(CD) Pirates Take to the Ocean 385
rammstein_rulz writes "www.cdfreaks.com reports that asian CD pirates now produce thousands of pirated VCD's on anchored ships in international waters to avoid getting caught. Malaysian marine police have been asked to be on the lookout for pirate ships"
I wanna say it first... (Score:3, Funny)
Re:I wanna say it first... (Score:4, Funny)
Re:I wanna say it first... (Score:2)
International Waters (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:International Waters (Score:5, Funny)
Legality ? (Score:3, Interesting)
Even when they're NOT in international waters, the so-called "legality" is just as blurred.
What's "piracy" anyway ?
If RIAA wants to charge people an arm and a leg for trying out songs, and themselves (the RIAA) are known to NOT PAYING THE ROYALTIES to the artists, who's the REAL "pirate" ?
What the so-called "CD-pirates" are doing is just this - they are doing one thing that got the MPAA, RIAA, BSA and whatever hopping mad, as mad as what the DCMA is doing to many of us.
I am NOT saying what the "CD-pirates" are doing is right, but just that, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.
Period.
Enemies of Your Friend Are Now Your Enemies (Score:5, Insightful)
Playing word games with "piracy" is pointless. Producing unauthorized duplicates of commercial products is known as counterfeiting. Most countries have laws prohibiting the creation and distribution of counterfeit goods. It's as illegal to market a counterfeit CD of the current flavor-of-the-week pop band as it is to sell fake Rolex watches.
By glibly saying "the enemy of my enemy is my friend", all you've done is made more enemies: You have aligned yourself with counterfeiters, a tactic unlikely to draw support from the mainstream public.
The enemies of your new friend are now your enemies.
Re:Enemies of Your Friend Are Now Your Enemies (Score:2)
Perhaps this is just my raging cynicism kicking in, but the past couple of years have given me the impression that the RIAA et. al. ALREADY view us all as a bunch of theives. Yes, the parent your comment replies to is a bit extreme, but with the hyperbole Hilary Valenti spouts on a daily basis it is justified in my mind.
Re:Enemies of Your Friend Are Now Your Enemies (Score:2)
Hyperbole is not justified. Hyperbole just strengthens the impression that people are simply trying to justify theft, rather than addressing the legitimate copyright and property issues that have surfaced via all this P2P noise.
This is a political and legal debate. It will be decided by votes in Congress and rulings from the Supreme Court.
Most of the U.S. public doesn't buy music often enough to care. Why should they care if it is legal for you to copy a track of music by some bar band that got a record deal? Talk to them about the price of food, electricty and health care and they might start paying attention.
Pick your fight. If you think copyright law needs to change, go for it. If you think CD prices are too high, stop buying CD's.
Legalism is the dumbest ethical theory ever! (Score:4, Insightful)
I suppose if you lived in the 60's you'd say "I don't care about your principles and arguments--the law is clear: Niggers go in the back of the bus!"
Re:Legalism is the dumbest ethical theory ever! (Score:3, Informative)
None of this has anything to do with legality or morality. It's only about tactics. It's just about cheap, throw-away music.
If you think "sharing" music will get you what you want, fine, go ahead. I think it will cause you to lose and simply get more draconian copyright restrictions placed on all of us, including people like me who don't really care a twit about whether some college student can afford to buy CD. That's the point I'm making. Morality and legality have nothing to do with it.
BTW, your equation of the civil rights struggle in the 60's to the music business is a gross and demeaning insult to the people who lived in that struggle.
Re:Enemies of Your Friend Are Now Your Enemies (Score:5, Insightful)
So what? Pointing to high CD prices won't legalize counterfeiting.
This debate is not about the ability of college students to buy and copy music and movies as they see fit. The debate is about changing U.S. copyright law to ensure the interests of the public are addressed, rather than skewed in the interests of corporations with a lock on music distribution.
If you seriously want to change the status quo, get to work. Otherwise, understand that unthinking assertions do more harm than good.
Re:Enemies of Your Friend Are Now Your Enemies (Score:3, Interesting)
The price of a product has nothing to do with your own sense of ethics. If you aren't personally ashamed to be a thief, well, I guess you'll steal something.
Re:Enemies of Your Friend Are Now Your Enemies (Score:4, Interesting)
Sure, the price of CD's is too high. And, sure, that's an incentive to get it elsewhere. People are still buying them, though. Someone paid cash for that CD they're "sharing".
