DMCA to now allow websites to be shutdown WITHOUT EVIDENCE AND WITHOUT INVESTIGATION

[Son Goku]

http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/30943.html

Court confirms DMCA 'good faith' web site shut down rights
By Ashlee Vance in San Francisco
Posted: 30/05/2003 at 05:39 GMT

A U.S. court has extended the power of the DMCA even further with a ruling this week that backs up copyright holders' ability to shut down a Web site on "good faith."

InternetMovies.com had asked the District Court for the District of Hawaii to require that copyright holders investigate infringing Web sites before shutting them down. This rational request was rejected by the court, as its granted the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) and any other DMCA zealot the right to put the clamp on Web sites at will.

"This decision rules that the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) does not require a copyright holder to conduct an investigation to establish actual infringement prior to sending notice to an Internet Service Provider (ISP) requiring them to shut-down an allegedly infringing web site, or stopping service all together to an alleged violator," InternetMovies.com said in a statement.

In the land of the DMCA, a "good faith belief" of infringement makes it possible to hijack a Web site without investigation.

This decision seems to have thrown a large chunk of the Internet into a virtual Guantanamo Bay. The U.S. military describes its Cuban compound as the least worst place, which is an apt take on where Internet users appear to be.

InternetMovies.com claims to have provided little else other than movie trailers to upcoming flicks. Some would characterize this as a service for the movie industry, but the MPAA saw things in a different light.

After issuing several cease and desist orders, the MPAA shut down InternetMovies.com in 2001. The movie site then fought back by filing a lawsuit against the MPAA last year, claiming it did not provide copyrighted content to users at all.

Despite the recent setback, InternetMovies.com plans to continue the legal battle with the MPAA by filing an appeal with U.S. Court of Appeals of the Ninth Circuit here in San Francisco.

The company hopes to cut off a path for various DMCA zealots trying to shut the Internet down.

"This has serious implications to university campuses as many students and faculty use the school as ISPs and any copyright holder can seek to lawfully shut down whole university networks or obtain individual identity without an investigation under the protection of the DMCA," InternetMovies.com said in the statement.

This recent decision builds on a disturbing trend where no Internet user is safe from copyright holders' prying eyes.

For example, four Ohio State University students had their computers seized in a raid earlier this month and have yet to be charged with a crime. They've been banned from using the Internet at school and still have not received their kit back.

It's dangerous out there on the Web these days. Please, dear readers, surf with caution. ®

[1stFlight]

I remember in the old days, we had this thing called. "due process". Wherein, if you were accused of a crime it had to be proven before legal action could be taken against you or your property. I guess this is another example of the government, (both parties) needing some more toilet paper... :(

[DaveW]

Originally posted by Son Goku
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/30943.html


Thats nice, but by quoting the content of another website without their legal consent you have infringed on their copyright. So, under the authority of new DMCA powers, I demand that this forum be taken down immediately.

[Hanners]

Originally posted by DaveW
Thats nice, but by quoting the content of another website without their legal consent you have infringed on their copyright. So, under the authority of new DMCA powers, I demand that this forum be taken down immediately.

You quoted San Goku's post without his permission - This forum is really done for now. :(

[LORD-eX-Bu]

its always these stupid liberal courts on the west coast doing all this crap. Totally stupid:lame:

[netviper13]

Originally posted by [eNv]-LORD-eX-Bu
its always these stupid liberal courts on the west coast doing all this crap. Totally stupid:lame:

Liberal? Oh no, you're not going to pin this fiasco on liberals, it was the damned conservative congress that passed this pathetic excuse for a bill so you're definitely not going to pin it on the liberals. I haven't seen any true liberals crusading against music trading anyways, Tipper and her sappy excuse for a husband are both conservative as hell even though they're democrats. None of the other morons who want trading stopped are true liberals either; the way I see it, the democratic party anymore is made of ~95% conservatives/moderates and ~5% true liberals.

Regardless of a liberal or conservative issue, it's a problem for all of us. Perhaps Orwell was right about Big Brother...

*update*

Just to back my contentions up, I found this in an article at theregister (same site as in this post)

Flack Infested Waters
When conservative US Senator Orrin Hatch (Republican, Utah), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, sponsored a particularly twisted piece of legislation called the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) back in 1998, it was immediately clear that the powerful recording and movie industry lobbies had managed, finally, to get their wish-lists signed into law.

Hatch's DMCA is a veritable masterpiece of internal inconsistencies, contradictions, and fraudulent assurances purporting to protect the 'fair use' of copyrighted material, clearly written by recording and movie industry flacks who have since delighted in splitting the hairs and treading the thin edges as they assail the very 'fair use' which the Act so touchingly, and impotently, bleats about.

[LORD-eX-Bu]

LMAO, so wait... you are calling the courts here conservative?:rofl

[netviper13]

Supreme Court? Hell yes. Most courts in California? Probably not. What I am saying is that court affiliations don't matter because their rulings would not exist if it wasn't for one Orrin Hatch, conservative Orrin Hatch.

Listen, your blaming the liberals makes no sense. Being liberal is all about being open to new things. The idea of intellectual property is most challenged by liberals, especially the side you hate: the more-extreme leftists.

