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fairuselink
November 23, 2005Indieish gives us CC:365.
A new, free download everyday. [via haughey]
sony rootkit update: mac edition
November 11, 2005MacDailyNews tell us Sony music CDs can install kernel extensions on Mac OS X.
To express share their upset over the matter, they've kicked off linked to a Boycott Sony Petition written by a Jeremy Johnson on PetitionOnline.com. [thanks, Geo, for the correction]
sony rootkit update: hell hath no fury
November 10, 2005Here come the lawyers...
Sony hit by lawsuits over root kit | The Register...
And Illinois residents can add themselves to a possible class action coming from a law firm located there. [link]
Meanwhile, back at Congress, letters to the author's Senators have resulted in:
1) silence, and
2) a response about updating the Telecommunications Act of 1996 in order to address this issue.
Thus is the current level of interest/understanding by the author's representative government.
the flip side of fair use
November 4, 2005There's an interesting distinction to be made between the issue of fair use and a creator's freedom to determine the terms by which others may shape, share, or build upon her/his work.
Where fair use is about consumer advocacy, the latter is focused more on artist empowerment.
This is why Creative Commons is so important. The one-size-fits-all mechanism for copyright no longer satisfactorily addresses (if it ever did) the potential for more "open" contributions to society. Creative Commons offers more granularity and control over the boundaries that a creator may wish to lay claim to. It gives the creator a framework for more altruistic behavior. By giving the artist the power of self-determination over their works, we all get more. It opens us all up to making the world a better, more innovative place. There's real genius in that.
In support of the Commons, Fairuseless will contribute 50% of its advertising revenue to their cause. The Electronic Frontier Foundation will receive the remaining 50%. Because the two of these organizations represent two sides of the same coin.
sony rootkit update:
November 4, 2005After Criticism, Sony Issues Fix for Hidden Rootkits - Yahoo! News
The fix can be downloaded here.
without consent
November 1, 2005Mark's Sysinternals Blog reveals Sony, Rootkits and Digital Rights Management Gone Too Far. [via waxy]
It gets rather technical, but the gist is quite plain: Sony (and presumably others) are allegedly installing cloaked software that take control of certain functions on your PC in order to enforce its copyrights WITHOUT YOUR CONSENT... and it's nearly impossible to remove.
Companies are overstepping their rights and now clearly infringing on yours. This is nothing more than malware. Write your Senator (and others) to make these companies accountable for this behavior. This may rise to the standard of a class action suit, as it may be prosecutable under legislation under consideration in 28 states.
