pFresh evidence from MessageLabs suggests that taking Atrivo offline had more of an impact than some thought it would. Overall spam for September was down 8 percent, and while the reprieve won't last, taking major ISPs down can clearly have an impact./ppa href="http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081006-atrivo-isp-shutdown-sends-ripples-through-the-spam-deluge.html"Read More.../a/p pa href="http://feedads.googleadservices.com/~a/LrZanXdAZXKbPvYgSbJzD7CoI28/a"img src="http://feedads.googleadservices.com/~a/LrZanXdAZXKbPvYgSbJzD7CoI28/i" border="0" ismap="true"/img/a/pdiv class="feedflare" a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~f/arstechnica/BAaf?a=PS4TKOZx"img src="http://feedproxy.google.com/~f/arstechnica/BAaf?i=PS4TKOZx" border="0"/img/a a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~f/arstechnica/BAaf?a=xO7yiIdu"img src="http://feedproxy.google.com/~f/arstechnica/BAaf?d=50" border="0"/img/a a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~f/arstechnica/BAaf?a=nOb20fqf"img src="http://feedproxy.google.com/~f/arstechnica/BAaf?d=41" border="0"/img/a /divimg src="http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/arstechnica/BAaf/~4/rJlKI45t3po" height="1" width="1"/

pFresh evidence from MessageLabs suggests that taking Atrivo offline had more of an impact than some thought it would. Overall spam for September was down 8 percent, and while the reprieve won't last, taking major ISPs down can clearly have an impact./ppa href="http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081006-atrivo-isp-shutdown-sends-ripples-through-the-spam-deluge.html"Read More.../a/p pa href="http://feedads.googleadservices.com/~a/LrZanXdAZXKbPvYgSbJzD7CoI28/a"img src="http://feedads.googleadservices.com/~a/LrZanXdAZXKbPvYgSbJzD7CoI28/i" border="0" ismap="true"/img/a/pdiv class="feedflare" a href="http://feedproxy.google.com/~f/arstechnica/BAaf?a=PS4TKOZx"img src="http://feedproxy.google.com/~f/arstechnica/BAaf?i=PS4TKOZx" border="0"/img/a a href="http://feedproxy.google.com/~f/arstechnica/BAaf?a=xO7yiIdu"img src="http://feedproxy.google.com/~f/arstechnica/BAaf?d=50" border="0"/img/a a href="http://feedproxy.google.com/~f/arstechnica/BAaf?a=nOb20fqf"img src="http://feedproxy.google.com/~f/arstechnica/BAaf?d=41" border="0"/img/a /divimg src="http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/arstechnica/BAaf/~4/rJlKI45t3po" height="1" width="1"/

Recently, there has been increasing demand for ISPs to filter and block illegal filesharing by their users. Many forum-goers on the net have laughed at this idea, that it's utterly impossible to filter with such accuracy, and it seems they have been proved right. After being told by the courts that it had to block any illegal traffic in 2007, Belgian ISP Scarlet has now told them it is completely unfeasable. They are seriously hoping the court takes this into account, as they are currenlty paying 2,500euros in compensation per day traffic goes unfiltered. Utter madness. sidenote: appologies for the lack of entries last week, have bad some internet troubles. All back now though. See full article.
Related Entries:

legal file sharing and movie downloads - 25 June 2003

Dangers of File Sharing - 29 June 2007

Belgian ISP in Trouble - 20 July 2007

File sharing key to bootstrapping distribution - 04 October 2007

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The New Zealand entertainment industry is looking to work with Internet service providers (ISPs) to thrash out how tough new online anti-piracy measures are to be implemented.

A group of British recording artists including Radiohead, The Verve and Iron Maiden say the digital music revolution has come up short in terms of the fair treatment of artists, citing an agreement between record labels, ISPs and the British government as an example of artists' viewpoints being ignored. To make sure their priorities are taken into account in the future, over sixty British artists have joined the Featured Artists Coalition.

"It is time for artists to have a strong collective voice to stand up for their interests," stated Brian Message of Courtyard Management, which manages Radiohead and Kate Nash. "The digital landscape is changing fast and new deals are being struck all the time, but all too often without reference to the people who actually make the music. Just look at the recent [agreement] on file-sharing between labels, government and the ISPs. Artists were not involved. The Featured Artists' Coalition will help all artists, young and old, well-known or not, drive overdue change through the industry in their interests and those of fans."

