Labels to Sharman: pay us $1Bn
p2p news / p2pnet:- Still crowing over their win over Sharman Networks in Australia, the owners of the Big Four record label cartel now say they`ll try to get more than $1 billion in damages.
If they succeed, will they then share the money with artists and support workers whom, they say, have been seriously injured in personal and financial terms by file sharing?
Certainly they will, just as they have with the Pay US Or Else cash scammed from people they say share music with each other online, although thanks to an American mother of five, that shabby practice may soon come to an ignominious end.
On Monday the Oz Federal Court found Sharman Networks` Kazaa p2p application induced users to infringe copyrights.
Judge Murray Wilcox in effect said he believes Sharman can control what files are accessed, and what files aren`t, despite statements from Sharman executives to the contrary.
He ruled that Kazaa had illegally infringed artists’ copyright and although he didn`t order the app to be shut down, he gave Sharman two months to install filters on future versions to prevent trading of copyrighted music.
More than 317 million people worldwide have downloaded the Kazaa software, developed by Sharman Networks, owned by Nikki Hemming, and Altnet, owned by Kevin Bermeister, says the Daily Telegraph. The pair met a decade ago while running the ill-fated Segaworld theme park at Darling Harbour.”
The $80m project, came to an ignominious end in November 2000 when Sega World closed its doors, says the Gusworld Article Archive. The theme park, based at Sydney’s Darling Harbour and backed by the ailing Japanese electronic gaming company which lent the park its name, was forced to shut down after the Olympic influx of visitors to Sydney failed to improve its consistently poor bottom line.
Sharman, also ordered to pay 90 %of the music industry’s legal costs of more than $9 million, is appealing the decision.
There’s so far been no comment from the DCIA (Distributed Computing Industry Association), Sharman Networks’ pseudo trade body.
Something you think we should know? tips[at]p2pnet.net
See:-
crowing – Big Music cartel nails Sharman, September 6, 2005
ignominious end – RIAA victim talks to p2pnet, September 4, 2005
Daily Telegraph – $1bn pirates, September 7, 2005
pseudo – Sharman woos Hollywood, Jun 19, 2004
September 7th, 2005 at 6:20 pm
Uh oh! Looks like Big Music is trying to squeeze the Sharman.
September 7th, 2005 at 6:24 pm
I fully expected this decison. It is not just the Police States of America that has the typical cartel-government alliance, it is just about every country in the world. The cartels control the government and the courts. This cartel-government alliance is refered to in the Bible as the “Beast.” This Beast will continue to devour those who are right.
There are some who are bravely deciding to fight the Beast. One such person is Patricia Santangelo. I wish her luck and intend to contribute to her defense. However I find it hard to predict who is going to win.
An honest judge is hard to find. If Patricia Santangelo is to have any chance in successfully defending herself, she will need to have an honest judge or a non-brainwashed jury.
September 7th, 2005 at 6:33 pm
here here
September 7th, 2005 at 10:58 pm
it’s not so much hurting kazaa that I care about. it’s the fact that if the industry gets their way they’ll have another billion dollars to put in the bank.
September 8th, 2005 at 1:01 am
When they get 2 new fake conservative judges in the supreme court, cases like hers will be appealed all the way to the top & will be dead meat!
September 8th, 2005 at 4:25 am
An “article” about the decision in one of Oz’s “news”papers mentioned how the music industry was “hanging by a thread” thanks to “illegal filesharing”.
Typical mainscream media crap. All they had to do was look at the industry’s financial statements for the last few years to see how they’re really doing. Or is the industry lying to its shareholders and telling the mainscream media the truth?
LOL yeah right.
September 8th, 2005 at 8:04 am
I can’t wait for the day that open source and anonymous (well psuedo anyway) downloads finally force these fools out of business.
September 9th, 2005 at 11:28 am
September 9th, 2005 at 1:18 pm
May 15th, 2009 at 12:19 am
segaworld loz