Posts tagged Eff at Switched

Posts with tag eff

TV Networks Criticized for Blocking Election Videos on YouTube

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Oct 26th 2008 at 3:02PM

Networks Attacked Over Blocking YouTube Election Videos

Despite having signed off on User Generated Content (UGC) principles, which endorse fair use of copyrighted content in protected free speech, several networks have sent takedown requests to YouTube over politically-themed videos that use short clips from copyrighted broadcasts.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) earlier this week sent letters not only to YouTube, but also the networks involved: Fox, NBC, CBN, and CBS. The open letter to the networks requests that they stop sending takedown requests based on short news clips used in election-themed videos. The McCain-Palin campaign has recently been targeted by CBS, CBN, and Fox, and the Obama-Biden ticket had at least one video removed based on a request from NBC.

Fred von Lohmann (senior intellectual property attorney at the EFF) said,"The videos at issue include clips of news footage that last only a few seconds, used as part of constitutionally-protected political speech. This is not piracy, but fair use, no different from what Saturday Night Live and The Daily Show do every night."

In a separate letter to YouTube, the EFF asked the video hosting site to protect users from unfounded takedown requests. The nonpartisan public interest group asked YouTube to immediately respond to counter-notices filed by posters against takedown requests and restore videos that are clear cases of fair use.

Other groups have joined the EFF in protesting the networks heavy handed enforcement of copyright laws, including the ACLU, Citizen Media Law Project, the Center for Social Media, School of Communication, as well as American University's Program for Information Justice & Intellectual Property and their Law School. You can read the entire letters to the networks and YouTube online. [From: EFF Press Room]

'Dancing Baby' Lawsuit Turns Tables on Music Industry

by Tim Stevens, posted Aug 21st 2008 at 12:29PM

It's a sad state of affairs for the music industry these days. It's making far more news for its idiotic statements and unnecessarily huge lawsuits than for discovering and nurturing fresh new talent. This time, though, it's the industry that's on the receiving end of a lawsuit, being taken to court by a mother whose video was removed from YouTube by Universal Music Corp because of the song playing in the background.

Stephanie Lenz of Gallitzin, Pa. posted a 30-second clip of her baby dancing to 'Let's Go Crazy' by Prince, which can be heard playing in the background of the video -- turn your speakers up and listen closely if you want to identify the track yourself. Universal claimed the video violates copyright and YouTube removed the vid, but Lenz (and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)) are fighting back, claiming the background music is fair use. The lawsuit is now pending and, as you can see above, the video is back on YouTube, for the moment. We'll be following this one closely. [From: NewsVine]

Laser Printers Let Authorities Track You

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Jul 18th 2008 at 8:31AM

It was bad enough when we found out these office workhorses were just giving you cancer, now they could be endangering your whole nefarious operation. Bad guys take heed, your laser printer might give you away. Turns out that many laser printers mark every page they print with yellow dots that are invisible to the naked eye. A company can actually use those dots to identify the serial number of the printer and you by association.

The dots were a reaction to government fears that high quality laser printers would lead to an outbreak of counterfeiting. However, privacy advocates, like those at the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), fear the identifying information might be used against political dissidents, whistle blowers, and printers of materials governments may want to track.

Most personal printers in circulation are ink jet printers and don't have the same identifying marks, but as prices have dropped laser printers have made their way into more and more homes. So next time you're going to print out sheets of Canadian dollars (American currency is no longer worth the paper it's printed on) you might want to avoid that speedy laser printer in the corner. [Source: USA Today]

Judge Orders YouTube to Hand Over User Data

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Jul 4th 2008 at 12:29PM

In a potentially huge blow to the fight for privacy on the Internet,a judge has ordered that Google must hand over data about every video viewed by YouTube users to Viacom, including usernames and IP addresses. Viacom is suing Google for allowing its copyrighted content to be posted to YouTube, and hopes to use this data to prove that copyrighted material is more popular than user-generated content on the site.

Google argued that handing over the data would be invading users' privacy, but the judge found that argument "speculative." We're not sure what dictionary he uses, but we don't think there is anything speculative about handing over IP addresses and unique usernames attached to a list of watched videos being an invasion of privacy. If Viacom can't come raid our DVD collection or track our TV watching habits with out individual consent, then what gives it the right to track our online viewing?

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has already called the decision a violation of the Video Privacy Protection act, and you can bet Google will fight the ruling tooth and nail.

This is just the latest in the protracted battle between Google and Viacom that appears as if it will last until the last smolder ashes of our Earth are snuffed out. [Source: Wired]

US Government May Be Tracking You With Your Cell Phone

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Jul 2nd 2008 at 10:48AM

It was disturbing enough when the government was just listening in. Now privacy advocates are afraid the government may be tracking our every move through our cell phones. In November of 2007, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the Department of Justice (DOJ) to find out how widespread such tracking is. The DOJ didn't hand over the data, so now the ACLU and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) are taking the DOJ to court to force it to comply with the request.

The ACLU was spurred into action following a blog post in The New York Times in which some courts expressed discomfort with the government's use of cell phone tracking data without probable cause.

How often, and in what situations, the government has utilized this tool is not yet known, but following revelations that the domestic wiretapping was much more widespread than the Bush administration claimed, we simply can't take any chances. [Source: NY Times]

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