Artists stand as much or more to lose than other elements of the music industry if anti-fan policies gradually drive people away from thinking of music as an art form that's important in its own right and not just as a way to sell body spray or enhance videos. It only makes sense that they should have a say when policies are enacted to restrict music from being shared online, among other important decisions.

The organization set itself three primary goals for its campaigning: artists should retain "ultimate ownership" of their music, agreements between artists and others should be made in a "fair and transparent manner" and copyright holders (i.e. record labels) must keep artists' interests in mind and must explain how any agreement could change the ways in which their creations are exploited.

Part of the problem, according to Damon Gough (a.k.a. Badly Drawn Boy), is that many of the institutions that have traditionally represented artists are crumbling. "I think with the digital age and record companies dispersing and disbanding, young bands need a governing voice that will support them and help protect their work," he told The Guardian.

Radiohead and the other artists who have signed the charter will apparently have a hand in running the organization.

"The Featured Artists' Coalition is an organization for artists, which will be run by artists," stated The Verve manager Jazz Summers. "It will ensure that in future the voice of artists is properly heard in discussions with music and technology companies, trade organizations and most importantly, with Government... Digital technology gives artists the opportunity to control their future -- this is the time to seize that opportunity."

Perhaps US-based artists could find reason to follow suit. With new revenue models such as the equity-sharing deals behind MySpace Music offering artists within and without the major label system the opportunity to be taken advantage of in entirely new ways, such oversight could be a welcome on these shores as well.

See Also:

• MySpace Music Points Way To Free Music Economy
• British ISPs Agree To Curb File Sharers' Internet Access
• VB On The Radio: Body Spray Launches Record Label
• Radiohead Launches Easier, Less Expensive Remix Contest
• MixMatchMusic Lets Any Band Offer Radiohead-Style Remix Contests

Photo: Steffen Jørgensen

More than sixty well known musicians have launched the Featured Artists' Coalition to fight for their rights in what they see as the rapidly changing "digital landscape." As Brian Message, co-manager of Radiohead and Kate Nash said in a statement, new deals in the digital age were being struck all the time, "but all too often without reference to the people who actually make the music." Message noted: "Just look at the recent Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on file-sharing between labels, government and the ISPs. Artists were not involved."

The artists, who include The Verve, Craig David, Robbie Williams and the Kaiser Chiefs among others, will campaign for changes to laws governing the music industry. Aside from trying to ensure that artists always retain ultimate ownerhip of their work, and that all agreements are conducted in a "fair and transparent" manner, they're hoping that rights' holders will agree to explain how any new deal will affect how the artist's work is being exploited. Quite a tall order when you consider that many on the business side are still scratching their heads over how such deals as Nokia's Come with Music will ultimately make money Release. 

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Filed under: Mac, PC, Meta (about Joystiq)

As we head into the month that has both Octoberfest and Halloween we don't know whether to be scared or to get our party on. Ok, we can do both. But first check out Big Download's highlights from the past week:

Exclusive Features

• Reviews: This week check out our final verdicts on Warhammer Online and Lego Batman. Also we have a look at several PC gaming hardware products from SteelSeries.
• Crysis and Crysis Warhead performance comparisons: Did Crytek really optimize Crysis Warhead? We check out their claims in our benchmark test.
• Is a broadband cap a threat to the game industry?: ISPs are beginning to put limits on how much you can download? Could you go over by downloading large game files?
• The PC Game Vaporware Vault: Which games are we still waiting to be released after years of promises? Quite a few actually.
• The College Try: Failed PC Ports of Console Games: Sometimes a great console game doesn't make a great PC game.
• Mac Monday: Our look at Mac gaming takes on the Wild Tangent online RPG Fate.
• MODMonday: Our mod column continues its look at Max Payne mods with a look at the Kung Fu total conversion.
• Independent Minds: Our look at indie games takes a different turn as we examine how social networking can help indie game developers.
• Boot Disk: Our look at classic PC game takes a gander at the original Interplay RPG Fallout.
• Big Ideas: Our look at big PC gaming trends examines the whole idea of user generated content.
• Big Iron: Our hardware column this week takes a look at the importance of frame rate in games
• Alt-Tab: What qualities does a good PC game need to have? We have an answer in our latest installment.
• Freeware Friday: Our look at games you can get for free gets a load of the arcade shooter Gunroar.
• Virtual Bargain Bin: Our look at games on the cheap takes a look at Steam's id Super Pack and X-Com Complete Pack.
• BigCast: It's our regular weekly podcast as the team debates all matters related to PC games.