[legion88]

Originally posted by netviper13
Supreme Court? Hell yes. Most courts in California? Probably not. What I am saying is that court affiliations don't matter because their rulings would not exist if it wasn't for one Orrin Hatch, conservative Orrin Hatch.

Listen, your blaming the liberals makes no sense. Being liberal is all about being open to new things. The idea of intellectual property is most challenged by liberals, especially the side you hate: the more-extreme leftists.

Individuals of a certain religiously-motivated idealogy have a need to blame others for their own stupidity and for their own stupid actions. This is not to say that they are all on the same page; they are not. They just have a need to blame others for what they did.

Just look at the 6.6 trillion dollar debt that we have. Just look at the ~300 billion dollars a year we taxpayers spend on just paying the interest. What do the low foreheads do? They blame "liberals" while at the same time, increase spending on things they want (like more money for religious education).

[DaveW]

Stuff like the DMCA is all about protecting the profits of big companies. This sort of thing is done by conservatives. Something like charging an employer with racism because he used the term "black out" when the lights went out. Thats the sort of stuff done by liberals.

[ricercar]

Thats nice, but by quoting the content of another website without their legal consent you have infringed on their copyright.

This turns out not to be strictly true. US copyright laws protect the concept of "fair use" which is pretty broad, and includes the ability to quote sources without consent in brief passages that are attributed. "Fair use" is why copycenters like Kinko's aren't shut down as patently illegal.

Unfortunately, since the copyrighted Register article was reproduced here without permsiion in its entirety, it's a straightforward copyright violation.

We're all doomed.

[GlowStick]

I do have one question, dose this mean.

I could make a crappy home movie or a crappy song of me singing an orginal. Copy right it (im not actually sure how you do that, if someone knows please let me know) then have the RIAA's website and the MPAA's website shut down on good faith, i belive i saw them providing my copyrighted video and song on their websites..... NO I DONT NEED PROOF.

[DaveW]

Originally posted by GlowStick
I do have one question, dose this mean.

I could make a crappy home movie or a crappy song of me singing an orginal. Copy right it (im not actually sure how you do that, if someone knows please let me know) then have the RIAA's website and the MPAA's website shut down on good faith, i belive i saw them providing my copyrighted video and song on their websites..... NO I DONT NEED PROOF.

Anything you create is automatically copyrighted. The problem is that should someone steal it you have to be able to prove it. The best way is to register your work at the copyright office, which costs about 30 bucks.

[Kruno]

This doesn't apply to aussies. :)
Our court system is different and they had better be able to sue me here in Oz. :)

[GlowStick]

Originally posted by K.I.L.E.R
This doesn't apply to aussies. :)
Our court system is different and they had better be able to sue me here in Oz. :)

OMG, you stole that post, every word you used was stolen.

Have you ever heard of a book called the DICTONARY!!!!

hehe just havieng fun : )

BTW, if this DMCA crap holds up, i forsee webster prepareing lawsuits like that in the very near future : O

[Themlasu]

Guys you are all quoting someone without their expressed writen consent...Stop trying to get nVnews shut down.:rolleyes:

1stFlight the due process went out the window the day that large media companies bought Washington...wait I mean donated money to our most honest and truthful politicians. That sit on capital hill looking out for the best interest of us all. :rolleyes:
[/sarcasm]


Remember boys and girls
"Don't steal, the government hates competition"

[GlowStick]

Originally posted by Themlasu
Guys you are all quoting someone without their expressed writen consent...Stop trying to get nVnews shut down.:rolleyes:

1stFlight the due process went out the window the day that large media companies bought Washington...wait I mean donated money to our most honest and truthful politicians. That sit on capital hill looking out for the best interest of us all. :rolleyes:
[/sarcasm]


Remember boys and girls
"Don't steal, the government hates competition"

Nicely put!

I do agree, I dont see why Movie and Recording industrys cant take some compatition. I have to say the Movie industry adapted very well and is beating pirated stuff by a long shot.

THe music industry just REFUSES to make a better product. They could sell DVD/CD combos, put extra art content, the dvd's can have live consert video etc.

The Movie indutsry adapted by.

DVD's come with Artwork, and a TON of extras, such as deleted sceens etc, and now they push them out close to movie release dates.

Why cant the Music industry adapt?

[PsychoSy]

The way I see it, both Democrats and Republicans looooooove the DMCA. Obviously loved it enough to pass it with flying colors. I don't recall the Republican party doing much to stop the DMCA back in 1997. As a result, it's one of those US against THEM type of laws.

[GlowStick]

Originally posted by PsychoSy
The way I see it, both Democrats and Republicans looooooove the DMCA. Obviously loved it enough to pass it with flying colors. I don't recall the Republican party doing much to stop the DMCA back in 1997. As a result, it's one of those US against THEM type of laws.

Well as long as they get their kickbacks, and they get their kickbacks as long as they keep as big industries make alot more money.

[omghi2u]

The DCMA can suck my balls.

[Rampant CL]

What rights does this give the DMCA and other shutter downers fro sites hosted from non US servers?? Are they affected or is it US based only? Does it apply to P2P networks or only sites?

Anyone got answers?

[Kruno]

Originally posted by omghi2u
The DCMA can suck my balls.

I plan to. ;) :lol: