p2p file share reality check
p2pnet.net News Feature:- “Can’t we just host overseas and avoid all these legal squabbles?” is an often heard question on file-sharing forums.
I’ve often been asked to help search for file-sharing legal safe haven. I’ve joined the discussions on whether to swarm, unite and fight the ‘Industry’ or just divide, run and hide until this whole thing blows over. And, I’ve kept looking: Where are we safe?
Well, Torrentz.com seems to have found the answer: China; “a DMCA free zone”
“The timing isn’t that great because of the MPAA attacks on torrent sites, but since we’re being hosted in China I’m not all that worried about that” according to Flippy; the site owner [source: www.slyck.com ]
I think is time for a reality check, “Flippy”!
Check one
Question: Where do you live?
If the “Industry” ever finds out where you live, they’ll let the dog’s loose and shit will hit the fan. Your local law enforcement authorities will be all over you and take you down, just as in “Raids on Ed2k and Bittorrent defined”.
And don’t think it won’t happen in your neck of the woods. Just ask Jon Johanson or Simon Moon.
Don’t be fooled; the current trend of ID dishing being curtailed in the US and Europe. The ‘trend’ mostly applies to downloader’s not site operators.
Check two
Just Google News these two key words: “China Piracy” and read the headlines from last week. Pressure on China is mounting to crackdown on Piracy. And we know how China is at cracking down.
China is a member of the WTO (World Trade Organization) and party to the TRIPS treaty. At last check, China should have already implemented the treaty into its own law. This means that according to international laws, China is not safe.
Moreover, it showed that it can crack down on “Pirates” if it wants to.
Final check
Ok “Flippy”; International Commercial Law basically works like this:
You can try hosting your site on Tempel 1 and escape earth’s laws.
If your site is on a public network and thus accessible on earth, you live on earth and you will be hunted on earth.
Bottomline: it doesn’t matter where the “infringing” activity is technically-geographically located: what’s relevant is where “infringement” is most likely felt, and who’s behind it.
Fact sheet:
A couple of historical facts:
1) Kazaa first hid in Holland, which most still think is a safe haven. But was still charged, here. Although it won the case, it fled to Australia but then…
2) Film88.com hid in Iran and had servers all over the place. Iran is a country that doesn’t respect any foreign copyright by its own laws. Film88 was charged and convicted California and end up paying a record $ 23.8 million in damages to the Industry.
The list of fallen ed2k and Bittorrent sites and their operators is long and …it will get longer in 2005.
Maybe “P2P: sued around the world” didn’t made this clear enough; there are tremendous forces fueling the Intellectual Property reinforcements around the world.
Don’t easily assume that you’re safe anywhere, and tell it too “Wiak”.
Raymond Blijd – fk2w
January 14th, 2005 at 4:00 pm
The real question is not where you host?
becouse at the worst scenario, they shut down your server and force your site to stop operating.
I agree it is an important question that where you live, becouse in some country they don’t really care (OK care, but there is a difference between 10 year in prison and $100 fine).
The biggest question is how can you hide your identity.
There are many options to keep yourself anonymous. Best example: after the closure of suprnova, everybody started to talk about exeem. Sloncek mentioned a mysterious comany who will ‘run’ the network. The company, who owns teh exeem domains is located on Nevis, the only country in the world (as far as I know) where you can register a corporation without even telling your name. I bet that the same people have the company papers at home, who ran suprnova. (~KaZaA case)
Or a cheapest version. Buying an anonymous domain (katzglobal for example) and hosting in a country far-far away with a fake name and address.
Everyone can do it.
January 14th, 2005 at 6:43 pm
There are a great many nations on earth where your hosted bit torrent trackers are safe.
Granted, their law enforcement can be “fooled” into action, and if your site becomes too flagrant the US may succeed in diplomatic pressure, and Granted laws do change, but in that case they do change HERE as well.
the dmca’s notice and takedown clause could be struck down as a violation of due process laws and free speech.
ipac could gain headway in the next few years and put the copyright industry lobbies in the doghouse.
the trips agreement, as per many historical occasions with treaties, is far from compelling or iron clad.
the point is all this gloom and doom has little basis at present.
