Major Labels, RIAA, Homeland Security All Spotted 'Pirating' Works

from the telling dept

Early last week we noted that, using the tool, YouHaveDownloaded, some folks in the Netherlands noticed that the local music collection society appeared to be engaging in infringement. You knew that wasn't where things would end. Soon after that, people spotted infringement emanating from NBC Universal, Sony Pictures and Fox Entertainment -- three of the biggest supporters of ever more draconian copyright law. And, of course, that was just the beginning. The RIAA and Homeland Security have now also been identified. And, no, in most of these cases, it's clearly not just for research purposes or to find infringers. The RIAA, for example, could probably get away with downloading music... but the first five seasons of the TV show, Dexter? That's tougher to believe. The folks at Gizmodo have calculated just how much the RIAA's likely infringement here should cost, using the RIAA's own metric of the maximum statutory rates of $150,000 per infringement... and figured the RIAA owes about $9 million. Somehow I doubt we'll see the RIAA pay up any time soon.
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Filed Under: copyright, dhs, infringement, pipa, protect ip, sopa, you have downloaded
Companies: fox entertainment, nbc universal, riaa, sony pictures


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  • icon
    Jeff (profile), 20 Dec 2011 @ 1:12pm

    to funny! I say make them pay up! Those freetarded pirating scums need to quit taking everything for free and get a job! And die in a fire!!!1!


    /amidoingitrite

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    Steve R. (profile), 20 Dec 2011 @ 1:15pm

    Only if you have $$$ will you be innocent

    Broad sweeping general laws, such as those related to so-called "Intellectual Property" mean that any who has the finger of blame pointed at them will clearly be guilty in one innovative way or another. Kiss due process away. Only those with gobs of $$$ will be able to eventually "buy" none guilt.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Machin Shin, 20 Dec 2011 @ 1:27pm

    They were... uh... testing?

    You know they had to make sure the torrents really were the infringing content they claimed to be. It had to have been a tough job sitting and watching all those episodes but by golly somebody has got to do it!

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Rikuo (profile), 20 Dec 2011 @ 1:38pm

      Re: They were... uh... testing?

      Wait wait wait wait...are you saying they did some actual investigating? But I coulda sworn that modus operandi was to pay some other company to print off a list of IP addresses that are downloading a certain torrent and use that, and that alone, as the only piece of evidence.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      PaulT (profile), 20 Dec 2011 @ 1:44pm

      Re: They were... uh... testing?

      Ah, the Townsend defence...

      Hmmm, 5 posts already and no attempt to white knight the industry against the very attacks they inflict on innocent civilians? Must be lunchtime over there.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Anonymous Coward, 20 Dec 2011 @ 2:22pm

        Re: Re: They were... uh... testing?

        Christmas week. They already took off....

        link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Anonymous Coward, 20 Dec 2011 @ 2:51pm

        Re: Re: They were... uh... testing?

        Sometimes you people really do a terrible job detecting sarcasm (btw, I'm not the author of the post you're responding to, but it's obviously sarcastic).

        Then again, I have failed to detect sarcasm before, mostly because the true trolls are often indistinguishable from the parodies.

        link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 20 Dec 2011 @ 1:31pm

    RIAA Real Ignorant Asshats of America

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    W Klink (profile), 20 Dec 2011 @ 1:35pm

    They'll pay it...

    ...to themselves.

    And then file a claim against their insurance.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    clarion cx 501, 20 Dec 2011 @ 1:38pm

    Cmon really?

    I find this truly ironic that the RIAA owes money. So much for the standards they are so into lording over us. They are an anachronism any way. happy downloading everyone

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 20 Dec 2011 @ 1:39pm

    its like christmas came early

    a feeling of goodwill and happiness.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 20 Dec 2011 @ 1:51pm

    I still think that the site is some sort of joke or scam. But I guess that makes it about as accurate as any evidence of "piracy" the *AAs can pin on individuals.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 20 Dec 2011 @ 2:16pm

      Re:

      it appears to be neither a scam or a joke. It is what it says it is, a very incomplete list of IPs linked to torrents. It doesn't list time of connection but according to their facebook they have that logged. Most people think its fake because they don't understand dynamic ips.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 20 Dec 2011 @ 2:03pm

    :)

    "Hi. We have no records on you."

    Oh yea, tolja so...industry shills.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Grey Ferret, 20 Dec 2011 @ 2:06pm

    This doesn't prove anything. An IP address doesn't identify an.... um... (lawyers whispering in background). I mean, this was obviously an isolated act by one of our scapegoats... what? (more whispering) I mean, a rogue employee who was induced into infringement by these horrible rogue web... (whisper)... um... grifting ("grifting" that's the term we're using now? really?) Um, grifting sites dedicated to infring... (whisper) I mean, theft of US property. SOPA must be passed to prevent this from happening in the future. (right?) Right!

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 20 Dec 2011 @ 2:07pm

    How much do you want to bet that the trolls are searching through the site as hard as they can for anything they can pin on Techdirt and Mike (or any similar site and people)?

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 20 Dec 2011 @ 2:56pm

      Re:

      Are you kidding? They're to lazy to do any of that, it requires too much work! You must be new here or something.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      vegetaman (profile), 20 Dec 2011 @ 7:37pm

      Re:

      Trolls need not bother to look for information when they can just wave their hand and make up their own "facts".

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 20 Dec 2011 @ 2:12pm

    cut off their internet

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    Andrew (profile), 20 Dec 2011 @ 3:33pm

    Dammit

    I really really really wish I'd written the AVS Audio Converter or Tag & Rename software. That lawsuit would be delicious.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    Josef Anvil (profile), 20 Dec 2011 @ 4:49pm

    They don't owe $9million

    They infringed and are dedicated to the theft of American IP, so they should have their domain names seized and all financial institutions should freeze their funding until the court case is over ( in a year or so).

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Ed C., 21 Dec 2011 @ 10:39am

      Re: They don't owe $9million

      Considering how much they stole from artist and the public at large, I'd say that $75 trillion would only cover the interest--at least going by their figures anyway.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 20 Dec 2011 @ 6:50pm

    That's not the only thing the fine folks at Homeland Security have been caught downloading...if ya know what I mean.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Pixelation, 20 Dec 2011 @ 6:58pm

    Let's hope someone sues the RIAAsshats. Think of the lost sales from their piracy!

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Quartz, 21 Dec 2011 @ 12:48am

    Shame on these organisations who deem to lord over all netizens but cannot keep their own hands out of the cookie jar.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    tsavory (profile), 22 Dec 2011 @ 12:10am

    I love it

    I love this story and wait they have an excuse.
    here it is
    http://torrentfreak.com/riaa-someone-else-is-pirating-through-out-ip-addresses-111221/
    Biggest joke I seen in a long time sure glad no third parties can ever get our IP addresses they would not be able to sue us any more. I mean come on Joe blow down the road would never hack my WiFi.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Bailey, 27 Mar 2012 @ 10:54am

    wow

    i got a letter from the riaa then i bought an ip scrambler, these jokes think they can be the most eltist hypocritical asshats ever, if i ever get taken to court im bringing up that if i have to pay, so does the rest of the companies stealing, especially the ones that are caught red handed, retarded as shit -_-

    link to this | view in chronology ]


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