Spyware and DRM on Canadian computers?
p2pnet news view Advertising | P2P:- It looks like determined efforts by Hollywood, Big Music and the corporate software houses to make spyware legal in Canada are crumbling.
The Canadian Marketing Association wanted Stephen Harper’s Conservatives to alter anti-spam Bill C-27 so consumers would have to opt out of receiving advertising bumf, instead of actively asking for it.
“In a message sent to its 800 corporate members, last week, the CMA urged companies to get in touch with their local MPs to demand changes to the proposed legislation, which was expected to “enter a critical phase,” said the CBC recently, going on »»»
The current draft of Bill C-27 will require a marketer to obtain a consumer’s consent, whether implied or explicit, before sending them an email. The CMA says this clause will limit companies’ ability to prospect for new customers or grow their businesses.
But, promising “another 48 hours of intense lobbying on the anti-spam bill,” the Conservatives have “dropped their support for exceptions for survey and marketing companies (a huge loophole), self-regulated organizations such as the Law Society of Upper Canada, and third party referrals,” blogs Michael Geist.
‘Intense lobbying’ means highly paid sophists with good political connections will significantly escalate their efforts to convince Canadian politicians to go against the interests of the people who elected them.
C-27 also contains clauses that “would make it illegal for companies to install spyware or digital rights management software on users’ computers without consent,” said the CBC.
But, “Entertainment and copyright lobbyists are also urging MPs to change these clauses.”
Yesterday, parliamentary secretary Mike Lake “indicated that the Conservatives were prepared to accept a change with respect to email addresses, but sources say that there is no support for the copyright lobby’s demands for carve outs for DRM in the computer program definition and for collecting personal information without authorization from users’ computer as part of investigations into alleged contractual or legal breaches,” says Geist, adding:
“The question over the next 48 hours is whether the Liberals will reconsider their ill-advised motions and if all parties will resist the intense lobbying efforts to bring back changes that would water down the bill.”
Stay tuned.
First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi
CBC – Marketers want anti-spam bill altered, October 16, 2009
Bru and oneMichael Geist – Conservatives Reverse on Watering Down Anti-Spam Bill, October 19, 2009
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October 20th, 2009 at 12:59 pm
How about asking companies who support CMA to look at their email listings and cross reference with the checked/unchecked boxes status for “receive info from us”
They might be surprised to find out that consumers do NOT want email spam about new products and offers unless they specifically choose it. They might also find it interested that spamming people is a great way to turn away potential customers!
As for DRM, if anyone is dumb enough to use it with their CD or DVD (yes I know about the encryption already existing) or SW or even HW, they deserve to see the cracks that will show-up, just to enable the damn thing to work as expected!
And do the MP’s, a deciding factor whether or not you get my vote (and the votes of the sheep I sway, who don’t understand DRM or Spyware) is whether you vote for the lobbied amendments. Think twice! Unless of course you’re happy with being forced to live in some remote area of Canada without any internet connection at all, living on your crown property, living off of the money you were paid to not represent those who voted you in.
October 20th, 2009 at 1:28 pm
‘How about asking companies who support CMA to look at their email listings and cross reference with the checked/unchecked boxes status for âreceive info from usâ
They might be surprised to find out that consumers do NOT want email spam about new products and offers unless they specifically choose it. They might also find it interested that spamming people is a great way to turn away potential customers!’
Well, we try to tell them and No one effing listens (or McAfee freelabelling sites adware or spyware lol)