p2pnet news view Freedom | P2P:- ASIC (Australian Securities and Investments Commission) is apparently ignoring the fact a foreign corporation, MediaSentry, instructed via email an Australian educational institution to terminate an Australian contract between the user of a service and the service provider, says Australian economist and p2pnet contributor Tom Koltai.

His observation refers to the fact an Australian student was kicked out of his dormitory after Sony used MediaSentry to complain of alleged copyright infringements.

p2pnet tech editor surfer identified IP blocks used by MediaSentry as it trawls the Net for victims.

MediaSentry is, “currently operating from American IP address blocks, while intercepting Australian file transfers [apparently] without a license to operate in Australia as well as several US states,” says frequent poster Devil’s Advocate in a Reader’s Write.

But, says Koltai, “Not only does MediaSentry not have a registration in Australian as a foreign corporation, it has not, to the best of my knowledge, been given exemption by ASIC to operate in any capacity within Australia, especially in the capacity of a legal investigator.

http://www.search.asic.gov.au/cgi-bin/gns030c
No matching names found
Requested name : MEDIASENTRY

http://agencysearch.australia.gov.au/search/search.cgi?collection=agencies&profile=asic&query=%22exempt+corporations%22+%2B%22media+sentry%22&scope_disable=off
Results Summary: 0 matching documents found for “”exempt corporations” +”media sentry”

Australia has passed the Safe Haven amendment of the Copyright Act,  but unfortunately, it’s a, “little light on how infractions may be reported,” says Koltai, going on »»»

For example, in the case of a drug smuggling activity, from an overseas country to Australia or vice versa, a recognised Government mandated enforcement agency contacts our Federal Police, or vice versa, and the machinations of justice hopefully capture the miscreant.

But in the case of the Brisbane student who was thrown out of his student accommodation because of the actions of Media Sentry, it would appear legislation gives police powers to unregistered foreign corporations within the sovereign boundary of Australia.

And it would seem ASIC is ignoring it to the detriment of at least one Australian taxpayer.

IINet in Western Australia is in exactly the same boat.

They received unauthorized notices from an organisation with no legal commercial or governmental recognition in Australia. They correctly passed on the notices to the Federal Police. After all, this is a Police matter.

If the Government doesn’t fix this legislative snafu, or if ASIC don’t prosecute MediaSentry for trading in Australia without a foreign corporation ACN, I forsee an awful lot of court cases coming up, principally from people who’ve been shut-down, or turfed out of their accommodation, on the say-so of a non-recognised, overseas , self-styled commercial enforcement agency

And I predict a new style of ambulance chasing is about to become popular. I call it,Take Down Notice Legal Services.

Dear P2P user, have you been the victim of unfair dismissal from your job, University or apartment because of a Take Down Notice?

Have you been harassed by a collection letter threatening to sue you for gadzillions for downloading your University Lecture notes via Bit-Torrent?

Have you lost money, failed you exams or been shunned by your peers because of a Take Down Notice?

Call 1-800-SUE-THE-BASTARDS and we’ll get you top dollar for your claim.

Alternatively, we could simply stop mucking around with all this pussy-footing. Just throw all the laws out the window and return to the vigilante system of two hundred years ago.

Hang the bugger — he downloaded a movie …

From: The Too Hard To Figure Out the right thing to do Department.

Meanwhile, what goes around does come around, a cold, hard reality the entertainment cartels are ignoring at their peril.

JN

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May, 2009