COPYCENSE

"The trade group that represents Hollywood’s major motion picture studios is expected to announce on Thursday that it intends to file as many as 230 lawsuits in coming weeks against individuals who have illegally shared copyrighted movie files over the Internet, according to two people involved in the proceedings.

"It would be the first time that the Motion Picture Association of America, which represents the major studios, including Warner Brothers Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment and Paramount Pictures, has sued individuals for sharing files, one of the people said.

"By putting Internet users on notice that they face fines or other stiff penalties for offering movies for others to download, the industry hopes to thwart the same problems that plagued the recording industry three years ago when executives did not respond quickly enough to the threat of piracy."

Laura M. Holson. Film Group Said to Plan Suits Aimed at Illegal File Sharing. The New York Times. Nov. 4, 2004.

See also:
Katie Dean. Movie Lawsuits on the Way. Wired News. Nov. 4, 2004.

Center for Democracy and Technology. CDT Supports Enforcement Actions Against Copyright Infringers, Calls for Measured Actions and More Lawful Alternatives. Nov. 5, 2004.

(Editor’s Note: The Times allows free access to their stories on the Web for seven days before sending the stories to the paper’s fee-based Archive.)

SNTReport.com™ The Online Journal for Social Software, Digital Collaboration & Information Policy. A Seso Group™ Venture.

"Shares of PalmSource, the handheld operating system developer, dipped Monday on an investment bank’s report that said key licensee PalmOne will–in addition to using PalmSource’s product–begin using Microsoft’s operating system for handhelds in its Treo line of devices.

"PalmOne representatives disputed the contents of the research note, from Needham & Co. The note said that PalmOne ‘tacitly admitted’ it was working to make Microsoft’s operating system available on the popular Treo line of phones. The devices currently use PalmSource’s Palm OS, and PalmOne is PalmSource’s biggest customer.

"The two companies used to be one firm but recently split from each other, in order to be more flexible."

Richard Shim. PalmSource Takes Hit on Investment Report. News.com. Nov. 1, 2004.

SNTReport.com™ The Online Journal for Social Software, Digital Collaboration & Information Policy. A Seso Group™ Venture.

"Lawyers for music industry players claimed that Stephen Cooper received ‘hundreds of millions of hits’ per year to his allegedly illegal music download site, MP3s4free.net, as the long-awaited federal court case against the retired policeman kicked off Monday in Sydney.

"The case first came to the court system’s attention on Oct. 17 of last year, when Music Industry Piracy Investigations (MIPI), which suspected Cooper of music copyright infringement, raided his premises.

"Music industry lawyers say the Web site was first identified as a copyright law violator in December 2002, after it was picked up by MIPI’s Internet surveillance activities."

Abby Dinham. Alleged Pirate Faces Labels in Australian Court. News.com. Oct. 26, 2004.

See also:
Abby Dinham. Expert Witness Embarrassed on the Stand in Cooper Copyright Case. ZD Net Australia. Oct. 29, 2004.

SNTReport.com™ The Online Journal for Social Software, Digital Collaboration & Information Policy. A Seso Group™ Venture.

"Billboard magazine now sees ring tones as worth including in its venerable top-seller listings.

"The music industry magazine will soon be publishing a list of best-selling ring tones, alongside its more traditional categories, like best-selling album.

"Ring tones are among the biggest hits in the market for cell phone services and content.

Ben Charny. Billboard Chimes in on Ring Tones. News.com. Oct. 26, 2004.

See also:
National Public Radio. Cell Phone Ring Tones Top the Charts. All Things Considered. Oct. 28, 2004.

SNTReport.com™ The Online Journal for Social Software, Digital Collaboration & Information Policy. A Seso Group™ Venture.