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Tuesday, February 5th, 2019
| Time | Event |
| 9:11a | Malaysia Blocks 246 Sites to Tackle Pirate Set-Top Box Epidemic  Since their mainstream debut two decades ago, pirate websites have never been particularly inaccessible to the tech-savvy. Today, however, streaming pirate movies and TV shows is simplicity itself, particularly when accessed through specially-configured hardware devices such as Android-style set-top boxes. Anyone comfortable with a smartphone interface is now educated enough to gain access to a mountain of infringing content. As a result, these devices are now considered a major threat to entertainment industry companies all over the world and over in Asia, the situation is no different. In response to what is already an epidemic, authorities in Malaysia are now taking action to curtail the use of these devices. To date, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry have teamed up to block 246 sites utilized by piracy-configured set-top boxes to stream movies and TV shows to the masses. “Based on the details and complaints from the rights’ owners which were made to the ministry, MCMC facilitated the shutdown,” MCMC Network Security and Enforcement Sector chief officer Zulkarnain Mohd Yasin told The Star. While the names and details of the sites have not yet been made public, given their number it’s likely they are regularly accessible websites that are ‘scraped’ by software applications present on the Android devices. This is likely to become a game of cat-and-mouse as the sites switch domains and scrapers continue to adapt. “We are working closely with the ministry and only through their complaints and the details provided to us, such as their domain and URLs, World Wide Web page address, on the illegal streaming sites, can we act to block the access,” Yasin added. In parallel with regular blocking, Malaysian authorities are reportedly employing a secondary tactic to prevent the spread of Android-based devices that are illegal under laws other than copyright. Under local law, all such devices must comply with standards laid down by the government, with the Standard and Industrial Research Institute of Malaysia (SIRIM) responsible for product quality assurance and subsequent certification. Importers and distributors are required to submit samples of their devices to SIRIM which carries out tests to ensure they meet the standards set out by MCMC. If they do, they receive SIRIM accreditation. They do not, they are considered illegal. Punishments for breaching such regulations are reported to be RM100,000 (which at current rates is around US$24,500), and/or six months in prison. “We know who [these people] are and will act against them soon to discourage and stop these illegal boxes, which promote the illegal content streaming, which breaches copyright and intellectual property laws,” Yasin added. Less than an hour away south by plane, Singapore is also taking steps to deal with the pirate set-top box phenomenon. New legal proposals to be tabled this year will aim to prevent manufacturers, importers, distributors There will also be an effort to prevent suppliers from providing assistance or instruction to customers on how to modify legally-supplied devices to perform infringing acts. If the law is adopted, it will also become an offense to customize a device provided by a user so that it can obtain infringing content.
Source: TF, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and more. We also have VPN reviews, discounts, offers and coupons. |
| 1:14p | Steal This Show S04E11: ‘Software Will Eat The World’
We discuss the origins of Twitter in the protest organisation tool TxtMob; Evan’s work developing Indymedia and the early days of tech’s interaction with activism; how social media is continuing to mutate politics, for better and worse; how the sorting algorithms developed by Big Social are becoming indelibly embedded in our world — and finally Evan introduces the subject of part two: Silicon Valley’s hidden mission to restructure the world’s institutions via software. — Steal This Show aims to release bi-weekly episodes featuring insiders discussing crypto, privacy, copyright and file-sharing developments. It complements our regular reporting by adding more room for opinion, commentary, and analysis. Host: Jamie King Guest: Rabble If you enjoy this episode, consider becoming a patron and getting involved with the show. Check out Steal This Show’s Patreon campaign: support us and get all kinds of fantastic benefits! Produced by Jamie King Source: TF, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and more. We also have VPN reviews, discounts, offers and coupons. |
| 3:33p | Kenyan Govt. Protests as National Anthem Hit With YouTube Copyright Complaint  With millions of new videos uploaded every week, YouTube is the world’s most popular platform for user-uploaded content. While the majority of uploaded works cause no issue, copyright holders regularly file strikes or claims against uploaders, complaining that they’ve used their content without permission. As reported on many occasions, this can sometimes prove controversial and today the Kenyan government waded into a dispute after a rendition of the country’s national anthem was subjected to takedown demand. The video was uploaded by 2nacheki, which claims to be the largest YouTube channel from Africa. It featured their take on the ‘Top 10 Best National Anthems in Africa’, with the Kenyan anthem coming out in the number one position. Unfortunately, however, the channel soon received notification from YouTube that their video had infringed upon the rights of UK-based music company De Wolfe Music, a claim that was made via content monetization company AdRev Publishing.  Needless to say, the channel was pretty shocked to see this claim on their account. Not only does the Kenyan government consider the piece (titled ‘Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu’ (‘O God, of all Creation’)) to be its property, but it was written by the Kenyan Anthem Commission in 1963 to serve as the state anthem after independence from Great Britain, where De Wolfe is based. Only adding to the complications is that since the anthem is more than 50 years old, it has officially fallen into the public domain. This has caused the Office of the Attorney General and Department of Justice to issue a joint press release denouncing the action against a piece of its heritage. “The National Anthem is over 50 years and has thus fallen into public domain. However, given the place of National Anthem in any country and the provisions of the National Flags, Emblems and Names Act (Cap 99 laws of Kenya) there is additional protection of the anthem against misuse and improper use,” the statement reads. “Under that Act, the use of the National Anthem, emblems, names and other similar symbols is restricted and its use shall be subject to written permission by the minister in charge of interior.”  