The best way to force CD prices to drop is to stop buying CD's at those prices. Start putting some stores out of business.
Re:Enemies of Your Friend Are Now Your Enemies (Score:5, Insightful)
Of course SOME people will always pirate stuff to get it for free, but there IS a magic number when it comes to buying things where people will just buy an original rather than deal with the hassle of getting it "for free".
Take a real-life example that actually happened a week ago to a friend of mine:
She found some local electronics store that was selling a new CD she wanted for $5 on a short promotional special. Rather than deal with the hassle of trying to get all the tracks on kazaa, etc. She just dropped $5 and has a nice original CD.
If the CD was $15, she probably would've downloaded it.
Myself, I have all of the tools I need at home to duplicate DVDs (region-free DVD-ROM, software utilities, and a DVD-R drive).
I don't - the reason being the price of DVDs, which is usually reasonable value for the money. Why should I spend hours of time and effort ripping/re-encoding a DVD to make a copy when I can just throw down a $20 and have an original?
My time and effort is worth more than the cost of the DVD, so I just buy it.
So there we have it - at some magical price-point, people WILL buy stuff, if for no other reason than the amount of work it entails to get it elsewhere (and having an original "anything" is nice too).
I trust I need not even comment on software companies like Adobe or Microsoft that sell their products in the hundreds or thousands of dollars, then whine about piracy...
Price point and region encoding (Score:5, Insightful)
I have rather well-off friends financially who don't even blink an eye at plopping down $500-$1000 a month for PC software, whereas with my student status, that's more than I make most months. So, I resort to what most students do, and still use the software.
Now, we all know one of the big uses for region encoding is so that content producers can effectively price-fix their products: they know they'll still make a profit selling a CD for $5 in say, Malaysia, but not any more than $5 because the average Malaysian makes 1/4 of what the average American does (all hypothetically speaking).
With a very large wage gap between the rich and poor in the US, it almost makes me wonder: CDs for $5 (still making a profit, remember)would sell boatloads to poorer families who normally would just download them. HOWEVER, the richer folk among us would buy the CD, even if it was priced at $50.
Now the only thing left to do is have the **AA buy some legislation that allows it to check your financial status, and price your goods accordingly. "Look, we've nearly eliminated those evil pirates, AND we're being nice to the little guy!"
Wow, I think I just scared myself.
Free CD's == No CD's (Score:2, Flamebait)
The music business is just that, a business whose purpose is to sell music. If the price of music drops below the cost of music production and distribution, the business will vanish.
Poof, no more CD's to buy or "share".
Re:Free CD's == No CD's (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Free CD's == No CD's (Score:3, Insightful)
The business model the record industry uses is that developed when mechanically printed and bound books were invented. Similarly if the book publishing industry could make money by selling books with all blank pages they would
The Internet provides an opportunity for musicians to market their products directly to comsumers, by providing a substitute distribution system. Few are taking advantage of that fact (perhaps because that segment of the Internet market isn't as large as supposed), while the RIAA certainly recognizes the net's threat to the profits of the recording industry.
Many probably have contracts with the RIAA companies or have dreams of "making it big" by getting a contract with the record companies.
Second, there is no necessary relationship between creativity and income. The world is full of struggling musicians who live from hand to mouth, trying to eke out a living. Some of them are struggling because they make music no one wants to hear. Others are struggling because they haven't had a commercial break.
Some can end up struggling because they got a record contract. Without realising that they would wind up in debt to that company and unable to sell their music to anyone else.
Many musicians would actually be better off working a minimum wage job and doing gigs, evenings and weekends, for free than signing a deal with an RIAA member. Even without the kind of economics the record industry uses there are probably few musicans able to make a living entirely from making music.
Re:Free CD's == No CD's (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Enemies of Your Friend Are Now Your Enemies (Score:2)
Asshole.
Re:Enemies of Your Friend Are Now Your Enemies (Score:2, Insightful)
Big deal.
Here's a big difference between going out and stealing that $10,000 TV and downloading a song. With the TV there is a tangible item. It is property. If you steal it, that store has a loss to their inventory. If someone downloads a song or an entire CD from a P2P service, no store has lost that CD or that song. They still have the same inventory as before, but perhaps (and this is the important part) only have lost one customer. Businesses exist to make money. I'm not going to argue that. Most businesses that don't make money don't stick around for long, government subsidized ones notwithstanding. But the business (in this case a music store) did not lose any merchandise. Someone can still come in and buy that CD.
