DOJ Doesn't Like the Idea of A Copyright Czar 215
sconeu writes "Seems as if the DOJ is not particularly happy about HR 4729, the 'Copyright Czar' bill. The Deputy AG told Congress that the current structure works quite effectively. 'Panel members also expressed concern over Section 104 of the bill, which would allow a copyright owner to collect statutory damages for each copyrighted work that is stolen. Detractors fear that this provision could result in protracted lawsuits ... Section 104, however, would penalize criminals on a per-song basis, so if someone pirated a motion picture soundtrack that had songs from 12 different artists, the pirate would be charged with 12 separate offenses and be subject to exorbitant fees.'"
Re:What does "stolen" mean? (Score:4, Informative)
Re:With the way this country is going... (Score:2, Informative)
Re:It this passes... (Score:4, Informative)
California has 53 reps. The committee has 6 of those, including the chair Howard Berman.
Florida has 25 reps. The committee has 3 of these.
9 of the 24 reps come from Florida (Disney) and California (Disney / Hollywood). Full list follows.
CA=6
FL=3
NC=2
OH=2
VA=2
TX=2
WI=1
GA=1
IN=1
NY=1
TN=1
UT=1
MI=1
Rep. Adam Schiff [D-CA]
Rep. Anthony Weiner [D-NY]
Rep. Betty Sutton [D-OH]
Rep. Brad Sherman [D-CA]
Rep. Christopher Cannon [R-UT]
Rep. Darrell Issa [R-CA]
Rep. Elton Gallegly [R-CA]
Rep. Frederick Boucher [D-VA]
Rep. Henry Johnson [D-GA]
Rep. Howard Berman [D-CA]
Rep. Howard Coble [R-NC]
Rep. James Sensenbrenner [R-WI]
Rep. John Conyers [D-MI]
Rep. Lamar Smith [R-TX]
Rep. Melvin Watt [D-NC]
Rep. Mike Pence [R-IN]
Rep. Ric Keller [R-FL]
Rep. Robert Goodlatte [R-VA]
Rep. Robert Wexler [D-FL]
Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee [D-TX]
Rep. Steve Cohen [D-TN]
Rep. Steven Chabot [R-OH]
Rep. Tom Feeney [R-FL]
Rep. Zoe Lofgren [D-CA]
Re:Who's Word is Copyright Czar? (Score:5, Informative)
A "Captain Copyright [wikipedia.org]" character was indeed used for awhile in Canada to promote "rights of artists." Not surprisingly, the character and comics supporting a "copyright maximalist" slant, making no mention of fair dealing (Canadian version of fair use). Furthermore, there were a few incidents where it was shown that the Captain Copyright website was, in fact, infringing copyright.
Because of all the negative press, the character was withdrawn and the site [captaincopyright.ca] shut down. So it looks like a cape-wearing copyright crusader is not long-lived. And luckily IP law will prevent anyone else from resurrecting that particular idea.
Re:These people need to get real (Score:3, Informative)
Here's what it consisted of: (I have put the relevant bits in bold)
Now it is worth noting that back then, not all infringements were criminal; nor has this ever been the case, and it even won't be under the recent bill. But the penalties have expanded over the years, and what constitutes criminal infringement has expanded as well.