Beaker has always been my second favourite Muppet, my favourite being of course the Swedish chef (ask me sometime to do my impersonation). That is why I loved this video: As with all great videos, it has a serious point. Social media can be empowering, but whenever I take a Read more
Just on the coattails of Roadshow Films v iiNet, we are about to get another landmark ruling on ISP liability. If there was any doubt that we are witnessing a legal struggle between intermediaries and content owners, we can lay those doubts to rest. Sabam v Tiscali has been a Read more
As was mentioned last week, we have been expecting an important ruling with regards to internet service provider (ISP) liability from Australia. Behold Roadshow Films Pty Ltd v iiNet Limited [2010] FCA 24. This is a case of tremendous importance because it is one of the first skirmishes in the Read more
A world without privacy has often been depicted as part of a dystopian nightmare in various works of speculative fiction. Yet when we are suddenly thrust upon a world where the very notion of privacy seems to be melting before our very eyes, the public’s response is not one of Read more
Oh dear, so Apple has released a new product, and the techie blogosphere has gone crazy. The early verdict seems negative, with various people pointing out the many features that it does not have, but to me Hitler sums it up nicely when he says that it is an over-sized Read more
Things are heating up in the fight against piracy in the UK. Virgin Media has announced that it will use deep packet inspection (DPI) software to analyse whether its customers are sharing copyright infringing material. Privacy International has brought this practice to the attention of both the European Commission and Read more
Anyone who has been paying attention to the War on Piracy will have noticed that the emphasis has shifted from the user to the internet service provider. As content owners discovered that attempts to enforce their rights against users backfired and/or had no noticeable effect, they began returning to the Read more
The COMMUNIA project has published The Public Domain Manifesto. I reproduce the preamble: “Le livre, comme livre, appartient à l’auteur, mais comme pensée, il appartient—le mot n’est pas trop vaste—au genre humain. Toutes les intelligences y ont droit. Si l’un des deux droits, le droit de l’écrivain et le droit Read more
I recently wrote about a story that appeared in BoingBong and Michael Geist’s blog about Costa Rica being forced by the United States to pass maximalist IP legislation through the imposition of sugar import restrictions. Diego Delfino of the excellent site 89 Decibleles has posted a response to my claims. Read more
Quick reminder that the Open Rights Group is holding a meeting in Edinburgh this Sunday: How to talk to your MP and get them to change the Digital Economy Bill (Edinburgh) Sunday, January 24, 2010 from 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM (GMT) Gain the confidence to talk and write to Read more