And how much does one song on a CD weigh? I can weigh the TV. How much is it worth? I can price TV's individually. It is worth more if it's a Top 40 hit? Some TVs are more expensive then others. How about if it's been the #1 song for 12 weeks running? What if it's a "B side" song? And some TV's are less expensive. It depends on the brand.
Your arguement holds little merit.
Kierthos
Re:Enemies of Your Friend Are Now Your Enemies (Score:2)
I'm not upset, just amused that so many people think that pop music and the RIAA is so bloody important that they elevate the issue to this level.
Besides, you don't have a bloody clue about what I may or may not believe, or whether I support or don't support the "system".
>> Government is set up such that votes and candidates may be bought. Legal recourse in courts and through legislative action do nothing because of the economic differences in the lobbying effort.
If you believe that's true, then why aren't you buying votes and lobbying? Why hasn't the P2P community managed to organize?
>>..You can have a very valued and preferred choice lose out because of the political process. This puts question in the validity of that process and those that represent it
No, it doesn't put the validity of the process into question. It simply means you lost. You may value and prefer your choice, but others may not. At times, my success is dependent on your failure. Alleging that the process has failed because you didn't get what you want means only that you failed you to get what you wanted from the process. From others' perspective, the process may have succeeded quiet nicely.
Power (Score:2)
There are no legal implications, only political considerations.
They come under the jurisdiction of anyone with enough firepower and will to enforce their own sense of jurisdiction.
Re:International Waters (Score:3, Funny)
Re:International Waters (Score:2)
Close, but its more like "Microsoft security have been asked to keep on the look out..."
International Waters == Anarchy? (Score:2)
Just another stake in the heart of "the architecture of control". I'm not about to support this sort of thing either in principle or through buying pirated CDs, but it does demonstrate the weakness of the RIAA position. If you treat your customers with respect, they won't disapoint you. Let those who won't pay even what it is worth to them worry about their own karma.
Re:International Waters (Score:5, Informative)
Wrong, the law of the sea is probably the most extensively litigated aspect of international law. International law was originally invented to cover the sea. The London Times reports on maritime law cases all the time.
The basic principle is that every ship is registered in a national shipping registry and is subject to the laws of that country. So if a ship is registered in Panama the laws of Panama apply.
A ship that does not have a registration is subject to the laws of any nation that cares to enforce them. An unregistered ship is likely to be seized each time it calls at a port.
It would not be legal for a merchant ship to attack another for any reason other than self defense. However a coastguard or navy vessel can do so.
One wonders if the story is a spoof since being at sea does nothing to improve the legal situation and the mechanics of producing CDs on board a ship do not sound promissing, I doubt that CD pressing plants are designed to be used on ship.
Re:International Waters (Score:3, Insightful)
The same probably applies here. The pressed CD's don't suddenly become legal but the police won't be able to seize the equipment involved as long as it stays out at sea. Of course the old radio pirates went on to become legal radio/tv stations when it was shown that a large portion of the citizens supported them. I doubt the same will occur with cd-pirates.
Re:International Waters (Score:2, Interesting)
Agreed, personally I saw this as an April-fools type story when I saw it: It sounds more like the fabrication of someone who was trying to think of a real pseudo-ironic (not literally ironic, but in the manner that most people use the term ironic): "Isn't that ironic? They're producing CDs, making themselves pirates, on ships! HAHA!". Legally, as you said, this has zero merit. The excuse that they're doing it to avoid detection has no validity either: One can hide a dupe machine anywhere with zero chance of getting caught-> Getting caught comes when you start to sell the product and the authorities work themselves up the chain until they're busting in your door.
I'd love to here from someone in Malaysian confirming this story, because personally it sounds like BS.
Re:International Waters (Score:2, Informative)
i personally don't think this story is false, as the state of lawlessness in malaysia can be quite bad at times.
just a year or two ago, bandits masqueraded as military officials and stole over a hundred M16s from a malaysian armoury in broad daylight. another bunch of them stole some steyr AUGs, and both gangs went on a spate of robberies before the authorities managed to catch up with them.
in view of the above, i don't think malaysian software pirates shifting their base of operations to a ship is that unlikely =) besides, the malaysian authorities recent clamp-down on software pirates has been quite well publicized so such a reaction from the pirates may not be that far-fetched.
