Remember How ACTA Wasn't Supposed To Be A 'Major' Change To Copyright Laws?

from the yeah...-not-so-much dept

Wed, Apr 15th 2009 7:21am — Mike Masnick

One of the excuses given by the various trade representatives negotiating the ACTA treaty for the fact that they were keeping it quite secret, was that it wouldn't represent any significant change to copyright laws, and thus it was no big deal. Yet, the various drafts of the proposed treaty have suggested otherwise. TorrentFreak examines one of the latest leaked drafts and notes that it would require agreeing nations to change copyright laws concerning damages, pushing judges to consider every unauthorized file to be considered as a lost sale for the calculation of damages. This is a key point that plenty of folks have made clear over the years: assuming that every shared file would have been a lost sale is absolutely false. Putting that into the law and suggesting judges use that false concept as a basis for calculating damages is quite troubling. In the meantime, we're still trying to figure out why ACTA is even necessary? And... on top of that, no one has yet explained why industry lobbyists have been integral to the negotiations, but the public and public interest groups are being blocked from any information based on bogus national security claims.

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Filed Under: acta, copyright, damages, transparency

26 Comments

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Ima Fish, 15 Apr 2009 @ 7:28am

"we're still trying to figure out why ACTA is even necessary?"

Because the copyright industry wants draconian laws in place but the legislatures of the world are hesitant to pass them in fear of pissing off their constituents. So this back-door approach compels the laws to be passed and lets the legislators off the hook because they can say that they "have to enact the laws to be in compliance with the treaty. It's completely out of our hands."

"And... on top of that, no one has yet explained why industry lobbyists have been integral to the negotiations, but the public and public interest groups are being blocked from any information based on bogus national security claims."

This one is even easier. Because the copyright industries do not want the public and public interest groups getting in the way. God, how hard was that?!
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yogi, 15 Apr 2009 @ 8:05am

Democracy?
Is the U.S. even a democracy anymore? Why pretend?

I suggest the next election be conducted by an open auction: the highest bidder will get to choose the president. The bidding will also include specific laws.

That way everyone will know who paid for what.

This will save a lot of time and money for the candidates and the parties.

It will also be a truly honest election as compared to the BS election system currently in place where millions of idiots vote for president based on looks and marketing ability.

Now that is change I can believe in...
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Overcast, 15 Apr 2009 @ 8:12am

Get the FTC involved - lies on the web!!!
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AC, 15 Apr 2009 @ 8:16am

Re: Democracy?
The U.S. was never a democracy. In fact, the founding fathers frowned on it as two wolves and a sheep deciding what was for dinner. The U.S. was founded as a representative republic.
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yozoo, 15 Apr 2009 @ 8:18am

Its the Chaney way
"no one has yet explained why industry lobbyists have been integral to the negotiations, but the public and public interest groups are being blocked from any information based on bogus national security claims."

Reminds me of Chaneys Secret Energy summit where experts like Ken Lay and Jeff Skilling helped shaped American Energy Policy in secret (prior to being convicted of fraud of course), hidden from the undue scrutiny of the meddelsome American People.
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TheStuipdOne, 15 Apr 2009 @ 8:23am

Re:
You know ... if this treaty goes into effect in the US then 100% of the blame rests on the US Senate. Sure negotiations take place. The president will sign off on it because he's shown himself to have very close ties with the RIAA. But then the senate has to approve it ... and they don't have to. So flood your senator's mailboxes with requests to vote against ACTA
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Ima Fish, 15 Apr 2009 @ 8:33am

Re: Re:
"if this treaty goes into effect in the US then 100% of the blame rests on the US Senate."

Sure, you could blame the Senate. But your incorrect assumption is that the system is fair and works for us. Or to put it another way, that the Senate looks out for our bests interests and that it really does have a choice in this matter. It's doesn't and doesn't. The copyright industry wants these laws and will get these laws. The Senate is just a cog in the wheel.
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interval, 15 Apr 2009 @ 8:34am

Re: Re: Democracy?
Can the sophistry, you know what yogi meant. And I agree with him, bum the front and just sell the presidency to the highest bidder. I think want to move to Greenland.
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interval, 15 Apr 2009 @ 8:36am

Re: Its the Chaney way
I remember that summer of '01, where Enron sold California's own nrg back to us. Sitting in mass transit on my way to work at my office on Market St., S.F., listening to the news about rolling blackouts... good times.
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Malcontent, 15 Apr 2009 @ 8:52am

the answer is simple
Stop listening to music from the evil companies.
Don't buy it.
Don't support it.
And, for heaven's sake, don't STEAL it.

