Silverwolf's Auditorium

From Techdirt:

It would appear that the recording industry now likes to call any sort of business model it doesn't like "piracy." At least that's the only explanation I can come up with in its latest battle, where it has referred to traditional radio as "a form of piracy." It's almost too bizarre to be true, and that's before we even explain how this involves a (literal) can of herring.

I still just don't understand this kind of thinking.  The recording industry wouldn't even exist if it were not for Radio making it's artists popular.  In fact the status-quo in the past 50 years is for the Record Labels to pay radio stations to play their artists more often in order to make more money selling CD's.

From Techdirt:

Earlier this year, a court agreed to examine whether or not the fines the RIAA is asking for in its lawsuits against people accused of file sharing is constitutional (that whole "cruel and unusual" bit). The RIAA, in response, has fought hard to keep from revealing any information about how much a download really costs, but a judge isn't having any of that and has ordered the RIAA in the UMG v. Lindor case to turn over the data.

Anyone who is unbiased on these issues will tell you that the numbers the RIAA is seeking (and in one case was awarded) are clearly ridiculous.  Songs sell for 0.99 each on iTunes and any demand for more than three times that is extremely excessive.

Downloading 24 songs from the Internet should be a $72.00 fine, but in this case the RIAA was awarded over $200,000 from a single mother.  Would any unbiased person anywhere say that isn't excessive ?

From USA Today:

Romantics band sues 'Guitar Hero' publisher By Brian McCollum, Detroit Free Press

Imitation might be flattery, but that doesn't make the Romantics any happier about it. The Detroit rock band has sued the publisher of the popular video game Guitar Hero, claiming the game infringes the group's rights by featuring a sound-alike recording of the hit What I Like About You. The lawsuit against California-based Activision, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Detroit, seeks unspecified damages for use of the sound-alike recording. It's one of about 30 hit tunes featured on Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s, released in July for Sony PlayStation game consoles. The band is also seeking an injunction against the game, which could take the bestseller off store shelves in the thick of the holiday shopping season. In the game, users try to play along to songs with a guitar-shaped controller. Activision has used a mix of original band recordings and cover versions in its Guitar Hero series, an award-winning line that debuted in 2005. Copyright isn't the issue for the Romantics. The band's attorneys said Activision properly secured permission to use the song What I Like About You, which allowed it to record a cover version. But by creating an imitation so much like the Romantics' original, they said, the company has infringed the group's right to its own image and likeness.

Ok, make sure you read the part where they admit that Activision had properly secured permission to create a cover of the song for the game.  The band is suing on the grounds that the cover that they produced sounded too much like the real thing.  Does this make any sense to anyone ?  Clearly this is a blatant attempt by a forgotten band to wring even more money out of a song they created more than twenty years ago, Let it go already you greedy bastards.

I guess they blew all their money already, it's really just pathetic.  The added fact that they are also seeking an injunction to prevent sales of the game is just mean-spirited, it isn't likely to get them any additional cash, it'll just hurt Activision that much more.

Oh, and congratulations, you have earned a place on my list.

From Techdirt:

While Congress' new bill on education funding may not be as bad as some are making it out to be, it still seems quite questionable that Congress appears to be regulating the idea that universities need to do the kind of marketing and educational campaigns that the recording industry cannot. We've asked supporters of the bill to explain how it could possibly make sense to mandate such things, and the MPAA's top lawyer, Fritz Attaway, has given his answer, claiming that it's because the internet is "used primarily to allow college students to traffic in infringing content," while being subsidized by gov't funds.

From Techdirt:

The Free Software Foundation has now decided to create a fund (for which it's seeking donations) to help pay for expert witnesses to combat the RIAA's evidence in cases. Lawyer Ray Beckerman, who has been quite vocal in fighting the RIAA will help advise the fund and determine which lawsuits deserve money from the fund for an expert witness. It's really too bad that such a fund is even needed -- and it should (though won't) be a wakeup call to the recording industry to see that so many people are sick of these lawsuits that they would fund such a thing in the first place.

This is fantastic news, and it shows that people are starting to come together to fight against the RIAA.  The RIAA may have enormous resources at their disposal, but they can never hope to win against a unified front of millions of Americans who have finally had enough.  It's time to stand up and Fight for our freedom like our four-fathers before us. 

"The strength of the Constitution lies entirely in the determination of each citizen to defend it. Only if every single citizen feels duty bound to do his share in this defense are the constitutional rights secure."
—Albert Einstein