Freedonia (Score:3, Funny)
I believe that a vessel in internation waters is subject to the laws of its flag country -- the country in which the vessel is registered.
Then register pirate ships in Freedonia, whose flag (called "Jolly Roger") is a white skull and crossbones on a black field.
Re:Freedonia, and "Micro Nations" (Score:4, Interesting)
Say, perhaps, the "Country" of Sealand [sealandgov.com]?
Now, here you might have something! You get the 3 guys (or whatever) to agree to register with the International Registry, and
Heck, they practically are a ship to begin with!
But this raises more questions... What if you have a permanently anchored "dock" at sea? Something that floats, with pools, solar water purifiers, etc, and market it as a "vacation resort"?
Make it big, and kinda sprawling, and make it float. What then? Cruise ships today routinely take passengers numbering thousands, already many more people than something like Sealand.
At what point can a manmade structure become a nation?
From Waterworld to Super Mario Bros. (Score:2)
You have to be careful, though, or Dennis Hopper and his Smokers will start raiding.
In that case, just send Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo after them [imdb.com]. Or send in Diddy Kong; he's dealt with pirates before.
Re:Freedonia, and "Micro Nations" (Score:4, Insightful)
A nation, in the final analysis, remains a nation when it fends off attack by challengers to its status. Sadly.
It is similar to my personal definition of intelligent life: a lifeform that shoots back at humans -- and wins. Whales would be considered ILF's if they fired frickin' lasers at the whalers.
Nations that want to remain nations, even if they are floating platforms in the ocean or spinning city-states in solar orbit, must have legal, economic, or martial ability to defend and counterattack.
Sealand exists because it isn't worth anyone's time to remove them. And a nation that simply removes Sealand will face really bad PR if they don't fabricate some excuse first: select 1) for pedophiles 2) for terrorists 3) for Drugs.
If Sealand gets private support, as offshore tax havens do, it will continue to exist, bar provocation. The pirates, however, will be sunk. No one is looking, and no one cares.
Re:Freedonia, and "Micro Nations" (Score:3, Funny)
Why don't you just give peace a chance?
The best way to avoid war is to disarm.
Oh yeah? Tell that to the frickin' laser-totin' trigger-happy whales!
Re:International Waters (Score:5, Interesting)
> I believe that a vessel in internation waters is
> subject to the laws of its flag country -- the
> country in which the vessel is registered.
Then these ships must fly a gold sun cross on a field of blue, the flag of that island whose language is song. Its divine Queen has never recognized the property rights, real or "intellectual", of the media sharks before ("Mosura" 1961, "Mosura tai Gojira" 1964, or "Gojira, Ebira, Mosura: Nankai no Dai Ketto" 1966), and I don't see her starting anytime soon.
Seriously, I think it bears pointing out that these ships are pressing VCDs of movies so we are talking MPAA here -- let us get our sharks straight. The market for these unauthorized copies is to people in the region who would never, ever, be able to afford a full price DVD. As with software, cheap versions of the hardware is a seriously major purchase for them (assuming they don't just use a computer at an internet cafe). Just forget about their having anything but pocket change to pay for the software/movies/etc. The street vendors hawking these unauthorized copies sell at what the market would bear. The media sharks do not sell to these people, so there is demand, but not much money, and no legitimate products to fill the demand.
The people out in boats making these VCDs are *not* real pirates. They do not hijack ships, murder, or rape (at least, that we know of). Yes, they are breaking a law, but so is the average American who speeds on the way to work, parks without paying the meter, or lies on income tax forms.
If the media sharks were remotely interested in actually putting an end to this terrible crime, they'd sign these "pirates" on as local distributors for a cut of their profits! The people get their movies at a price they can afford, the newly ordained distributors can conduct their business under more pleasant conditions, and the police can save their efforts for those who continue to prefer breaking the law and, gasp, actual murderers! The sharks save money on enforcement, and make a little money from their new distributors.
But no, that would be common sense. We can't have that!
Bells are ringing: Mothra, Mothra! Every heart is calling: Mothra, Mothra!
Come on, Tok Wira, these sharks have gotta pay! New Kirk calling Mothra, we need you today!
G Countdown: 23 days (www.godzillaoncube.com)
Re:International Waters (Score:2, Funny)
Well duh! (Score:5, Funny)
crazy (Score:3, Funny)
Re:crazy (Score:3, Funny)
Arrggghh! (Score:3, Funny)
Just look for the parrots (Score:4, Informative)
There's always a way around a law. This is just forcing a resurgance of older methods.
