Daily Bits

copyright

New Intel Chip to Disallow Copying of Movies

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Yeah, I hear you. News like this does not sit well with a lot of people, but what with copyright issues being at the forefront these days, you really cannot say that it is unexpected can you?

Yesterday, Intel announced a new feature on their next-generation Core chips. Dubbed Insider, the feature offers studios the incentive of providing access to more high definition movies via online streaming. The main issue of studios with regard to high definition movies and online streaming is the fact that users can copy the movies. Of course, once a movie has been copied onto one’s hard drive, so many complicated questions arise.

Insider is Intel’s answer to the concerns of the studios – the feature has an end-to-end protection layer that will ensure that streaming movies will not be copied. Tomorrow, January 5, we will be hearing more about this new generation of Intel Core processors with Insider as Intel conducts the official launch.

On the one hand, this is good news. With such measures in place, studios will be more comfortable offering their premium quality movies online. This means one thing: the choices that we have will only become more varied, and for those who are nitpicky when it comes to visual quality, then HD streaming will only sweeten the pot. On the other hand, I will not be surprised to hear grumblings here and there about how restrictive this move is.

On to less controversial news: the next generation of Intel chips are going to have seriously beefed up graphics features. Now who can complain about that?

Adios, Limewire!

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Remember that green round slice of lime? There was once a time when I saw it every day when I turned my computer on, but if I remember correctly, those days were short-lived. For some users, Limewire probably played a larger part in their lives.

Yesterday, the longstanding battle between Limewire and the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) came to a halt. After four long years of battling it out in the courts, the two parties now face the end to their squabbling – to the detriment of the file sharing site. A judge from the US district court in New York has issued an injunction that forces Limewire’s features to be shut down. These are searching, downloading, uploading, and file sharing. For sure, those who still use Limewire are going to feel a sense of sadness and loss if they go to the site right now.  Try visiting the site (Limewire),  and you will be greeted by this image.

The RIAA has been the object of many a file sharer’s ire in the recent years as the group has been actively seeking out copyright violators.  This injunction is indeed a victory for them.

Limewire is not going to totally disappear from the scene, though.  While the “free stuff” cannot be accessed anymore, the people behind Limewire do have plans to come up with a system that will adhere to the law while they continue with their operations.  The question is this: will this new system make it as attractive as it was when file sharing (as we used to know it) was the main selling point?

You guys who already miss the old Limewire, I feel for you.

e-Lending on Kindle Soon Available

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Well, it is not really called e-Lending – I just made that up.  Think about it this way, though – when you buy “real” books, you may end up lending them to your friends.  If you are the kind of person who does not let other people touch their precious books, then forget about it.  However, if you are like me, and you have borrowed or lost many a book along the way, then you’ll get the implications of this development.

Last week, Amazon made two announcements:

  1. Kindle newspapers and magazines can be read on Kindle apps.  This means that even if you do not own a Kindle, you can read these materials on your device that has a Kindle app (which can be acquired for free).
  2. Kindle e-books can be lent to others who have a Kindle or who have access to Kindle apps.

Here is a snippet of that announcement:

“…we will be introducing lending for Kindle, a new feature that lets you loan your Kindle books to other Kindle device or Kindle app users. Each book can be lent once for a loan period of 14-days and the lender cannot read the book during the loan period. Additionally, not all e-books will be lendable – this is solely up to the publisher or rights holder, who determines which titles are enabled for lending.”

Interesting concept, isn’t it?  I know that there are individuals who freely share their e-books (which are acquired via other means), and this development probably does not concern them.  For those who take copyright seriously, though, the lending feature will certainly be welcome.  I don’t know what to think about the idea of not having access to your e-book while it is on loan, though.  True, if we’re talking about physical books then there is no question about it, but why does this have to apply to e-books?  Another thing – we already know that many publishers just might provide lending rights.

Nothing is set in stone, though.  Amazon says they will let us know more when the features are available.  Till then, we just have to wait.

Getty Images Decides It’s Mostly Better To Compete Than Sue, Frees Up Millions Of Images

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Getty Images Decides It’s Mostly Better To Compete Than Sue, Frees Up Millions Of Images (via Techdirt)

Getty Images has something of a reputation as a copyright maximalist. The company’s representatives have testified before Congress and pushed for copyright expansion in the past. It’s also well known for filing copyright lawsuits on those it claims…

[Read more…] about Getty Images Decides It’s Mostly Better To Compete Than Sue, Frees Up Millions Of Images

The Lowdown on the Facebook Copyright Status Declaration

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Facebook copyright status declaration
You’ve probably seen the status updates yourself. Probably too much of it in the last few days. Just in case you haven’t, here it is.

In response to the new Facebook guidelines I hereby declare that my copyright is attached to all of my personal details, illustrations, comics, paintings, professional photos and videos, etc. (as a result of the Berner Convention). For commercial use of the above my written consent is needed at all times!
(Anyone reading this can copy this text and paste it on their Facebook Wall. This will place…them under protection of copyright laws. By the present communique, I notify Facebook that it is strictly forbidden to disclose, copy, distribute, disseminate, or take any other action against me on the basis of this profile and/or its contents. The aforementioned prohibited actions also apply to employees, students, agents and/or any staff under Facebook’s direction or control. The content of this profile is private and confidential information. The violation of my privacy is punished by law (UCC 1 1-308-308 1-103 and the Rome Statute).
Facebook is now an open capital entity. All members are recommended to publish a notice like this, or if you prefer, you may copy and paste this version. If you do not publish a statement at least once, you will be tacitly allowing the use of elements such as your photos as well as the information contained in your profile status updates…

Just so you know, this thing has been going around for quite some time now and is definitely not a new thing. For some reason, it was suddenly revived in the past few days, filling Facebook news feeds with legalese.

The question is: Does posting the “Facebook copyright status declaration” actually achieve something? [Read more…] about The Lowdown on the Facebook Copyright Status Declaration