Let the evil companies crash and burn, wondering what went wrong all the way down...

Don't EVEN get me started on why we should have let the BANKS all crash and burn...
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Hulser, 15 Apr 2009 @ 9:42am

Re: the answer is simple
And, for heaven's sake, don't STEAL it.

If you're going to propose a boycot of the RIAA and the big music companies, you might not want to adopt their incorrect usage of the word "steal".
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Apr 2009 @ 9:46am

...it wouldn't represent any significant change to copyright laws...

Which nations's copyright laws are you talking about? The "problematic" verbiage replicated in the link largely reflects the law currently in force in the US.
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Eponymous Coward, 15 Apr 2009 @ 10:19am

Business as usual, kids.
I'm agreeing with the AC above. Laws aren't put in place to help or protect the people anymore. They are enacted for two reasons, to serve the interests that finance re-election campaigns and to occasionally placate, but never serve, the individuals that listen to the re-election campaigns. That's how we got half of the ridiulously Onerous laws on the books at present.
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kirillian (profile), 15 Apr 2009 @ 10:32am

Re:
Actually, it reflects the laws that the 'AAs would LIKE to have in force in the US currently.
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TheStuipdOne, 15 Apr 2009 @ 10:33am

Re: Re: Re:
but they still carry the blame
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Grizzly, 15 Apr 2009 @ 11:06am

Re: Business as usual, kids.
If senators pay more attention to the big-money interests than to their constituents, it's because the big money interests actively (even aggressively) keep their points of view in front of the senators. The constituents, meanwhile, sit back and voice their opinions on blogs that the senators never see, but DON'T get politically active themselves. If you don''t like the way your senator has voted or has said he plans to vote, WRITE to him/her. One letter may not change a senator's vote, but a flood of them will.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Apr 2009 @ 1:28pm

Transparency is the opposite of secret.
Anything negotiated in secret is a major change to change a balance of power.

They can negotiate it all they want, but it doesn't mean citizens will sign on to it.

Transparency, on the other hand, breaks secrets. If it wasn't about a nefarious landgrab of power, it wouldn't be secret!
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Apr 2009 @ 1:40pm

In a nutshell
The ACTA terminates the normal gov in the ACTA-countries and lets the MAFIAA and copyright interests rule them.

Bad, veeery bad :(
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Tgeigs, 15 Apr 2009 @ 2:19pm

Re: Re: Business as usual, kids.
Agreed. The only thing a Senator needs more than money is votes.
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Tgeigs, 15 Apr 2009 @ 2:21pm

Re: Re: Re: Democracy?
It's not sophistry, it's factually correct. The American government is a Constitutional Republic, meaning that we elect people that choose for us, not represent us. That's a huge distinction.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Apr 2009 @ 4:23pm

Re: Re:
So flood your senator's mailboxes with requests to vote against ACTA

You better include lots of cash with those requests if you want your senator to give a rat's behind about what you think.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Apr 2009 @ 4:25pm

Re: Re: Re: Re:
but they still carry the blame

They'll still be reelected. Blame the American people for that.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Apr 2009 @ 4:29pm

Re: Re: Re: Democracy?
Can the sophistry, you know what yogi meant.

I just thought yogi was confused.
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alternatives(), 15 Apr 2009 @ 4:51pm

Re: the answer is simple
Stop listening to music from the evil companies.

Yup. The RIAA and others of their ilk should have a list of their clients whom they are supposed to represent.

Use that list as the boycott list.
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Jason, 15 Apr 2009 @ 5:14pm

Re: Re: the answer is simple
Hear, hear!
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Jason, 15 Apr 2009 @ 5:18pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Democracy?
Actually we have both. Reps who are only in for 2yrs-a-pop are much more constituent-minded than Sens who sit pretty for 6. It can be legitimately argued that reps rep and Sens sin - I mean choose for us.
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