Brantley, the Internet Archive’s director.

The settlement, which is between Google and the Author’s Guild and the Association of American Publishers, allows Google to scan and display portions of in copyright but out of print books. In return authors and publishers get paid a small amount for each book scanned as well as receiving ad revenue and royalties from sales.

Opposition to the deal has been growing since it was announced, largely from authors, domestic and foreign, unhappy with the deal and competitors, such as the Internet Archive, who fear they will be unfairly shut out of the book scanning business.

2: Flickr v. Free Speech. Where Is Their Courage?

Next up today, we have some updates on the Flick/Obama photo controversy but it doesn’t seem to be doing much quell the uproar.

Flickr has confirmed in a forum comment that they received a DMCA takedown notice over the image, which pictured Obama with photoshopped face paint to make him look like Heath Ledger’s Joker, but did not say from who. There are several potential parties who could have sent such a notice, including the person who created the Photoshop work itself, which was reportedly done for a Photoshop tutorial and not a political statement, though it later came to be used as such.

However, as the article points out, Flickr went above and beyond in removing the work here, including deleting the page the work was featured on, along with its comments. A lot of material not in dispute was lost for this reason. The Flickr account holder, according to Flickr, is free to file a counter-notice and have the work restored. This seems likely as there would be a strong fair use argument for the photograph, especially if the rightsholders to the original image were the ones filing.

Despite this, many have said that Flickr should have stood by its user on this one, keeping the image up given the fair use issues and have accused Flickr of wanting to remove the image, as they have allegedly done with other anti-Obama accounts.

3: China Jails, Fines Distributors of Pirated Software

Finally today, Microsoft is hailing a piracy conviction in China. Hong Lei and Sun Xianzhong, founders of Chengdu Gongruan Network Technology Co. and two others were fined 11 million Yuan and sentenced to two and a half years in prison for pirating software, including Microsoft Windows, which was repackaged for free as “Tomato Garden Windows XP”.

China, though now the second largest PC market by shipments, has been a tough market for Microsoft and others to break into. Microsoft, according to the article, has already tried to lure in would-be pirates with steep price cuts, up to 70% off in some cases, but the underground market still thrives in the country.

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.