Piracy on the high seas? (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Piracy on the high seas? (Score:3, Interesting)
Mind you, the thought of software pirates swinging from the gallows is an interesting image! Althogh I think hanging Spammers would be more likely to meet with universal support
Re:Piracy on the high seas? (Score:2)
--Dan
Re:Piracy on the high seas? (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Piracy on the high seas? (Score:5, Funny)
Comment removed (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Piracy on the high seas? (Score:2)
Oh yeah, and if the US switched it's currency to the Euro, what would they use to prop up the Euro?
Why not USA : EU :: Russia : NATO? (Score:2, Interesting)
a slight geographical inconvenience [prohibits the USA from joining the EU]
Even if all EU members must claim territory that geographically belongs to Europe, then why not "admit" the USA to the EU in much the same manner as Russia has been "admitted" to NATO?
Cheaper by the million (Score:5, Interesting)
If I was trying to make money in IP violations, this is how I would do it:
1) Forge documents from media companies, ordering large batches of CDs and DVDs from established manufacturers.
2) Sell those records to wholesalers, which might or might not be aware of the scam.
3) Profit
Why use a boat.. (Score:3, Insightful)
Someone tell those guys not to take the term "Pirate" litterally.
"Suck Emma, suck. 'Blow' is just a figure of speech!"
But... (Score:2)
What I found to be funny... (Score:3, Interesting)
Which basically means anyone can just follow the provided links to buy all the sh-t (except the boat) that will enable them to jump right into the offshore piracy business!
Re:What I found to be funny... (Score:2, Funny)
Count me out tho.
Re:What I found to be funny... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:What I found to be funny... (Score:2, Funny)
Though they're CD-arrrrrrs.
Re:What I found to be funny... (Score:5, Interesting)
They had a "subsidiary" that was stationed on a old oil drilling ship, that sat moored off outside in international waters off the coast of NYC, and broadcast at 60,000 watts. People there would work and live on the ship, only going ashore about once a month for supplies.
why? (Score:2)
obligatory simpsons quote (Score:5, Funny)
Bart: [through a bullhorn] Hey, Coast Guard! Try to stop us now, you lousy Americans.
Coast Guard: [through a loudspeaker] We can't hear you! Come three hundred feet closer!
Bart: Nice try. You're not going to nail us.
LATER:
Homer: Help! Pirates!
Coast Guard: Navy SEALs are on the way.
Homer: Oh, bless you.
Coast Guard: How about a tactical nuclear strike?
Homer: Oh, that would be just
Coast Guard: Perhaps this foghorn will answer your question. [foghorn makes the "mwah-mwaaaah" sound]
Re:obligatory simpsons quote (Score:2)
~Philly
Just Slows it down (Score:2, Interesting)
All in all, this only slows down the process of stomping on them, does not stop it.
We'll see.
DanH
Re:Just Slows it down (Score:2, Interesting)
i see you are unfamiliar with how pirated software is distributed in south east asia. the software pirates don't fuction like a mail order company or something similar; they don't mail out the pirated software CDs. they load them into big cardboard boxes and smuggle them by hiding the discs on lorries or vans which go to other neighbouring countries like singapore or thailand. from there, this discs are sold at wholesale prices to the local "distributors", who set up roadside stalls and peddle these discs for quite a handsome profit.
basically they're breaking the law all the way. first they're making pirated CDs, transporting them illegally and then selling them illegally as well. they're not gonna break the law by illegally copying software and then suddenly decide to play nice and distribute it via legal methods. this is the same reason why druglords smuggle in drugs rather than set up websites so people can use their credit cards to get them shipped via UPS.
All in all, this only slows down the process of stomping on them, does not stop it.
i doubt you know how things work over in malaysia better than the software pirates so don't make such a presumption.
the software pirates don't set up factories which they register as "software pirating factories". rather, they use factories manufacturing other goods as a cover for their operations. the authorities are able to clamp down on them after they get tipped off, and the software pirates get busted cos they can't pack up and leave fast enough without leaving any evidence behind.
due to this, moving their operations aboard offshore ships makes the centre of operations mobile, and therefore hard to track and clamp down on by the authorities.
These guys sound really scary... (Score:2, Funny)
"Arr! Give us your video CDs, or you'll be walkin the plank!"
The thought certainly sends shivers down my timbers!
