 |
|
DAILY NEWS AND INFORMATION
FOR THE GLOBAL GRID COMMUNITY /
|
Special Features:
DRAFT BILL SEEKS TO PUNISH FILE
SHARERS
The U.S. government is making a variety of efforts to deter the
proliferation
of peer-to-peer technology. Congress is pushing a draft bill that would lower
the burden of proof regarding file sharers, making it easier for the Justice
department to criminalize P2P activity. The new bill also seeks to implement
fines and jail time of up to 10 years for active sharers.
A separate bill, titled "Protecting Intellectual Rights Against Theft and
Expropriation Act of 2004," or the Pirate act, is being pushed by Sens. Orrin
Hatch (R-Utah) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) authorizing civil cases against
file sharers. This would allow police to charge those trading copyright music
over P2P networks.
Hatch made his case by accusing the P2P network operators of attracting
children and young people with free music, movies and pornography. This, he
argued, is essentially blackmailing entertainment industries to accept the P2P
networks as avenues of distribution and revenue.
Web services, utility computing, .NET, CPU harvesting and distributed
computing are just a few of the technologies that fall under the Grid
computing umbrella. Gt04 -- a premiere enterprise Grid computing conference
targeting industrial and commercial users -- will gather experts, and outline
strategies and road maps for Grid deployment. For more information, visit
www.gt04.com.
Grid computing is here!
As staunch opposers of peer-to-peer networking, the Recording Industry
Association of America (RIAA) and the Motion Picture Association of America
applauded the senators' efforts.
Intellectual property subcommittee members of the House are studying the
draft
bill titled "Closing the P2P loophole in 17.U.S.C. Section 506." The Justice
Department drafted the bill after concerns arose regarding federal
prosecuters' scope of legal power in trying serious offenders. It is believed
that Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) will propose the bill if co-sponsored by
others.
Users sharing 2,500 files or more, including movies and music, will be
subject
to large fines or jail time should the draft become law. However, a single
file alone determined to be worth more than $10,000 would be grounds for jail
as well. Those who distribute content that has yet to be released in "wide"
distribution (movies released before actual theatrical opening) would also
face strict penalties.
P2P United, an organization that represents file sharing software
companies,
would rather see copyright holders benefit from the file sharing, rather than
see laws exacting punishment on P2P users. They argue that the Pirate Act uses
taxpayer dollars to benefit copyright holders by allowing civil actions
against P2P users. In addition, P2P United believes file sharing will continue
to grow, regardless of its potential new label as a criminal act.
|