AfterDawn: News

Book publishers in Germany to sue file sharers

Alexander Skipis, head of the German book publishers' association, has announced that they publishers plan to launch a lawsuit campaign against file sharers.

Skipis said that they plan to sue "thousands" over copyright infringement and he even went as far as to call P2P file sharing "organized crime." Taking a job at the government, Skipis added that politicians were ignoring the huge impact piracy is having on the book industry.



In the past, hundreds of thousands of German citizens were sued over movie and music file sharing but last year the courts began ignoring any P2P-related complaints, eventually throwing them out. A new revision to German copyright laws was also intended to stop mass lawsuits campaigns from trade groups.

Skipis is also in favor of "three strikes" laws which would give alleged unauthorized file sharers two warnings before cutting off their Internet.

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 16 Mar 2009 16:08

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• 9 comments

• ZippyDSM

  Ah draconia countia...

  16.3.2009 17:17 #1

• dude845

  Totally Ridiculous. I bet the majority of people who get these books, read and delete. I doubt a majority of people even would sell/buy a printed copy of a book. Pathetic. People need to chill. It's not like they are loosing there houses over a couple dollars lost.

  16.3.2009 18:44 #2

• noncomjd

  are libraries next?

  17.3.2009 01:12 #3

• AlmostOz

  Originally posted by noncomjd: are libraries next?lol
  
  when you think about it, a library is the same thing, 1 entity sharing something for free with many other entities.
  
  In p2p at least someone has bought the item in question.
  
  My university library has just gone mostly electronic. I guess soon it will just be "this e-book will self destruct in 7 days"

  17.3.2009 01:56 #4

• ZippyDSM

  Quote:Originally posted by noncomjd: are libraries next?lol
  
  when you think about it, a library is the same thing, 1 entity sharing something for free with many other entities.
  
  In p2p at least someone has bought the item in question.
  
  My university library has just gone mostly electronic. I guess soon it will just be "this e-book will self destruct in 7 days"Libraries are kind of a thing of the past since its so easy to get any information you want online.
  
  Literary the people have become their own library and corperate is doing everything it can to bully and stop it.

  17.3.2009 03:45 #5

• Andy7472

  Not necessarily.
  
  The library has a physical copy which they are authorized to lend.
  
  Distribution of any sort without permission is a crime. No matter how many other people do it doesn't make it right.
  
  I actually support my local Library. It allows me to borrow items I would normally have to pirate. Except for bluray. Dammit. Still have to rely on Netflix for those.

  18.3.2009 02:46 #6

• varnull

  I wonder who gets the royalties on Mein Kampf
  

  
  
  Free open source software = made by end users who want an application to work.
  I would rather you hate me for who I am than love me for what I am not.
  Welcome to the other side of the looking glass Alice

  18.3.2009 03:17 #7

• emugamer

  meh....DL, read, delete is much more appealing than driving to the library, searching through non-digital media (what is this strange thin material? and where do I plug in my USB thumb drive?), checking stuff out, and then paying fines for not being able to return it on time. The way I see it, if media is released to the public in some way for free (ie. library), then all ways are ok. I don't care what they want to call it. Crime, piracy...blah blah blah. When I really want to read a piece of paper, I'll buy the NY Times, or grab a book from one of my relatives.
  
  Libraries are good for my kids. After a certain age, they just don't make sense. I started bring my 3-yr old after not having stepped foot in one in 15 years. I support my library. I pay local taxes. And I pay late fees on my kids books. And once in a while, I'll throw a couple of dollars in a donation box.

  18.3.2009 08:03 #8

• Jemborg

  Originally posted by varnull: I wonder who gets the royalties on Mein KampfVe ask ze questions!!!
  
  LOL
  
  PS: I still dig the public library.

  20.3.2009 23:20 #9