Software pirates (Score:3, Funny)
Piracy (Score:3, Insightful)
real piracy, is as most people know, a horrible crime, which involves finding a ship, stuck a long way from anywhere, and attacking it, usually killing or imprisioning the helpless crew.
It will result in huge losses of life and stock.
Nothing like the 'piracy' most people associate nowadays, such as music and software.
Its a shame they associated such as white collar crime, with such as dark and horrible one.
Hilarious (Score:5, Interesting)
Police in Penang last week launched "Operation Green Ribbon" to nab peddlers of illegal CDs and VCDs and Mazlan said they had already arrested four retailers and seized over 1,000 pirated copies.
I went to Penang just recently and there were literally multi-floor malls selling professional copies of Oracle for $20, dvds for $2-5 (based upon quality), Adobe products, MS products, etc. It was so vast it was staggering. One guy took a duffel bag overflowing with dvds/software back with us.
Basically what I'm getting at is if they've only found 1000 pirated copies, then they are either totally inept or not trying very hard.
Re:Hilarious (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Hilarious (Score:5, Interesting)
Apparently, these operations can never really be stopped because while I was there, I literally saw police go and buy some copies of some VCD's (not seized, bought). These people just don't realize that their personal gain in purchasing and selling cheap software may be good for them in the short run, but disasterous to their nation in the long run.
Re:Hilarious (Score:2, Insightful)
I'm not saying i agree with their methods, but how exactly is it going to be disastrous for China in the long run? No-one would buy this software there at full price as it's simply not affordable. With the pirated versions people gain knowledge and skills that can get them jobs everywhere in the world! And it advances Chinas computer industry, so until the US lays a boycot on them for lack of copy-right prevention it'll do nothing but good for the country, seeing it doesn't loose any profit itself
Re:Hilarious (Score:2)
Exactly how did these people that can't afford software manage to find hardware to run it on? Did they steal it?
Re:Hilarious (Score:2)
Pot, kettle, black. (Score:5, Interesting)
It's not that stupid.
Maybe you don't realize it but this sort of thing worked for the USA, it worked for Switzerland and I'm sure it worked for many other countries.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/2002379.stm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,3604,
Open your eyes dude. The only reason it'll be bad in the long run is if the USA takes hypocritical, harsh and unfair action to stop others from doing precisely what it did for its own benefit in the past. Trade barriers etc etc.
Try to see it from this point of view just for a moment.
Re:Hilarious (Score:5, Informative)
There are surprise raids sometimes, but pirates somehow find out about it before hand, and all the shops close on that day. Some surprise.
There really isn't any way to elimainate piracy in Asian countries when the price of licensed software is so high. In the States, $100 for a word processor may be affordable, but when it gets converted to Malaysian currency, it becomes 380 Malaysian ringgit. Considering the per capita income of most Malaysians to be around 1000 to 1500 Malaysian ringgit, it's considered pricy (and the fact that people can easily buy the pirated version for 7 ringgit doesn't help the situation either).
To reduce piracy in these parts, software companies should price their software at prices that are affordable from a local point of view.
Re:Hilarious (Score:2)
Who in Malay would want to write and develop any software when you could steal it down the street for 7 ringgit?
Isn't that reason enough for Malay to try to curb software piracy, in order to strengthen it's own IT industry? It's akin to the US trying to put tariffs on Japanese cars in order to make US cars more competitive. In this case, it would be Malay govt placing a 200% tax on non-native software, so that instead of 7 ringgit, it now costs 21 ringgit, with the extra income being funneled into software infrastructure and schools, or something.
Re:Hilarious (Score:2)
Who in Malay would want to write and develop any software when you could steal it down the street for 7 ringgit?
The name of the country is Malaysia. Malay is the language and also the major ethnic race here.
The answer to your question is : almost nobody. Retail software is practically non-existant. The only job programmers get here is developing custom or in-house software. It's a sad state of affairs, but that's the reality of the situation here.
Re:Hilarious (Score:5, Insightful)
And that's one of the many reasons why things like Palladium are being developed - imagine region encoding on software. Except instead of a 2 or 3:1 price differential, we're talking 100 or 1000:1.
Re:Hilarious (Score:2)
Re:Hilarious (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Hilarious (Score:3, Informative)
I think it must have been a "show".
I understand China performs a show whenever Western companies complain of copyright violations during critical negotiations of some sort, just round up and destroy a bunch of fake goods hoping that the West accept their claim that they are trying.
