[P2P-F] Book of the Day: Copyright Masquerade

Thu Aug 14 02:34:28 CEST 2014

(in the first i used the wrong mail account)

Dear friends,

thanks to hartsellml for this text. Without to read the full book, i 
formulate two answers.

1) knowledge is always world heritage. We never need any private 
(individual or group) ownership of knowledge. And we never accept it.

2) We have to build our own Internet, the inter-connection of local 
networks. Based on the geografical location for the IP address. Then and 
only then we can be independent.

many greetings, willi
Popayan, Colombia

-------- Weitergeleitete Nachricht --------
Betreff: Book of the Day: Copyright Masquerade
Datum: 	 Wed, 13 Aug 2014 16:00:52 PDT
Von: 	 hartsellml

Book of the Day: Copyright Masquerade

*A Copyright Masquerade by Monica Horten*

URL = http://www.amazon.com/dp/1780326408/electronicfro-20

*Review by Parker Higgins (EFF)*:

“Veteran journalist Dr. Monica Horten goes deep into the details of how
the entertainment industries gain political sway, and how policymakers
respond to the industry’s advances.”

Horten focuses on three recent policy initiatives, and painstakingly
pulls together facts from publicly available sources about how those
proposals came together. By comparing the development of the
Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), the Spanish “Ley Sinde,” and
the UK’s Digital Economy Act, she draws a clear picture of the
mechanisms that play into each of the debates, and who is behind them.

A major part of that story is the export of U.S. intellectual property
policy abroad. To that end, Horten looks at the history and the
development of the U.S. Trade Representative’s annual “Special 301″
report, a document mandated by law which must list countries that do not
provide “adequate and protective” protection of intellectual property
rights. Horten makes a solid case that the U.S. entertainment industry
lobbying played a direct and deliberate role in establishing the Special
301. With the background on Special 301, its role in shaping ACTA and
Ley Sinde becomes that much more apparent.

Legislators are asked to approach many problems as experts, but are
rarely given the time or information to do so. The standard corporate
exploitation of that mismatch is to present those legislators with
information favorable to industry position.

Horten tracks how the copyright industries have taken this bargain a
step further, pushing for the creation of whole new structures like the
Special 301 report that funnel industry-friendly information to
legislators with the imprimatur of government legitimacy.

Moreover, that system itself has been refined over the years to create a
default condition that advances the copyright lobby’s goals. At the
behest of the copyright industries, the U.S. Trade Representative must
critique laws all over the world to a maximalist IP standard; as a
result of its findings, countries around the globe are put under great
pressure to change those laws.

While documenting this process, Horten provides meticulous footnotes
that point to public documents and legislative proceedings. Beyond
providing sources, these footnotes reveal a history of otherwise
uncaptured expertise: many cite live web streams of policy debates
dating back years, watched by Horten at the time.

The landscape Horten describes may be bleak for those who would like to
see evidence-based copyright policy, but it’s not hopeless. After all,
each of the major case studies she documents have been diminished,
delayed, or defeated by popular opposition. Money and connections play a
major role in politics, but few politicians can afford to ignore real
and widespread dissatisfaction. A Copyright Masquerade is no handbook
for activism, but it does describe effectively what political pressure
points activists have been able to successfully press.

In presenting the stories of activism that have slowed or stopped
proposals that had the full backing of the copyright industries, Horten
raises an important question. What is so compelling about copyright
policy that it gets Internet users up in arms, draws resignations from
EU officials, and leads to street protests in actual freezing temperatures?

Again, Horten’s got an answer. It’s a familiar one to those versed in
copyright debates. Whether the copyright industries are seeking measures
that filter content (like blacklisting sites from Domain Name Servers,
search engines, or payment providers) or measures that restrict user
access (like graduated response programs that result in a slow-down or
suspension of Internet connections), the effect is the same. When the
Internet as a communications medium is the target, users’ essential
freedoms and civil liberties are all too often collateral damage.”

(https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/09/copyright-masquerade-corporate-lobbying-takes-spotlight)