“Fraudsters have begun cold-calling householders to accuse them of copyright infringement online and threaten them with court action, an ISP has reported.”
The Register, 4th September 2008
Source: www.theregister.co.uk
“In the past 15 years, nothing has given entertainment publishers quite as many sleepless nights as internet piracy. Starting with the rise of Napster, the music-sharing service, in the 1990s, the rapidly increasing speed of broadband connections has allowed consumers to share and copy media files in vast quantities.”
The Times, 20th August 2008
Source: www.timesonline.co.uk
“The computer games industry is launching a crackdown on people who illegally download games from the internet by writing to 25,000 people in Britain suspected of illegally sharing files and asking them to pay £300 immediately to avoid any further legal action.”
The Guardian, 20th August 2008
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“A British woman who put a game on a file-sharing network has been ordered to pay damages to the game’s creator.”
BBC News, 19th August 2008
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
“The government has launched a consultation on plans to increase the maximum fine for traders in copyright-infringing material from £5,000 to £50,000 as part of a plan to protect ‘creative Britain’.”
The Register, 12th August 2008
Source: www.theregister.co.uk
“In Hollywood’s annals of the plucky little guy defeating the big guy, it might not quite rank with flying an X-wing fighter and destroying the Death Star with a ‘one in a million’ shot, Luke Skywalker-style. But at the royal courts of justice yesterday British prop designer Andrew Ainsworth was said to be delighted with his victory against the galactic empire of Star Wars creator George Lucas, in a copyright battle over the stormtroopers’ costumes.”
The Guardian, 1st August 2008
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Star Wars’ battle of the stormtroopers will be resolved by a High Court judge who must decide whether a costume maker has the right to sell the soldier’s uniforms.”
Daily Telegraph, 31st July 2008
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
“A hardline letter sent by the BPI at the 11th hour threatened to undermine a deal to tackle illegal file-sharing, prompting the government to express its displeasure of the music industry body in a terse response to record label executives.”
The Guardian, 31st July 2008
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“No sooner had Britain’s six biggest internet service providers (ISPs) agreed to monitor illegal file sharing than the web was abuzz with suggestions to get around the scheme.”
The Times, 25th July 2008
Source: www.timesonline.co.uk
“Internet service providers have pledged not to ‘spy’ on the web habits of customers as part of an agreement with the government to punish illegal sharing of music and films.”
The Guardian, 24th July 2008
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Parents whose children download music and films illegally will be blacklisted and have their internet access curbed under government reforms to fight online piracy. ”
The Times, 24th July 2008
Source: www.timesonline.co.uk
“The rock dinosaurs of the 1960s are in line for a spectacular windfall after the EU announced plans yesterday to extend musicians’ entitlement to retrospective royalties from 50 to 95 years.”
The Times, 17th July 2008
Source: www.timesonline.co.uk
“The European Commission has proposed a Directive that would give performers rights over recordings for 95 years after the recording. The change would give a player on a recording rights for the same length of time as the writer of the material.”
OUT-LAW.com, 16th July 2008
Source: www.out-law.com
“The Central London County Court has ordered four BitTorrent users to pay a video games company £750 interim damages following a landmark victory by no win, no fee copyright lawyers.”
The Register, 2nd July 2008
Source: www.theregister.co.uk
“Virgin Media has sent about 800 letters to customers warning them that they should not be downloading illegal music files via file-sharing sites.”
BBC News, 3rd July 2008
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
“A man who ran a business selling computer chips that helped games consoles play pirated games has had his conviction for copyright infringement overturned on appeal. The High Court judge called him ‘fortunate’ and criticised the prosecution case.”
OUT-LAW.com, 30th June 2008
Source: www.out-law.com
R v Higgs [2008] EWCA Crim 1324; [2008] WLR (D) 211
“To establish the offence of selling a device which is primarily designed, produced, or adapted for the purpose of enabling or facilitating the circumvention of effective technological measures, it must be shown that the technological measure concerned physically prevents infringement of copyright, and is not merely a discouragement or commercial hindrance to copyright infringement.The Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) so held in allowing an appeal by the defendant, Neil Stanley Higgs, against his conviction on 19 October 2007 in the Crown Court at Bristol before Her Honour Judge Hagen of 26 offences contrary to s 296ZB of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.”
WLR Daily, 26th June 2008
Source: www.lawreports.co.uk
Please note once a case has been fully reported in one of the ICLR series the corresponding WLR Daily summary is removed.
“Legal broadband subscription services that permit file sharing may appear on the market by the year’s end, according to music industry sources – after government intervention brought both music suppliers and ISPs to the table.”
The Register, 26th June 2008
Source: www.theregister.co.uk
“A call to relax the law on making workplaces pay a licence fee for playing music has been made by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB).”
BBC News, 17th June 2008
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
“A fascinating survey of music consumption conducted for British Music Rights has good and bad news for the beleaguered music business.”
The Register, 16th June 2008
Source: www.theregister.co.uk
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