p2pnet news | Freedom:- America could be on the verge of yet another war with a foreign nation which has displeased the corporate barons who rule the country.

Antigua is in the West Indies and the main island in Antigua and Barbuda.

It’s also called Wadadli, which translates roughly into “our own”.

Says the Wikipedia:

The island’s circumference is roughly 87 kilometres (54 miles) and its area 281 km (108 square miles). Its population is about 69,000 as of July 2006.[1] It is the largest of the Leeward Islands, and the most developed and prosperous due to its upscale tourism industry, offshore bankingThe island’s circumference is roughly 87 kilometres (54 miles) and its area 281 km² (108 square miles). Its population is about 69,000 as of July 2006. It is the largest of the Leeward Islands, and the most developed and prosperous due to its upscale tourism industry, offshore banking, internet gambling services and education services, including two medical schools. … services and education services, including two medical schools.

Not at all incidentally, its prosperity is also due in part to the popularity of online gambling.

Also not incidentally, “The World Trade Organization has granted the Caribbean nation of Antigua the right to pirate American goods and services like films and music until the U.S. government either permits Americans to gamble over foreign-based sites or eliminates its own exceptions for remote betting on horse and dog racing, including over the Internet,” posts maths on music2dot0.

“It is a rather bizarre situation that seems to expose the duplicity exhibited by the US, which does not waste any opportunities to evangelize and impose its holier-than-thou moral views on gambling and music, film and software piracy upon other countries often for the purposes of simply aiming to protect its own trade interests spurred on by powerful internal US lobby groups,” he says.

However, maths wasn’t the first to point up what could easily become a major war with tiny Antigua on the receiving end and the mighty US of A as the aggressor.

Impossible?

Not in the least.

The Bush administration didn’t hesitate for one second to step in firmly behind the entertainment industry when it decided to crush AllofMP3.com, an equally tiny online music download service which had the temerity to set up in competition to the movie and music cartels.

However, the victory was hollow and the P2P file sharing networks and independent online sites and services continue, the efforts of Warner Music, EMI, Vivendi Universal and Sony BMG, the members of the Big 4 organised music gang, and Hollywood in the shape of Time Warner, Viacom, Fox, Sony, NBC Universal and Disney, notwithstanding.

‘Antigua has beaten the US Government fair and square’

Howard Knopf is a well-known Canadian copyright lawyer and blogger.

“It looks like Antigua has beaten the US Government fair and square and at the Appellate level of the WTO on the latter’s prohibition of offshore online gambling,” he posted almost four months ago, quoting an item in the New York Times.
He went on >>>

Apparently, the US got nailed on issues such as not treating foreign online gambling sites in the same way it treats its own. Sounds like “national treatment” to me, but I must say I haven’t yet read the decision.

Here’s the link to the WTO material to get started on this case.

The really interesting angle is that Antigua is threatening to retaliate by suspending its application to the USA of international IP law (i.e. the TRIPS agreement), since there isn’t much else that Antigua could do that the USA would ever notice. According to the WTO site:

On 21 June 2007, Antigua and Barbuda requested authorization from the DSB, pursuant to Article 22.2 of the DSU, to suspend the application to the United States of concessions and related obligatins of Antigua and Barbuda under the GATS and the TRIPS Agreement. On 23 July 2007, the United States (i) objected to the level of suspension of concessions and obligations proposed by Antigua and Barbuda and (ii) claimed that Antigua and Barbuda’s proposal does not follow the principles and procedures set forth in Article 22.3 of the DSU. At its meeting on 24 July 2007, the DSB agreed that the matter referred to by the United States be referred to arbitration.(emphasis added)

This is potentially a really serious situation for the USA. See the comments in the NYT from serious experts like John Jackson and Charles Nesson.

And the USA is still flouting the WTO s. 110 ruling.

People who live in glass houses….

Is Antigua about to become The Mouse that Roared?

(which is one of the best movies of all times, starring Peter Sellers, Peter Sellers, and Peter Sellers)

Or another movie called Casablanca comes to mind:

Rick: How can you close me up? On what grounds?
Captain Renault: I’m shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here!
[a croupier hands Renault a pile of money]
Croupier: Your winnings, sir.
Captain Renault: [sotto voce] Oh, thank you very much.
[aloud]
Captain Renault: Everybody out at once!

Or, maybe the USA will simply “Send The Marines“…

Definitely stay tuned.

And Oh Yes —- The Mouse that Roared is readily available online. Find it through your favorite P2P indexer.

Slashdot it!

Also See:
online gambling - Antigua vs America: Big 4 music wars, December 24, 2007
music2dot0 - WTO Legalizes Music Piracy in Antigua, December 23, 2007
Howard Knopf - Gambling on International Law and IP,, August 23, 2007

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 26th, 2007 at 8:42 am and is filed under Freedom. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

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