Continue reading The Best of Big Download: Sept. 29-Oct. 5

 

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Filed under: Mac, PC, Meta (about Joystiq)

As we head into the month that has both Octoberfest and Halloween we don't know whether to be scared or to get our party on. Ok, we can do both. But first check out Big Download's highlights from the past week:

Exclusive Features

• Reviews: This week check out our final verdicts on Warhammer Online and Lego Batman. Also we have a look at several PC gaming hardware products from SteelSeries.
• Crysis and Crysis Warhead performance comparisons: Did Crytek really optimize Crysis Warhead? We check out their claims in our benchmark test.
• Is a broadband cap a threat to the game industry?: ISPs are beginning to put limits on how much you can download? Could you go over by downloading large game files?
• The PC Game Vaporware Vault: Which games are we still waiting to be released after years of promises? Quite a few actually.
• The College Try: Failed PC Ports of Console Games: Sometimes a great console game doesn't make a great PC game.
• Mac Monday: Our look at Mac gaming takes on the Wild Tangent online RPG Fate.
• MODMonday: Our mod column continues its look at Max Payne mods with a look at the Kung Fu total conversion.
• Independent Minds: Our look at indie games takes a different turn as we examine how social networking can help indie game developers.
• Boot Disk: Our look at classic PC game takes a gander at the original Interplay RPG Fallout.
• Big Ideas: Our look at big PC gaming trends examines the whole idea of user generated content.
• Big Iron: Our hardware column this week takes a look at the importance of frame rate in games
• Alt-Tab: What qualities does a good PC game need to have? We have an answer in our latest installment.
• Freeware Friday: Our look at games you can get for free gets a load of the arcade shooter Gunroar.
• Virtual Bargain Bin: Our look at games on the cheap takes a look at Steam's id Super Pack and X-Com Complete Pack.
• BigCast: It's our regular weekly podcast as the team debates all matters related to PC games.

Continue reading The Best of Big Download: Sept. 29-Oct. 5

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Are you an artist tired of major record labels putting words in your mouth when it comes to suing music fans or deciding how much you get paid? A major new star-studded coalition has just launched recently to counter this. In a move not seen since the launch of the Stephen Page founded Canadian Music Creators Coalition, a new coalition known as the Featured Artists Coalition has launched. “It is time for artists to have a strong collective voice to stand up for their interests. The digital landscape is changing fast and new deals are being struck all the time," said Brian Message, co-manager of Radiohead and Kate Nash said in the coalitions first press release, "but all too often without reference to the people who actually make the music. Just look at the recent MoU on file-sharing between labels, government and the ISPs.

Tão próximos um do outro e tão diferentes. Enquanto o Presidente da França Nicolas Sarkozy faz todos os possíveis para enterrar a emenda 138 anti-”resposta gradual” aprovada no final de Setembro pelos eurodeputados para que nada impeça o projecto de lei francês “Criação e Internet” que prevê a suspensão da ligação à Internet dos partilhadores, na outra margem do Canal da Mancha o Primeiro-ministro britânico desfaz-se em amabilidades para com os internautas, chegando ao ponto de utilizar o seu blog oficial para desmentir os boatos de que o seu governo pretendia desligar os partilhadores da Internet.

A 25 de Agosto, um grupo de 665 cidadãos britânicos  enviou uma petição ao número 10 da Downing Street de Londres - a residência oficial do Primeiro-ministro britânico - onde manifestavam a sua preocupação para com as possíveis implicações do memorando assinado um mês antes por seis operadores de acesso à Internet e uma série de detentores de direito.

Este acordo, que contou com a mediação do executivo, previa que os ISPs enviassem notificações aos seus clientes que fossem apanhados pelas entidades representantes da indústria discográfica e cinematográfica e estas, por sua vez, comprometiam-se a oferecer alternativas legais aos sites e redes ilegais de partilha de ficheiros. Os autores da petição recearam que os ISPs fossem obrigados a monitorizar de uma forma proactiva as suas redes, tornando-se assim agentes policiais ao serviço das empresas de entretenimento na medida em que isso comprometia o princípio da neutralidade da rede.

