Music industry wants to treat file sharers as terrorists

[Steve]

Music and move industries are trying to convince European Parliament members that a proposed directive on data retention should be broadened to allow them to use retained data to prosecure sharers of copyright material.

The directive would, in its present state, allow the authorities to recover data on the phone calls made, e-mails sent and websites visited by a person, to aid them in combatting terrorism. Passing legislation on this alone is raising human rights issues and privacy concerns. However, media companies would like to be able to use retained data on file sharers.

Both BBC News and The Register have interesting articles on the matter, The Reg quoting Suw Charman, founder of the Open Rights Group as saying "The industry is attempting to pervert this legislation, to back up a failing business model...".

We want to hear what you think. It might be worth noting that Sony BMG, who have been in the spotlight recently for their rookit CD debacle, is one of the members of the group after these changes to the directive.

So, should the music industry be able to do whatever it must to protect itself, or is this a disproportionate measure?

[JPreston]

This is disgusting, the register sums it up:

"...the door is officially open for the entertainment industry to use legislation designed to protect European citizens from terrorists to prosecute them instead."

Not content with treating all of it's customers like criminals Sony and pals now want to criminalise everyone else as well. It's obscene that the CPS should have to waste public money on defending Sony's commercial interests.

[TheAnimus]

This is why you shouldn't have laws designed to fight terrorists, that can be applied unilaterally to everyone.

Less terror in law making imo.

[JPreston]

This is why you shouldn't have laws designed to fight terrorists, that can be applied unilaterally to everyone.

Less terror in law making imo.

...that's why it irritates me when people on the right drone on about the 'civil rights brigade' and 'human rights lobby' as though No2ID, EFF and Liberty etc are radical terrorist organisations...people are very cavalier about infringing human rights when they think it's only someone's elses rights at risk.

These laws always work against normal folk when lobbies like the RIAA/MPAA/whoever else get involved because they work along the lines that if you have nothing to hide, then you support their agenda...."You're either with Sony, or with the terrorists"

Anyway,

[Aurhinius]

terrorist laws are important but any law is prone to abuse. At the end of the day the law is only as good as those using it.

I think it is crazy to think that Sony are prepared to go to such lengths. I realise they loose money to pirates but at the end of the day they earn a packet too and it is not like they are on the bread line.

Perhaps if they sold their CD's cheaper people would not be pirating.

I think you need to be realistic about these things and accept you will have a proportion of pirates no matter what you do. The fact that they spend so much combating it just makes you laugh.

[TheAnimus]

The point i'm making Aurhinius is all law should be anti terror, they shouldn't be emotionally/irrationally motivated, thats when dangerous things happen.

[sanchezxxx]

Instead of criminalising consumers who just want music why don't the record companies add value to their product? 12.99 is a rip off for a plain cd. Maybe if all releases included a booklet with lyrics, band info, poster etc and the music videos on the disk then people would be more inclined to purchased a cd at full price. Until the notion of value is addressed and there is no diferentiation between pirate and retail products piracy will reign king. Sorry Sony but you know it's true.

[autopilot]

Well if we did subscribe to this crazy logic, i would say Sony should be done for terrorism for its Rootkit.

Completely insane. Never mind this issuse of P2P being right or wrong, it's in no way connected to terrorism. Complete load of b*****ks.

[directhex]

This is why you shouldn't have laws designed to fight terrorists, that can be applied unilaterally to everyone.

Less terror in law making imo.

how *dare* you say something i actually wholeheartedly agree with?

[JPreston]

Well if we did subscribe to this crazy logic, i would say Sony should be done for terrorism for its Rootkit.....

Well, while perhaps not quite 'terrorism' I wonder how many military, police, or government PCs around the world have been compromised by it? What will be the cost to the treasury in each of these countries to remove Sony's rootkit from these affected systems? How much will Sony contribute towards this cost? If it were not Sony but a common-or-garden virus-writer who was responsible for this, would he not be subject to criminal proceedings and likely imprisonment? Where are the law enforcement agencies who should be protecting us taxpayers from these illegal strong-arm tactics? Too busy prosecuting children for using Kazaa no doubt...

[jonneymendoza]

well i have only had a quick skim read of the above first post and alll i can is its very bad. the music industry at the moment sucks.. i cant remeber a decent album or song that has come out of recent. And with albums costing around £11- £12 for a 10 track album is a straight rip off. if their gunna tackle people who download illegaly like terrorists than there will be alot of angered people around. more or less 3/4 of people in general download...

Instead of criminalising consumers who just want music why don't the record companies add value to their product? 12.99 is a rip off for a plain cd. Maybe if all releases included a booklet with lyrics, band info, poster etc and the music videos on the disk then people would be more inclined to purchased a cd at full price. Until the notion of value is addressed and there is no diferentiation between pirate and retail products piracy will reign king. Sorry Sony but you know it's true.

totaly agree mate, nowadays the cd booklet only has like 4 or 5 lame pages with no lyrics and just barely have song credits in them....

[specofdust]

I wish someone would get angry and set up a direct action group that dealt with these executive record industry f***s.

Corps have far far far too much power over law making these days, imo they should make lobbying by corporations illegal, too many laws are being created to suit these money grabbing arsewipes.

[TheAnimus]

jonneymendoza:
http://www.play.com/play247.asp?pa=s...ur&page=search
A great album, at £9.

(which is still way to high imo)
(and yes i'm fan boying them at the moment!)

[JPreston]

I wish someone would get angry and set up a direct action group that dealt with these executive record industry f***s....

Looks like there is ; http://www.openrightsgroup.org/

I'm going to email my MEP ( http://www.writetothem.com/ ) on this subject, something I've never considered doing before. They work for us, their electorate, not the lobbyists but if none of us speaks up none of us can complain about the legislation we end up with!

[nichomach]

This is exactly why the principle informing any lawmaking should be not what is its capacity for good if enforced by good people, but what is its capacity for harm should it fall into the hands of the bad.

[Oresa]

With the speed and accessability of the internet, the vast majority of us really shouldn't have to deal with record companies and games publishers anymore. What needs to happen is for the artists to start selling their music online, without any involvement from the record companies.

If an artist gets £3.50 every time you buy a £12.99 cd from a high-street store, wouldn't it make sense for both parties if it were possible to pay, say, £4.00 online, for the same album, cutting out the record company, and the retailer (both of whom take grotesque profits from something they really had no hand in making).