AfterDawn: News

Attorney General wants to make "attempted" piracy a federal crime

Last month, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales called for a very aggressive re-write of criminal copyright laws, some so harsh that it even included prison time for "attempted" copyright infringement, a life sentence for using pirated software and the ability to use more expansive wiretapping on suspects.

On Wednesday, he went even farther, and the full text can be found here for those interested.




"IP (intellectual property) theft is not a technicality, and its victims are not just faceless corporations--it is stealing, and it affects us all," Gonzales said, at an intellectual property event sponsored by the lobby group TechNet. "Those who seek to undermine this cornerstone of U.S. economic competitiveness believe that they are making easy money; that they are beyond the law. It is our responsibility and commitment to show them that they are wrong."


He also reminded us that his department submitted the Intellectual Property Protection Act of 2007 in May to Congress. The bill would allow for easier seizures of computers and other assets "used to commit copyright crimes", as well as punish certain attempted copyright crimes. The kicker of the bill is the fact that Homeland Security will be required to notify the RIAA of any attempts to import "unauthorized fixations of the sounds, or sounds and images, of a live musical performance."

Luckily for Americans, the Attorney General isn't very popular among Congress and so the bill's future is in doubt but last I checked Homeland Security was not receiving my hard earned tax money to go around stopping "attempted" pirates.

Source:
News.com

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 30 Jun 2007 7:54

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• 32 comments

• hughjars

  Oh well, I guess they landed the people of the USA (and the rest of us to a lesser degree) with another cretinous a$$hole then.

  30.6.2007 08:08 #1

• armorthis

  Thank god I live in Canada :)

  30.6.2007 08:25 #2

• 21Q

  Quote: a life sentence for using pirated software WTH there is no way this will get past congress, piracy is nothing like killing people.

  30.6.2007 08:34 #3

• georgeluv

  the focus of this bill is to stop people who SELL pirated material. they had all these problems cause they would find warehouses full of pirate dvds at the docks in nyc and becuase they had no hard proof that they were actualy going to be sold the people got off almost free.

  30.6.2007 08:35 #4

• Pop_Smith

  Wow, if this passes I am going to lobby big time that its unconstitutional. You can kill someone (the worst possible crime, in mine and probably most other people's books) and, as long as it wasn't premeditated, get "only" 5-to-life with chance of parole every 5 years.
  
  But, if this is passed, you could spend life in prison for simply pirating software?
  Could you imagine, here is a conversation between two imates if this law is passed:
  
  Inmate A: "Hey buddy, what are you in here for and how long"?
  Inmate B: "I am in here for life with a chance of parole in 10 years.
  What about you"?
  
  Inmate A: "I killed some guy who was in my way and I get the chance to get out in 5 years as long as I am good what about you"?
  Inmate B: "As I said I can get out in 10 years, but to answer your question I pirated Adobe DreamWeaver".
  
  Joking aside, the American legal system is almost beyond saving already. With the way they work what is considered "Attempted" anything I could see 30% or more of the population thrown in jail for "Attempted Piracy" among other things they "Attempted" to do.
  
  This Alberto Gonzales clown should be thrown in jail for "Attempting to create highly illegal laws". Either that or "Failure to use brain" but if they picked the latter I am sure 30% of the public would also be thrown in jail at one time or another.
  
  Peace

  30.6.2007 08:39 #5

• denzilla

  I'm a republican, but I wish this guy and the big corp jerks that lobby/corrupt congress would STFU and go away.

  30.6.2007 08:56 #6

• canuckerz

  Originally posted by armorthis:Thank god I live in Canada :)
  ehmen to that, but u know Harper is a big league bandwagoner so its only a matter of time if this crap passes.

  30.6.2007 09:44 #7

• vinny13

  My thoughts of the American goverment and so on are really beginning to change, and I'm a 14 year old Canadian :S. Pfft life sentence!
  
  I feel bad for you Americans that have health insurance... After watching that movie Sicko, your almost better off without it!

  30.6.2007 11:39 #8

• plutonash

  Believe me this guy is going to lose his job his caught up in several scandals so no worries.

  30.6.2007 12:08 #9

• jamestan

  Who's Gonzales ? An asshole ?

  30.6.2007 12:22 #10

• hikaricor

  Never heard of the guy. RIAA/MPAA must have given him a nice cash bonus to try and fly this kite.

  30.6.2007 12:30 #11

• AXT

  wonder how much money the RIAA and MPAA promised him?

  30.6.2007 12:53 #12

• Mik3h

  Thank God I don't live in the US. Scotland FTW.
  
  -Mike

  30.6.2007 13:43 #13

• ZippyDSM

  So let em get their right skirting the copy right right laws with the fair use laws means I should get a life sentence? WTF,how about give life to thos nasty CEOs who break CP/IP laws with every other invention or "process" they make or steal.
  
  how about going after the pirates(thos who who SALE copies), and companies that try and bypass CP/IP in order to get their product to market faster.

  30.6.2007 13:58 #14

• navi1199

  first off the guy says he wants to make attempted piracy a federal crime, I doubt this is going to happen because someone else tried to do the same thing before but never happened.

  30.6.2007 16:50 #15

• borhan9

  This guy seems to make load noises to make himself noticed hence this will not go anywhere.

  30.6.2007 16:52 #16

• Ofnir1

  A life sentence for attempted murder I can understand, unless it was in self-defence of course, but attempted piracy?

  30.6.2007 17:04 #17

• Proximus

  He must be mistaking real pirates that murder people for valuables on the open ocean for people who casually sit at their desktops waiting for a download to finish.

