Archive for March 2006
Google’s Records Requested In Another Case
In a lawsuit brought by the Federal Trade Commission, a federal judge has ordered that Google divulge the entire contents of a Gmail account, including deleted e-mail messages. The subpoena, which is unrelated to the Department of Justice’s own subpoena to Google for search terms and excerpts from its search database, is the second time in a month that the search giant has had a court demand records from its vast database.
As BusinessWeek Online‘s David Holzman noted in an article we linked to last week, one of Google’s biggest future legal and business challenges will be the ability to keep its database content private and out of the hands of competitors and third parties, including government and law enforcement agencies. Part of the competitive advantage Google enjoys is buoyed by public trust. This trust will erode quickly if Google cannot find a way to keep its data private.
Declan McCullagh. Police Blotter: Judge Orders Gmail Disclosure. News.com. March 17, 2006.
See also:
CopyCense. Google Faces Increased Legal Challenges. March 16, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
Michael Geist Analyzes “Clip Culture”
Michael Geist, law professor at the University of Ottawa, has penned an interesting column on the rise of “clip culture.” As I understand it, “clip culture” is a term that describes the rise and pervasiveness of image and video sharing. Presumably, Flickr and YouTube are two of the Web sites that best manifest the rise in “clip culture.”
Writes Geist
Most of the videos on Youtube and other video sharing services are not full-length features. Instead, taking their cue from the movie studios and sports networks, the overwhelming majority of videos are shorter clips running anywhere from a few seconds to a couple of minutes.
The clips themselves fall into three broad categories. Homegrown or “amateur” clips constitute a significant percentage of the collection as the mushrooming of user-generated content moves from blog postings to innovative multimedia featuring audio and video. Montage videos, which represent the next-generation of protest and fan sites, constitute the second category. A Youtube search for President George Bush yields hundreds of videos, many of which bring together multiple clips to make powerful political statements. Meanwhile, a similar search for NHL rookie sensation Alexander Ovechkin produces dozens of compilations of highlight reel goals.
The third category — clips of network television shows — has generated the most controversy. Video sharing sites contain thousands of clips that previously aired on television. In some instances, the clips appear with the approval of the broadcaster either because the clip is available for a fee (some Google Video clips are available for purchase) or because the broadcaster has embraced the benefits of free publicity and cost-free distribution.
Geist acknowledges the thorny legal implications inherent in the third category, which CopyCense has covered elsewhere. But instead of challenging the legality of the third category of clip culture, Geist sagely calls for a reexamination and reaffirmation of the fair use doctrine.
Michael Geist. The Rise of the Clip Culture. March 19, 2006.
See also:
CopyCense. Comparing YouTube & Napster. March 16, 2006.
CopyCense. YouTube’s Questionable Copyright Business Model. Feb. 7, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
Canadian Study Finds Most People Rip Their Own Music
“While the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA) regularly trumpets commissioned studies as evidence for the problems posed by P2P, this week it released a major study without any fanfare whatsoever. What makes this particular study interesting is that much of the data challenges many familiar CRIA claims.
“The survey asked for the sources of music on people’s computers. Among those who download music from P2P services, the top source of music was ripping copies of their own CDs (36.4%), followed by P2P downloads (32.6%), paid downloads (20.1%), shared music from friends (8.8%), downloads from artist sites (5.6%), and other sources (2.9%). In other words, even among those who download music from P2P services, the music acquired on those services account for only one-third of the music on their computers as store-bought CDs remain the single largest source of music for downloaders.”
Michael Geist. CRIA’s Own Study Counters P2P Claims. March 17, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
Thespians Seek Cash from iTunes Kitty
“As president of the Screen Actors Guild, Alan Rosenberg has become a warrior in the digital age. Allied with Hollywood’s other two major unions, the Writers Guild of America and the Directors Guild of America, Rosenberg intends to be the latest — and most conspicuous — speed bump on Hollywood’s digital highway.
“Elected last September on a pledge to “fight like hell to get actors their fair share,” the 55-year-old actor says in his gravelly New Jersey accent that he hopes to increase the amounts that studios pay creative folks for downloads to iPods, computers, and cable systems. For Hollywood, which is banking on digital downloads to make up for slowing DVD sales and a sluggish box office, the message is clear: Your partners want their slice of the pie.”
Ronald Grover. Dibs On The Download Dough. BusinessWeek Online. March 20, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
MPAA Faces Hostile Audience at SXSW
“One of the most interesting panels at SXSW Interactive 2006 was The Future of Darknets, moderated by JD Lasica. In fact, we never actually got to hear much about DarkNets, much to my disappointment, because the panel was hijacked the moment one panelist said, ‘Hello, my name is Kori Bernards, and I’m from the Motion Picture Association of America.’
“What followed was an hour-long firing squad as one audience member after another directed angry questions her way. The feeling of pent-up frustrations with the movie biz was palpable, especially as her claims of flexibility and excitement within the MPAA to find ‘creative new solutions’ to the problems raised by the audience rang more and more hollow, the more times she repeated them.
“A couple times I almost felt sorry for her.”
Powazek. SXSW to MPAA: STFU. March 15, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
Crichton Assails Patent System
Elevated homocysteine is linked to B-12 deficiency, so doctors should test homocysteine levels to see whether the patient needs vitamins.
“Actually, I can’t make that last statement. A corporation has patented that fact, and demands a royalty for its use. Anyone who makes the fact public and encourages doctors to test for the condition and treat it can be sued for royalty fees. Any doctor who reads a patient’s test results and even thinks of vitamin deficiency infringes the patent. A federal circuit court held that mere thinking violates the patent.
“All this may sound absurd, but it is the heart of a case that will be argued before the Supreme Court on Tuesday.”
Michael Crichton. This Essay Breaks the Law (Op-Ed). The New York Times. March 19, 2006.
See also:
U.S. Supreme Court. Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings v. Metabolite Laboratories, Inc., et al. (No. 04-607). Docketed November 5, 2004.
Patently-O. LabCorp v. Metabolite: Supreme Court To Hear Patent Case Questioning Patentability Of Medical Method. Oct. 31, 2005.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
French Seem Ready to Open iTunes DRM
“As French lawmakers completed the text of a new copyright bill early Friday morning, supporters of open-source software claimed a victory of sorts, while others lamented the coming criminalization of peer-to-peer software.
“Measures in the bill could force companies using DRM to publish details of the system, letting other manufacturers to develop interoperable systems. The measures are widely seen as aimed at companies such as Apple Computer Inc. By refusing to disclose details of its FairPlay DRM system, Apple effectively shuts out competitors from developing digital music players that can play music downloaded directly from its iTunes Music Store, or from selling DRM-protected music that will play on an Apple iPod.
Peter Sayer. French Bill That Could Open iTunes Ready. InfoWorld. March 17, 2006.
See also:
Thomas Crampton. France Drafts Copyright Law, But What Does It Mean? International Herald Tribune. March 17, 2006.
Yahoo! News. Apple’s iTunes Could Tune Out In France Over Proposed Law: Experts. March 17, 2006.
Updates:
Freedom to Tinker. Bernard Lang Reports on the Proposed French DRM Law. March 28, 2006
Australian IT. Uncle Sam Backs Apple. March 24, 2006.
Bill Rosenblatt. French Parliament Passes DRM Interoperability Legislation. DRM Watch. March 23, 2006.
Yahoo! News. French Copyright Law “State-Sponsored Piracy”: Apple. March 22, 2006.
Elinor Mills. Apple Calls French Law ‘”State-Sponsored Piracy.” News.com. March 22, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
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