It sounds to me like someone is making payoffs to prevent a *real* bust.
In other news.. (Score:2, Funny)
When interviewed, Rosen stated, "We will not stand for this! The Crown will pay a thousand marks to any who bring in the heads of these scourges of the entertainment industry!"
Several daring captains of the IT industry have joined forces with the RIAA, becoming privateers. However, not all recording artists agree with the actions of the RIAA.
"I was there for the announcement. This one guy, he came up to me and said, "Arr, don't be worrying matey, I'll be sinkin' those music pirates! And then he pulled a flintlock on me and stole my watch!", said Lars Ulrich.
The pirates in question could not be reached for comment.
Be on the lookout (Score:2)
Budum *crash*
This sounds like more hassle than it's worth. (Score:5, Insightful)
It made a lot more sense back in the 1950's and 60's when Norweigian oil platforms in the North Sea installed some truly overpowered AM rigs and broadcasted music the BBC wouldn't play into the UK. (Paid for by the record companies who wanted the advertising.) Then, they were doing something that was legal in Norway, but not in the UK, and benefitted from being close to the UK, so a Norweigian maritime installation made perfect sense.
Here, the pirates are doing something that doesn't benefit from being done at sea, so why bother?
Re:This sounds like more hassle than it's worth. (Score:4, Funny)
OK, then I'll register my ship with the principality of sealand [sealandgov.com], or maybe I'll launch a satellite, and form a moon base to make my copies.
Re:This sounds like more hassle than it's worth. (Score:3, Informative)
Maybe because they are a long way from their country of registration, have chosen to register with a country without a substantial navy and conduct their operations somewhere near a place which does not have good diplomatic relations with their country of registration.
Pirates, eh? (Score:5, Funny)
Q: What do pirates use to copy movies?
A: CD-Arrrr
*ahem*
Their preferred medium? (Score:2)
And once the piracy is done? (Score:5, Funny)
What is next for the RIAA? (Score:3, Interesting)
Bring back Privateering. (Score:2)
If they have pirate ships, we can have privateers, and sink them.
Re:Bring back Privateering. (Score:5, Interesting)
Hehe, maybe Sony would be interested in allowing me to pirate cd's produced by Virgin records for example, as long as I don't touch anything produced by Sony. In exchange they will provide me with lawyers to legaly protect my ass. Well fat chance of that happening
This brings a whole new meaning... (Score:3, Funny)
Holy L. Ron Hubbbard! (Score:3, Interesting)
I think I can see, like legal sheet lightning on the horizon, the copyright industry gearing up to remove the protection of international waters.
Which is doubly amusing, since the Church of Scien*ology was one of the first instigators of digital copyright law change. Back in '91, I recall, they first tore after anon.penet.fi for relaying their "copyrighted" Xenu tracts. And in '95, when they were confiscating PC's for having "illegal" copies. And certainly when they helped out with the DMCA legislation.
I just think it's funny, in a sad way. Round the circle we go. Now the copyright kings in RIAA et al. will set out after international water neutrality, seeking to to remove the protections that once saved the founder of one of the most litigious copyright abusing organizations.
If the protection of the high seas is removed, as I posit, then there will be no place left to get away from the U.S.'s interpretation of intellectual property. No Switzerlands of the mind.
Re:ARRRRRRRR, matie!! (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Yeah, because singing is just like money (Score:4, Funny)
Re:What caused this? (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Doesn't make sense to me (Score:2)
International Law is a Farce (Score:3, Insightful)
It is too hard to enforce, first of all. Second of all, it imposes the values of (mainly) the West on every country in the world.
If Afganistan wants to make heroin and opium until the cows come home, let them.
If Malasyans want to copy CDs and burn them, let them.
Creating international "bully forces" to impose Western values on other countries isn't going to do anything but cause more people worldwide to become "terrorists" who are out to "kill the West."
International law should be stripped down to cover war crimes like genocide. It shouldn't have any place outside the of things like that.
Re:Yo ho ho.. (Score:4, Funny)
Pirate Linux sounds something like PorthOS.. PorthOS is something a few friends of mine and I kicked around whenever the alternative OS announcements on /. became boring or we felt like tormenting the IT guys on campus (/. DDOS).. Anyway, PorthOS was going to be the Anti-Linux. The heaviest, most feature laden, OS ever. Error messages would be passed through text-to-speech and yelled at you in Esperanto with a drunken-french accent..
Someday it'll happen!