Further muddying the waters is that variant of the anthem uploaded to YouTube by De Wolfe is not the same version as the one playing in the video it has attempted to take down, with the former completely devoid of the lyrics usually associated with the song. It’s unprecedented for a national government to get so closely involved in a YouTube copyright dispute so it seems probable that the claim against the video will be resolved relatively quickly. However, that a third-party company can so easily claim content of others as their own is a problem that will take a while to fix, unless there is a more vigorous response when dealing with controversial takedown attempts. Source: TF, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and more. We also have VPN reviews, discounts, offers and coupons. |
| 7:01p | BREIN Explains Why It’s Not going After ‘Casual’ Pirates
Backed by Hollywood and other content industries, the group has been active for more than two decades in the Netherlands. Aside from shutting down sites and going after sellers of pirate streaming boxes, BREIN is also planning to go after BitTorrent users. By using in-house software that automatically gathers IP-addresses of seeders, hundreds if not thousands of copyright infringers can be easily pinpointed. At first sight, this practice is very similar to the “copyright trolling” efforts that are common around the world. However, the Dutch anti-piracy group is taking a more reserved approach. Instead of going after the IP-addresses of anyone who’s connected to a torrent swarm, BREIN is mostly interested in structural seeders who upload content for a longer period of time. In other words, the group wants to target those who frequently offer pirated content. This decision was brought up by BREIN director Tim Kuik in the Dutch podcast “Met Nerds om Tafel” recently. There, he explained that his organization represents a wide variety of rightsholders and not all of them support the idea of going after casual downloaders. “Our enforcement efforts apply to all these copyright holders. Therefore, they all have to agree on how this takes place. At the moment there is no consensus within that group on how to deal with individual end-users,” Kuik says. BREIN’s director believes that focusing on structural uploaders is the best approach in the case anyway. “Personally, I have always had my doubts about going after individual downloaders. I believe you have to focus on the supply side,” he notes. In theory, it’s possible for rightsholders to go after casual downloaders but that’s not something BREIN can do collectively. They work with funds that come from various parties who all have to agree on an approach. TorrentFreak reached out to Kuik to clarify who the main targets are. Kuik says that pirate sites and services are the prime focus and that the planned mass settlement effort will focus on the most prolific uploaders in this ecosystem. “We focus on early and large uploaders that function as a source of unauthorized content and we will expand that to frequent and prolonged uploaders that function as a lubricant keeping unauthorized content available over time,” Kuik tells us. “Hit & run end users are at the end of the chain. We think they can best be approached with measures that raise their awareness, such as blocking access to illegal sites with referral to a landing page that explains why,” he adds. Sending informative alert emails to users whose IP-addresses are linked to sharing pirated material is also an option. However, that’s something ISPs will have to cooperate with. Enforcement may eventually shift to downloaders if there’s a situation where it’s impossible to go after the suppliers, Kuik notes. Then it makes sense to target downloaders as well. This could also apply to torrent users. Kuik tells us that if other enforcement measures, such as site blocking or going after a hosting company, fail structurally the demand side could get more into the spotlight. For now, however, uploaders are the targeted only. When BREIN plans start its campaign is yet unknown. That said, Dutch torrent users have more to fear than BREIN alone. Movie distributor Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) also received permission from the Data Protection Authority to monitor and track BitTorrent pirates. They are expected to target downloaders as well. In the podcast, Kuik also provided some further insight and commentary on piracy in general. The issue of availability also came up. In particular, the fact that Game of Thrones is only available through a single telecom provider in the Netherlands, Ziggo. This means that some people can’t access it legally, even if they wanted to. Kuik agreed that this is “strange,” but also noted that it’s one of the exceptions. “That’s a particularly strange situation, in my opinion, but that’s something that should be taken up with Ziggo,” he says. For BREIN’s director, it was never a preconceived plan to become a public copyright enforcement figure. After his law study, he took a summer job at a joint venture between the movie studios Paramount and Universal. This is where it all started. “That’s when ‘E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial’ premiered in theaters, which was heavily pirated on videotapes. This also happened with other movies but E.T. made a lot of money and Steven Spielberg was extremely concerned. In a meeting, he burst into tears about it. Something had to be done,” Kuik says. As a young legal expert, Kuik was called in to help. That would eventually turn him into a leading figure in the copyright enforcement world who helped to found dozens of local anti-piracy outfits around the world. This work is appreciated by many rightsholders, but it also results in quite a few hateful comments from people who disagree with BREIN’s efforts. That doesn’t really bother Kuik much through. “My fans are at the copyright holders. If you don’t have any enemies then you never stood up for something,” Kuik concludes. Source: TF, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and more. We also have VPN reviews, discounts, offers and coupons. |
This is part one of a two-part interview with 
When it comes to civil anti-piracy enforcement, BREIN is without a doubt one of the best-known players in the industry.| << Previous Day |
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