Na sexta-feira passada, Gordon Brown - ou, mais provavelmente,  alguém em seu nome - escreveu uma entrada no seu blog de forma a desfazer todas as dúvidas a este respeito:

Infelizmente, boa parte da cobertura noticiosa sobre este assunto foi incorrecta. Não existem quaisquer propostas no sentido de responsabilizar legalmente os ISPs pelos conteúdos que circulam através das suas redes. Do mesmo modo, também não existem quaisquer propostas de modo a obrigar os ISPs a monitorizarem a actividade dos seus clientes em relação aos descarregamentos ilegais ou a implementar um sistema de “resposta gradual”

No mesmo post, Brown acrescenta ainda que o governo lançou apenas um processo consultivo a respeito da partilha ilegal Peer-to-Peer (P2P) no sentido de educar os consumidores em relação aos riscos dos downloads ilegais e determinar as medidas apropriadas para lidar com os infractores reincidentes. O processo consultivo estará aberto até 30 de Outubro, mas apenas os cidadãos e as empresas britânicas podem participar. Mesmo assim, parece que o governo não esperou pela final da consulta para aprovar um novo plano curricular para o ensino secundário de modo a incluir os direitos de propriedade intelectual na indústria da música.

De qualquer modo, parece-me que há aqui uma história muito mal contada. Já quando o memorando foi anunciado publicamente, surgiu o rumor de que o plano poderia prever a aplicação de eventuais medidas técnicas a negociar entre os operadores e a Ofcom, a entidade reguladora do sector das telecomunicações no Reino Unido. O The Times chegou mesmo a falar em diminuições da velocidade da ligação dos maiores partilhadores (vulgo traffic shaping) e a filtragem de conteúdos ilícitos. Será que o senhor Gordon Brown anda a esconder a verdade?

De qualquer modo, apenas pelo facto de se ter dado ao trabalho de responder à petição no seu blog e abordar um tema tão controverso como o P2P, Brown merece o benefício da dúvida. Ainda para mais, nem todos os países se podem orgulhar de ter um PM que tem uma conta no Flickr, Youtube, Twitter, oferece um feed de RSS e grava Podcasts.

Nota: a imagem que acompanha este artigo está disponível aqui segundo uma licença CC-BY-SA 2.0 e pertence ao World Economic Forum.

Filed under: Meta BD

As we head into the month that has both Octoberfest and Halloween we don't know whether to be scared or to get our party on. Ok, we can do both. But first check out Big Download's highlights from the past week:

Exclusive Features

• Reviews: This week check out our final verdicts on Warhammer Online and Lego Batman. Also we have a look at several PC gaming hardware products from SteelSeries.
• Crysis and Crysis Warhead performance comparisons: Did Crytek really optimize Crysis Warhead? We check out their claims in our benchmark test.
• Is a broadband cap a threat to the game industry?: ISPs are beginning to put limits on how much you can download? Could you go over by downloading large game files?
• The PC Game Vaporware Vault: Which games are we still waiting to be released after years of promises? Quite a few actually.
• The College Try: Failed PC Ports of Console Games: Sometimes a great console game doesn't make a great PC game.
• Mac Monday: Our look at Mac gaming takes on the Wild Tangent online RPG Fate.
• MODMonday: Our mod column continues its look at Max Payne mods with a look at the Kung Fu total conversion.
• Independent Minds: Our look at indie games takes a different turn as we examine how social networking can help indie game developers.
• Boot Disk: Our look at classic PC game takes a gander at the original Interplay RPG Fallout.
• Big Ideas: Our look at big PC gaming trends examines the whole idea of user generated content.
• Big Iron: Our hardware column this week takes a look at the importance of frame rate in games
• Alt-Tab: What qualities does a good PC game need to have? We have an answer in our latest installment.
• Freeware Friday: Our look at games you can get for free gets a load of the arcade shooter Gunroar.
• Virtual Bargain Bin: Our look at games on the cheap takes a look at Steam's id Super Pack and X-Com Complete Pack.
• BigCast: It's our regular weekly podcast as the team debates all matters related to PC games.

Continue reading The Best of Big Download: Sept. 29-Oct. 5


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WiMax is starting to make headways with ISPs and Clearwire is one of the reasons why. NetworkWorld interviewed Clearwire’s CEO Ben Wolff and got some great information on upcoming developments in WiMax and what it may mean for you.

If WiMAX catches on as a popular broadband standard in the United States, Clearwire will get a lion's share of the credit. After all, while its partners such as Sprint, Google and Comcast will be supplying money and infrastructure, it is Clearwire that has been tasked with building a WiMAX network that spans the whole United States.

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