  30.6.2007 17:20 #18

• ZippyDSM

  Originally posted by Proximus:He must be mistaking real pirates that murder people for valuables on the open ocean for people who casually sit at their desktops waiting for a download to finish.With the money he and bushy is gettign from the media mafiaa,dout it :P
  
  really where the corporate IP/CP/piracy outcry?
  
  Between some waiting for for a product to sale before claiming IP violation and some blatantly ripping IP/CP, they stop and pick on downloaders/buyers all of the sudden WTF?!?!

  30.6.2007 17:24 #19

• Winddog

  It is pretty sad that copyright piracy rates higher with Homeland security than Terriost do. Of couarse they can't make money from the Terriost. And that is what it is all about isn't it? Oh well, we put these stupid people in office. I think that public service corruption should be the death pentaltly.But then who would be left in public office?
  

  Eric

  30.6.2007 17:44 #20

• Unfocused

  So, using the above mentioned Dreamweaver, you used to be able to download this and evaluate it for 30 days. I'm not sure if you still can, but that is beside the point.
  
  So I do download this software for legitimate evaluation purposes. Just because this software can be cracked to last forever and bypass the licensing, would this count as attempted piracy?

  30.6.2007 17:47 #21

• Pride1

  crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,crap,
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  and oh yeah i forgot to mention CRAP

  30.6.2007 18:23 #22

• snoodking

  He needs to go find a rock and go live in the stone-age because he has no clue what he would do to the public, i'm glad he isn't popular among congress.

  30.6.2007 20:17 #23

• faqman98

  people should just view piracy, from a legal standpoint, as just another expense to making it in any free society and that companies should just factor that loss of sales into their predictions just how the indian mafia is very big in bollywood and producers factor in payoffs into the budget

  30.6.2007 23:16 #24

• Xian

  I think the US will keep trying to strengthen their piracy laws. Over half of all their exports now are in capital goods, the raw materials to manufacture other goods. Goods are manufactured elsewhere. That leaves Intellectual Property as one of the main exports of the US, and nearly the only one that does not have a trade defecit - more being bought than being sold. Piracy threatens that export. In the past 50 years the US has switched from being one of the world's major manufacturers to a provider of raw materials and IP. When a large part of the US Gross Domestic Product is IP, then the government can not allow the IP to be taken for free, so more invasive laws are on the horizon.
  
  I don't like the conclusion I have drawn, but I can see the reasoning behind it. It's not just the RIAA/MPAA but the bottom economic line of the US that is at stake in their eyes.

  1.7.2007 09:41 #25

• relffy

  me too I am so glad I don't live in the US.

  1.7.2007 14:05 #26

• tin23uk

  the answer to all piracy problems is to lower prices on everything movies, software, music including ticket prices at the cinema. if things didnt cost so damn much people would tend to obtain these products legally instead of downloading them or buying them from a guy in a dark alley. they are making the rich richer and the poor and middle class poorer. right now they are crying about low sales because of piracy but if things were cheaper more people would buy them and therefor profits would even out, even when being sold at a lower price and billions also could be clear profit instead of being used to stop piracy.
  
  everything is ran by greed so this is never gonna happen and when an end is put to piracy which im sure it will be one day because of its growing popularity then prices for movies music and software is gonna go sky high. if they start giving life sentances for downloading and make it easier to be caught everyone is gonna pack in the downloading and pirating and then the riaa/mpaa will be free to charge whatever the f**k they like for the products.
  
  and by lowering the prices on things like movie tickets they would not also encourage pirates and downloaders to go watch it instead of download it they would also bring in people and families that cant afford to go to the movies or buy a computer and download it and in turn profits would go way up without breaking the consumers bank account but the people controlling this are too greedy and stupid to realise this obviously its a simple equasion computer prices and high speed internet account costs are getting cheaper, movies music and software are becoming more expensive. what do they expect people to do.

  2.7.2007 09:23 #27

• Ofnir1

  Originally posted by relffy:me too I am so glad I don't live in the US.What country are you in? Don't worry, I'm no "enraged American", I'm just trying to say that American influence is pretty much everywhere these days. Even in third world countries where companies tell mothers not to breast feed their kid or else their kid will get diseases and suggest they buy their products to avoid that, pretty much striking fear into them for a couple of dollars. But in turn, the product ends up creating more problems. Which company is this, it is Gerber. And last I checked, Neslte either bought or merged with them, and Nestle is no good either. Although, I have looked on the back of their Juicy Juice product and it seems there are no bad additives so far. Who knows, it could be to keep status quo, of all of things.

  2.7.2007 12:53 #28

• armorthis

  Quote:Originally posted by armorthis:Thank god I live in Canada :)
  ehmen to that, but u know Harper is a big league bandwagoner so its only a matter of time if this crap passes.I give harper a few more months before another election is done, this country can't be run (well) with a minority government.

  3.7.2007 06:27 #29

• jerryf01

  This is all about $$$, nothing else. Republicans are very well known for being stooges of big business. nuf said
  That being said, the stupid people of America deserve everything that Alberto throws at them, "They" luv Alberto's boss who can do no wrong. All this crap started because some blacks were drawing welfare and the middle class was resentful of that simple fact, so here comes the republicans to the rescue. It seems their thoughts are don't waste it on the white and black trash, lets give it to the Oil, Aircraft, Archer,Daniels, Midland and anyone one who can ship American jobs overseas. Google Sugar, or ethanol or Halliburton, see where your tax dollars go. Congress is for sale, and don't you forget it.

  7.7.2007 02:37 #30

• diableria

  wonder how much money the RIAA and MPAA promised alberto gonzalez must had been a lot

  7.7.2007 07:31 #31

• hermes_vb

  Originally posted by jamestan:Who's Gonzales ? An asshole ?Pretty much. His incompetency makes us Latin people look bad. Just for the record, we are not that dumb...

  7.7.2007 09:26 #32