January 15th, 2005 at 5:35 am
the riaa has yet to take a single individual to court, everything that is being done to stop the sharing of copyrighted material is untested in the U.S. courts, why?? because if the riaa or mpaa loses they are in deep doo doo, the mpaa has a better shot of prosecuting but as far as downloading music?? trials will last years, the first will be is a 64kb mp3 stream actually a copy of an audio cd?? and though it can be made , it is never the same, a good lawyer could possibly turn the tables on the riaa and its supporters in just the definition of what the copyright protects
then there is the evidence that the riaa used dos attacks on major bittorent sites…..i am just dying to hear the justification for this
January 15th, 2005 at 3:05 pm
I understand your argument’s but don’t agree with your conclusion.
Here’s the thing, this is PRESENT!! If we like it or not, we shouldn’t be close our eyes to what’s happening around us.
Raymond Blijd
“Happy to agree to disagree”
January 15th, 2005 at 3:07 pm
Good piont I forget to mention in this piece:
Check 4:
We don’t have the financial backing to take a stand
Raymond Blijd
January 15th, 2005 at 9:57 pm
Well, I think the point is that copyright conception will fall soon. The way we are using is not valid on any earth law because feudalism was abolished long time ago. Now, we called royalties wich is the same scheme where the king in the 1500s used to charge people to use their lands. What happen to that??? Moreover, if you go on, myself as engineering I should get paid annually for building new stuff and we get paid just once for every job we have done. Anyway, if you want to look your way, the clients (common people in the internet) will overhelm any company. And please, dont use CHINA as an example. We know the history there better than you think. If you say there is not safe heaven, wrong again, check Venezuela and other south american country.
At the end, the point is not copiright infringement but, we the customer got it enough from those big shot companies charging us huge amount of money for really, really, bad stuff that are not even worht 1 cent.
Thank you SIr and get you facts straight you no company in the world can become enemy of 40 million people and an not buy all of them
RG out
January 15th, 2005 at 10:06 pm
Well,as we say here you are MFP (find out yourself) $1 dollar per person in the share community monthly and they are CRUSH…bang $40.000.000 per month to stand any company and take them to bankcrupcy. History tell if you pressure so much a human being he will raised up againt his enemies and the vengeance would be unimaginable. That is way big powers doesnt hire armies to fight their battles and gain control but manipulate the media to get their way.
Anyway, look at lokitorrent, that is small example. Imagine what would happen if they start to prosecuete the community itself.
RG out
January 16th, 2005 at 8:36 am
He, he, don’t shoot the messenger.
Anyway, Jon forgot to put in a link that would clear things up a bit: “Sued around the world”, http://p2pnet.net/story/2747.
If you read that closely, maybe you’ll find an answer to this safe haven thing. So said, Venuzuela?
January 16th, 2005 at 8:44 pm
Sorry, Raymond. Fixed ; )
Cheers!
January 17th, 2005 at 5:33 pm
Well, still safe heaven eventhough the bsa is here; and they have shout down many business for pirating stuff. What, What I see is that on the street you could se many people selling SELLING cd`s copies from movies, software, and so on. Morever, the other day I got shock when I saw a national guard post besides several street vendors an some of them bought a copy of a cd from some singer. At the end there are bigger problems than pirates cds here.
On the other hand I do not favor piracy, I think that every one has the rgiht to get paid for his work. However, I am no agree with the royalty scheme where singer, actors, an so on gets paid over and over again for the same work. Plus the big companies overcharge from a product that cost less than one dolar in massive production.
At the end, copyright would fall and this is the biggest stand from big music and movie production companies because they know that their endless treasure is coming to an end. The reason of this is a big community so tired of this outrageus behavior that they wont take it anymore. However, I DO UNDERSTAND THAT they will INVENT some new ways to EXPLOIT us AGAIN… so the story will start all over again.
Anyway, see you around
RG